Stuffed Vine Leaves - Authentic Turkish Dolma Recipe - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 lb pickled grape leaves, pickled in brine then washed and drained
4 medium onions, diced
2 cups rice, washed under cold water and drained
1 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped finely
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup dried currant
1 tablespoon dried mint flakes
1 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons lemon salt
1/2 lemon, juice of

Preparation

Dice the onions and saute with 1/4 cup of olive oil.
When they turn translucent, add the pine nuts and saute for 5 more minutes.
Add rice and stir constantly for 5-10 minutes until the rice is translucent.
Add the spices (dried mint, cinnamon, lemon salt, black pepper, dried currants, sugar and allspice) and chopped parsley.
After another quick stir, add 1/2 cup of boiling water and simmer on low medium heat for 15-20 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed by the rice mixture.
Take off heat and let cool.
And now, here comes the fun part. Traditionally, you would put a spoonful of the cooled mixture in the center of the top part of the leaf, fold the sides inwards and then roll the leaf like a cylinder. But since I have \"The Ultimate Dolma Machine\" (follow the link mentioned in the description section), I just placed a leaf on the rubber compartment of the machine, put a tbps of mixture in the middle and with a single slide, there comes my dolma from the other side of the machine. The process was a breeze. It took me only 10 minutes to roll nearly 40 perfectly shaped dolmas. Below is the process fully photographed.
As the final step, spread a layer of vine leaves on the bottom of a large and heavy pot (to prevent the stuffed leaves from burning).
Lay all your dolmas side by side and tuck very tightly.
Transfer the remaining 1/4 cups of olive oil, juice of half a lemon and 2 cups of boiling water, cover with a plate upside down (so that the dolmas don't move around in boiling water) and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer until all the water is absorbed (roughly 45-60 minutes).
Transfer to your serving dish and let cool.