Binnur's Turkish Cookbook

TurkishCookbook.com - Delicious, healthy and easy-to-make Ottoman & Turkish recipes

Sunday, April 10, 2005

Halfmoons with Feta Cheese

(Poğaça)

Click to enlarge
Main:
10 tbsp (155 ml)(1 stick + 2 tbsp) unsalted butter, room temperature
70 ml extra virgin olive oil
2 cups all purpose flour
1 egg
2 tbsp plain Turkish yogurt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Filling:
3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Glaze:
1 egg yolk

Pre-heat the oven to 375 F (190 C).

Put all the main ingredients in a deep plastic bowl. Mix well using your hand. Take a small piece of dough (about the size of a plum), make a little hole in it (picture) and then place 1 tsp of the filling inside (picture). Close it up, giving it a half-moon shape.

Place the pieces on a baking tray. Then brush each pogaca with egg yolk for glazing. Bake for about 30 minutes. This recipe will make about 22 pieces.

Have with tea in the morning or afternoon. Pogaca will taste better if you prepare the dough the day before you bake it and leave in the fridge overnight.

Labels:


51 Comments:

At 6:24 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great recipe..great pictures.
Any chance in the near future for the recipe for "asure"
Many thanks!
Hulya
Australia

 
At 11:04 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Thanks a lot, I can post the recipe for Asure in the first half of July, so check back in a few weeks :)
Binnur

 
At 5:36 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

this is my second recipe from you, after the asure which i think was better then my mom's.
couple of requests: 180ml. of butter is really hard to measure, so i used one stick (1/2 cup=4 oz.)
also pinch of salt maybe?
and i decorated mine with black sesame seeds on top.
thanks again.

P.S. am i the only guy cooking?

 
At 3:58 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
I changed it from 170 ml to 10 tbsp
(1 stick + 2 tbsp) which should be easier to measure. I also add 1 pinch salt:)

 
At 11:12 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello!
Just found your site and will be trying your recipes. I have fallen in love with Istanbul and now want to eat,breathe,live and dream Turkish!
Joan (in Italy)

 
At 11:56 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thankyou for splendid recipe it went so well with my crumpets and marmelade!
Rupert E. Donnavan-Butler
London, England

 
At 5:33 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Binnur Hanim selamlar,

Bu haftasonu kahvalti icin bu pogacalari deneyecegim...

Size bir sorum olacakti: Tereyag ve olive oil icin olculeri aciklayabilirmisiniz? Tereyagini kac stick kullaniyosunuz (saniyorum 1 stick=125 gr) 70 ml ne kadara geliyor zeytinyagi icin? 1 su bardagi gibi mi?

Cok tesekkurler,
Asli

 
At 7:06 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Sevgili Asli,
1 stick + 2 tbsp butter
1 turk kahve fincanindan birazcik daha az zeytinyag kullaniyorum.
Bir su bardagi = 1 kap = 250 ml
Turkce kisimda "olculer" bolumu var, yardimci olacagini saniyorum:)
Bende dun sabah kahvaltisi icin kizima pogaca yaptim, simdiden eline saglik.
Sevgilerimle

 
At 9:47 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear Binnur,

I stumbled upon this website yesterday and I've printed out a bunch of recipes and I'll be trying them out. I am Turkish and I live in Canada. My husband is Canadian and loves my mom's cooking. Unfortunately my parents do not live in Canada so I can't always bug my mom for recipes but this blog seems to be the next best thing. Thank you so much for putting it together!

-Ferda

 
At 11:03 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Ferda,
I remember the first years of my marriage, I was far from away home
too:) The second time I left Turkey I brought my mom and grandmother's
recipes with me. Now I share every recipe that I learned from them.
That's why I really am glad that I've been helping you:) Thank you:)

Sevgilerimle,

 
At 10:46 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi,
Just wanted to say this is great. I can finally start cooking Turkish food more often as recipes in Turkish books can be difficult to follow.
I'm Yozgatli & would really like to make Arapasi. Would you consider posting the recipe?
Great work.
Wassalam
Zehra
Australia

 
At 7:03 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Zehra,
Thank you. I'm glad I could help :)
Sure I can post Arapasi.
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 9:57 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Merhaba Binnur!
Thank you so much for your time and efforts with this website. I learned most of my Turkish in the kitchen with my mother-in-law. This is one of the first turkish recipes that I wrote down while watching my mother-in-law make it. It is nice to see it with measurements. Mine which is long lost was writen in hand fulls, pinches, big spoons, and the famous turkish cooks expression of when the dough feels like your ear lobe. My mother-in-law also uses this dough with apples instead of cheese to make a dessert. I have been trying to learn how to make mercimek kofte maybe a recipe from you could help... the watch and learn without measurments just isn't working for me and I can't seem to get it right. Thanks again! Tammy

