Stuffed Vine Leaves - {Dolmades}

Recipe Instructions In a bowl mix the raw ground beef, onion, oregano, parsley, mint, rice, salt, and pepper together. Carefully, separate the vine leaves. Place each leaf on a wooden board shiny-side down, with its stem toward you. Put a teaspoon of the stuffing near the bottom of the leaf, fold the bottom and 2 sides to cover the filling, and roll tightly toward the tip of the leaf. Place them in a casserole dish or pan and cover with several of the remaining grape leaves. Cover completely with stock or water and place in a preheated 350 degree oven to bake for 1 hour, or until the rice and the leaves are tender and the juice absorbed. Once the grape leaves are done, uncover them. Carefully pour any remaining liquid out of the pan into a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix the lemon into the eggs and beat until frothy. Slowly whisk in the remaining broth from the grape leaves into the egg/lemon mixture. If it is done too fast, the eggs will curdle. Pour the entire egg mixture over the grape leaves and let sit to warm. Serve cold as a meze (appetizer) or warm as an entree. This recipe yields 12 meze servings, 2 entree servings. Caution: There have been warnings against consuming raw or lightly cooked eggs on the grounds that the egg may be contaminated with Salmonella, a bacteria responsible for a type of foodborne illness. Healthy people need to remember that there is a very small risk and treat eggs and other raw animal foods accordingly. Use only properly refrigerated, clean, sound-shelled, fresh, grade AA or A eggs. Avoid mixing yolks and whites with the shell.