Small Lebanese lamb 'pizzas' with pomegranate molasses and pomegranate seeds

Here's a recipe for some small lamb 'pizzas' that were on the table during yet another housewarming/welcome party back in December, alongside (though not necessarily simultaneously) with salmon & cream cheese canapés, grilled beetroot & suluguni cheese canapés (basically a non-rye bread no-goat cheese version of my contribution to the (in)famous Cheese Sandwich Day; Suluguni cheese was left over from hatchapuri), puff pastry sausage rolls with sesame seeds, small puff pastry & mushroom tartlettes, Molly's chocolate & nut blocks and raspberry marshmallows, among other things. These were really interesting - the pomegranate molasses adds a certain sweetness and depthness to the topping, and pomegranate seeds really make the dish sparkle. And believe me - cinnamon is the perfect pairing to the minced lamb..

The recipe is from one of the books by Sam & Sam Clark - the restaurateur couple I met in Edinburgh last March. It's a second dish from them on my blog in about a month or so - I also tried their chicpea salad with pomegranate seeds and saffron recently. Considering that I've bookmarked many other recipes, then the Clarks are probably going to make an appearance again soon:)

Small lamb 'pizzas' with pomegranate molasses & seeds
(Väikesed lambalihapirukad)
Adapted from Sam & Sam Clark's Casa Moro (p. 42, Flatbread with lamb, pine nuts & pomegranates)
Yields ca 40 small 'pizzas'



(On the top left corner you can see small salmon canapés that I first served on my birthday back in April; on the top right, small puff pastry sausage rolls with sesame seeds; at the centre at the far back, a bowl of wasabi peas)

The dough:
a batch of your favourite pizza dough or some other yeasted bread dough, using about 300 ml of liquid (I used half of the dough for my tiny mushroom pies)

The topping:
500 grams of lean lamb meat, ground
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp ground cinnamon
4 Tbsp pomegranate molasses
50 ml water
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
peanuts

To garnish:
chopped fresh parsley
seeds from one large pomegranate

Prepare the yeast dough and let it rise according to your favourite recipe (or use half a batch of dough from here)

For the filling, grind the meat (I used the special food grinder attachment of the KitchenAid).
Heat the olive oil on a frying pan, add salt and onions and fry gently for about 7-8 minutes. Add the garlic, fry for another 3-4 minutes, until transluscent.
Add the minced lamb and cinnamon to the frying pan, increase the heat a little, and fry, stirring regularly, until the meat is browned.
Season with salt and pepper, add the pomegranate molasses and water and simmer, until water has evaporated. Remove from the heat.

When you are ready to start baking, then roll the dough thinly (ca 4 mm) on a slightly floured worktop. Cut out small circles ca 5-6 cm in diametre (I used a smallish drinking glass for that). Place them on a parchment-paper covered baking sheet.
Place a scant spoonful of lamb filling on each dough disc, pressing down gently. Sprinkle with pine nuts.
Bake at 230C for 10 minutes or until they're cooked and golden on edges.
Transfer to a metal rack to cool, then sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and lots of chopped parsley to serve.