 
At 11:18 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Tammy,
Thank you:) Yes I know all my mum's and grannie's recipes which were
given to me the old fashioned way:)) It was hard to get them in
measurements...I already posted the Mercimek Kofte recipe, here is the
address;
http://www.turkishcookbook.com/2005/10/lentil-pate.php
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 5:21 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear Binnur,

Will you please tell me how to make pogaca without a filling? My husband misses this kind of pogaca, and I would like to be able to make it.

Thanks very much again,
Lynette

 
At 4:49 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Lynette,
Sure I will post it for you soon:)
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 10:59 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear Binnur,

Thank you for this great website! The recipes are perfect and take me back home. Curious to know whether these pogaca's freeze well? We're only 2 people and that's a lot of pogaca. I appreciate your thoughts.

 
At 9:51 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
Thank you for the nice comment:) I never froze after baking Pogaca.
But before baking them for myself and my husband I always divide the
dough in 2 pieces, put one into a Ziploc bag and keep in the freezer
for the next time we want to bake them:)
Take care,

 
At 12:04 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Binnur,
It's me again :)
I came back to look for Arapasi recipe you said you'd post. I could't find it. Can you pls post the link if you have. If you haven't thats fine too :)
You must be busy.
Love from Australia
Zehra (Yozgatli remember) :P

 
At 9:29 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Zehra,
Sure I remember you:P I haven't post it yet, I have a long request list, so I am hoping that it may be soon:)
Hugs from Canada,

 
At 12:27 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear Binnur,
I live in Turkey and I am now trying to cook turkish food. I found your website so helpful as there are measurements. My mother in law says there is no need for that but trust me, as a foreigner here, knowing how many cups or how many spoons really helps!!
I just tried the pogaca, my fiancé loved it but I personnally think I put too much butter.
Any idea of how many grams is a 10 table spoons?
Thank you so much in advance,
Marie

 
At 6:31 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Marie,
10 tbsp is 155 grams of butter.
Butter is not that much in Pogaca if you compare it with Brownies, Chocolate Chip Cookies...:)

 
At 12:57 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Cok degerli Binnur Hanim,

Tariflerinizi bende cogu kisi zevkle okuyor ve bazen kullaniyorum. Bazen diyorum cunku vakitsizlikten, yoksa daha cok kullanmayi cok isterdim.

Size cok ama cok uzun zamandir soylemek istedigim bir sey var. Tariflerinizi her okudugumda su bilgiyi yana yakila ariyorum ama gormuyorum. Ne olur bundan boyle koyarmisiniz bu bilgiyi? Hatta gecmiste koydugunuz tum tariflerede bu bilgiyi eklermisiniz? Cok ama cok makbule gecer. Bilmiyorum ama sanirim simdiye kadar bunu soran olmadi yoksa koyardiniz herhalde. Ricam su: Tarifinizin ortalama kac kisi icin oldugunu belirtirmisiniz lutfen? Benim kucuk cocugum var, ona pogaca yapmak istiyorum ama cok yapmak istemiyorum. Belki tarifteki her item'in yarisini alirim gerekirse. Tabiki her kisinin istahi farkli olur ama genelde yazabilirmisiniz. Bazen okuyorum recipe'lerde (4 tabak,5 porsiyon vs diye). Heleki pogaca icin coook daha kolay. Mesela yukardaki tarifi uygularsam kac pogaca yapmis olurum.

Bu yorumum elinize gectimi diye hep kontrol edecegim. Cunku cok onemli benim icin. Bu sorun yuzunden cogu tarifinize bakiyorum, agzim sulana sulana okuyorum ama es gecmek zorunda kaliyorum ne kadar urun cikacak ortaya bilmedigim icin. Asiri mesgul biri olarak bu bilginize cok ihtiyacim var. Tesekkurler. Serap

