These are kind of complicated. But also yummy. I think my perception of how much time they take is skewed because I was making about four other dishes at the same time and I spent two full days in the kitchen. That’s okay. As usual, they are freezable, so you do all the work once and you have days of meals.
They start with a soaked crust and marinated meat, so they do need to be prepped the night before you actually want to assemble them. The prep only takes 10 – 15 minutes, though. They are just a perfect lunch, paired with a salad or some fruit. They can be reheated (my preference) or eaten cold.
You don’t have to stuff these exact ingredients in these. You could really put any combination of meat, cheese, and veggies in them. This is just the first one that I tried. They could be pizza pockets, turkey and cheese, Italian sausage and veggies…really whatever you have on hand.
Philly Cheesesteak Pockets
Ingredients:
Dough
- 3 c. whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/4 c. honey
- 1/3 c. olive or coconut oil, melted
- 1 c. water
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp. sea salt
- 2 1/2 tsp. yeast
Meat
- 1 1/2 lbs. top round roast, sliced thinly*
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
Veggies
- 4 – 5 mushrooms, sliced
- 1 bell pepper, sliced thinly
- 1 small onion, sliced thinly
- 6 – 8 slices Swiss cheese
*Take advantage of having a local butcher, if you can find one, and ask them to slice the meat for you! I imagine it would have taken me a good 30 minutes, maybe longer, to slice the meat myself and I would have never gotten it very thin. But I asked the butcher to do it for me and it was awesome. I also had twice this amount of meat, and I froze some of it marinated and cooked for a dinner meal on another day.
Directions:
The night before, mix together wheat flour, honey, and oil.
Add water, and stir to form a stiff dough. Cover and put in a warm place.
Place all the meat into a large glass bowl.
Add the lemon juice, onion, garlic, and spices, then add water to cover.
Let all of this sit overnight! The easy part. 🙂
In the morning, add the egg, yeast, and salt to the dough.
Use your hands to mix it in briefly, until the dough is mixed, but sticky (just a couple minutes).
Knead the dough on a floured surface for about 10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. It will still be fairly stiff. Return it to the bowl and set it aside to rise until doubled, 3 – 4 hours.
When the dough is risen, divide it into 12 – 15 small balls and set them aside to rest.
Chop all your veggies.
Saute the veggies until softened; set aside.
Fry all the meat. You will probably need to cut it into smaller pieces — at least I did. Cook it 3 – 4 minutes per side, until cooked through.
Now it’s time to assemble your pockets! Roll out the dough in a long oval.
Place some veggies and meat on part of it.
Top with half a slice of cheese.
Fold over the other side and pinch closed carefully.
Repeat the process for each ball of dough. Place them all on a large cookie sheet. Allow them to rise for about an hour. Alternately, you could freeze them at this point (prior to rising), but they would need to sit out for several hours to thaw and rise before baking. That makes them a less quick lunch option than freezing them post-baking.
Bake at 350 for 15 – 20 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Allow them to cool for a few minutes, then transfer to bags and place in the freezer. Yummy!
**This post has been entered in Frugal Days and Sustainable Ways.**
would love to have seen a photo of one cut open after cooked 🙂 Thx for recipe