Beit el Baraka
Description
Grape leaves, a popular staple of healthy Lebanese cuisine, are rich in vitamins and minerals. Widely used in the Mediterranean diet, vine leaves are often stuffed with rice and minced meat, or with rice and chickpeas for a vegan-vegetarian version. Ancient Greek literature mentions stuffed grape leaves (warak arich) as a dish served to the gods of Mount Olympus. Other references report that Alexander the Great made vine leaves part of his army’s diet when they marched into Thebes in 335 B.C., which led to their introduction to the regions he conquered. The Ottomans later spread this dish to Central and Eastern Europe during the 14th and 15th centuries.