 
At 11:08 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Merhaba Serap Hanim,
Tariflerimi begenip yaptiginiz icin tesekkur ederim:)
Verdigim tariflerin asagi yukari % 80 inde kac kisilik veya kac adet oldugunu belirtiyorum. Mesela 3/4 kap olcusu kullanarak yaptigim pilavlarin kac servis oldugunu yazmiyorum. Bildiginiz gibi tavuk veya etli ise bir veya iki kisilik olabilir. Veya sulu yemek yaninda ikram edilebilir, tabi yaninda kac cesit daha yemek servisi yapildigi da onemli:)
Hamurdan 22 adet pogaca yapildigini 2. paragrafin son cumlesinde belirtmistim, sanirim kacirdiniz:)
" This recipe will make about 22 pieces. "
Bazi tariflerin sonunda, bazilarininda da tarifin icinde kac adet oldugunu belirtiyorum, pogaca tarifinde de oldugu gibi. Mesela, kofte tarifi verirken, kiymayi 10 esit parcaya bolun gibi...
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 12:26 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Cevap verdiginiz icin cok tesekkurler Binnur Hanim. Pogaca henuz yapmadim, yapmayi dusunuyorum. Aslinda Amerikali esim yapacak, o daha sabirli yemek yapma konusunda. Kac tane pogaca cikacagi cumlesini gormedim, cunku tum recipe'yi okumadim. sadece baslangic olarak nelere ihtiyacim var bu pogacayi yapmak icin onlara baktim ve bugun bir iki birsey aldim, yarin yapacagiz. Yapilan yemegin vs'nin kac porsiyon olacagi tarifin EN BASINDA belirtiliyordu gecmiste okudugum tum tariflerde. Bende boyle bir bilgiyi baslarda gormedigim icin kacirmisim. Aslinda simdi hatirlardim o bahsettiginiz cumlenin oldugu paragraf varya oraya kadar okudum hizlica. sonra da nasil olsa malzeme olunca okucam gerisini diye vaktim olmadigi icin devam edemedim.

Gercekten, tarifin en ustunde parantez icinde mesela veya siz hangi usluple soylemek isterseniz, en bastan belirtirseniz kac tane urun cikacak, kisi ona gore ayarlar alisverisini, vs.

En guzel seyi en sona biraktigim icin ozur dilerim: Nefis tarifleriniz icin tesekkurler. Cok emek harcadiginiz belli, bundan emin olun. Layettayin bir website degil. Profesyonel bir website. EN GUZELI ise ingilizce tarifin olmasi. Cunku mutfak islerini esim daha iyi yapiyor, cocuktan dolayi bende sabir kalmadi. Gecen gun oh ne guzel hemen ona bu pogaca tarifini emailledim. Bu hafta sonu bunu yapalim, bizim cocuk cok sevdi benzerini gecen gun bir arkadasta yedi dedim. Yapicaz yarin veya obursu gun.

Insallah bundan boyle en basinda bulurum porsiyon miktari bilgisinide, daha cok tarif kullaniriz burdan. cunku dedigim gibi tum tarifleri bastan sona okumaya inanin vaktim yok.
Kusura bakmayin, cok acele yazdim. Serap

 
At 11:50 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Merhaba Serap Hanim,
Pogaca, susamli simit veya catal gibi hamur isi yapmak istediginiz zaman, hamuru tam olcu ile yapin. Istediginiz miktari pisirlimeye hazir hale getirip firin tepsisine koyun. Arta kalan hamuru ziploc torbaya kaldirin, agzini kapatin, uzerini etiketleyin ve buzluga kaldirin. Istediginiz zaman oda sicakliginda bkletin ve pisirin. Ayni sekilde eti, kiymayi buyuk miktarlarda psirin, yemeklik bolun, kutulara koyun ve buzlukta tutun.
Genc yasta calisma hayatina basladim, iki cocuk buyuttum ve pratik olarak hazirladigim her seyin faydasini gordum, tavsiye ederim uygulayin:)
Yemek tariflerimi her zaman ayni standartta yayinliyorum ve degistirmeyi dusunmuyorum:)
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 3:57 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Loved the recipe. I baked them today.
I used 325 F and 40 min instead of 350 22 min. They came out perfect just like my mom's.
Thanks so much for the wonderful recipes. I purchased your book so I can have it with me all the time.
I will be making your halibut recipe tonight, that is another one of your great recipes. I changed that a little too, I sauteed the onions with extra virgin olive oil and butter, add the tomatoes and the mushrooms to this, worked out great. Yumm! Thanks keep up the good work :)

 
At 6:58 AM, Anonymous Devrim said...

