Recipe Source: Barron, Rosemary. Meze. Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 2002 pp. 98-9
This is another dish that I made for our family's tree decorating party this past Christmas. I chose it because it could be easily consumed as finger food (not that it was) and because it contained olives. I love olives. I always have and, barring some sort of majorly scarring experience, I probably always will. The dish went over reasonably well, although not quite as well as the more Italian dishes I served. I suspect that's because the bread-to-filling ratio was a little skewed in favor of the bread, which is funny because I actually increased the amount of olives and therefore the amount of filling!
I would also like to point out that these can be made well ahead of time. This makes them great for parties, picnics and snacks for unexpected guests.
Olive Cigar Pies (makes 8; approx. $1.00/ea.)
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/4 cup warm water, plus 1 tablespoon
2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups bread flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup (approx.) pitted Kalamata olives
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup feta cheese
Equipment:
- Small bowl
- Stand mixer
- Saute pan
- Baking sheets
- Rolling pin
- Mini-prep food processor
- Combine the honey, 1/4 cup warm water and the yeast in the small bowl in a warm room. Set this mixture aside until frothy. Believe me, you'll know.
- In the bowl of the stand mixer, combine the bread flour and salt.
- Add the remaining 1 tablespoon water, egg and olive oil. Mix to distribute.
- Add the yeast mixture. Mix on very low speed 3 - 4 minutes, then increase the speed very slightly and knead another 3 - 4 minutes. The dough should be smooth and elastic.
- Set the bowl aside and cover. Let rise in a warm room until doubled in size, at least 1 hour. For the record, I never make a yeast-leavened bread unless I'm already heating up the kitchen for some other purpose. For me, in my kitchen, it's the only way to get an area that is warm enough for yeast to be active. Your kitchen may be warmer, but this is what works for me.
- In the meantime, heat the olive oil over low heat.
- Add the onion and sweat until just beginning to color.
- Put the olives in the mini-prep and process to a paste.
- Add the ground coriander to the saute pan with the onions. Heat until fragrant.
- Add the olive paste, cilantro and oregano. Cook 1 minute.
- Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and the feta. Mix to combine.
- Preheat your oven to 375.
- When the dough has finished rising, divide it into 8 separate portions. Roll each portion into a ball, then roll that ball into a circle about 4" in diameter.
- Put 1/8 of the filling into the center, then spread it out a bit.
- Fold down the top and bottom ends of the circle.
- Fold the left side of the circle over, then roll the right side to make a vaguely cylindrical object.
- Bake 5 minutes at 375, then reduce heat to 350 and bake another 15 minutes.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.