Binnur selamlar...
(Güllac konusunda konusmustuk daha once).
Sana bir sorum olcakti malum yarin Bayram burdaki arkadaslari piknige davet ettim. Kolay Kahvalti ile baslayip, BBQ ile devam etmeyi planliyorum. Kuru Mayali Pogaca mi yarim-ay k.tozlu pogaca mi kararsiz kaldim. (Mayali daha ekmeksi, k.tozlu olan ise sanki daha gevrek oluyor diye dusunuyorum.) Yaniliyormuyum? Birde aklima ne geldi: pastane pogacalarina bir katki maddesi konuluyordu, gevreksi yapan. Acaba senin tariflerden birine biraz Pekmez koysak Ankara simiti havasini yakalarmiyiz? Susamli-beyaz peynirli-zeytinli bir piknik baslangici dusundum? Turk cayimiz ...Ne dersin...
Canim tariflerin icin sagol. Sana ve ailene gurbettede olsa nese dolu bayram gunleri dilerim.

 
At 9:45 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Merhaba Sevgili Devrim,
Mayasiz pogaca daha gevrek oluyor, itersen onu yap. Pekmez ilavesi icin bir sey soylemem zor. Istersen, denemek icin, hamurun yarisini ayirip pekmezli yap. Diger kahvalti cesidin Turk cayi ile birlikte ideal. Ozellikle memleketten uzak yasarken klasik Turk kahvaltisi herkesin hosuna gidecek:)
Ben de sana ve ailene saglikli, mutlu ve neseli bayramlar gunleri diliyorum:)
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 6:38 PM, Anonymous Gulay said...

Binnur hanim, I just baked these but I can't eat them because I was able to get only 12 and I have to save them for tomorrow! :) I should have realized to put one TEASPOON of filling into each pogaca but I tried to fit in one table spoon into each (I think that's what the recipes says) and they kept getting bigger and bigger. But I'm sure they are delicious like all your other recipes-- all my American friends think that I'm great in the kitchen thanks to you! Sevgiler...

 
At 8:29 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Merhaba Sevgili Gulay,
This recipe makes 22 pogaca. You did 12 pogaca. That's why they were getting bigger and bigger. But that's okay:) The recipe says "put 1 tbsp of the filling" so the amount of filling was correct:)
Sevgilerimle,

 
At 6:44 AM, Anonymous Natalie said...

Hi Binnur - I have a really urgent question - i dont have any unsalted butter, i have sutas tereyagi (normal butter) if i skip the "add 1/2 a tbsp butter" and used this butter, would it be ok? i look forward to your prompt reply x

 
At 9:47 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Natalie,
If you don't have unsalted butter, you may use salted one but the dough will be salty. So you make sure the cheese in the filling is unsalted. But the pogaca still maybe ~salty:)
If you use less amount of butter you should also use less amount of flour!

 
At 12:17 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi binnur i just made pogaca today, but since i dont know how it should taste i have a question if a half-shortcrust pastry with a not soft texture(which I very liked )is what I was to accomplish? greetings,ann

 
At 7:43 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Ann,
Yes, the texture of the pogaca should be like shortcrust pastry:)
Take care,

 
At 9:42 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Ms. Binnur,

Is the recipe supposed to be 1 tsp or 1 Tbsp baking powder?

Thanks,

 
At 9:50 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
It is supposed to be 1 tsp baking powder..thank you:)

 
At 10:16 PM, Anonymous billur said...

Merhaba Binnur Hanim,

Ben Amerika'da doktora yapan bir Turk ogrenciyim. Acikcasi buraya gelene kadar mutfakla aram pek iyi degildi ama malum taze Turk yemeklerinden bu kadar uzun sure uzak kalinca kendim pisirmeyi ogrenmek durumunda kaldim.. hala ogrenme asamasindayim. Buradaki bi arkadasim sizin lahmacun tarifinizi denedi ve hepimiz bayildik bende simdi pogaca tarifinizi deneyecegim ama aklima takilan birsey oldu farkli pogaca tarifleri ararken: kimisi hamuru mayali kimisi sutlu kimisi yogurtlu yapiyor - aralarindaki fark tam olarak nedir? Dedigim gibi daha hala acemiyim mutfakta :( Simdiden cok tesekkurler

 
At 9:54 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Merhaba Sevgili Billur,
Cok kisa surede Turk yemeklerini pisirmeyi ogrenecegine eminim:) Uzakta olunca, en olmadik yemekler burunumuzda tutuyor.
baska hamur malzemeleri ile Zeytin-Peynirli Pogaca ve Patlicanli Pogaca tariflerini de yayinladim. Ayrica Mayali Pogaca tarifini de gene Pastries kisminda bulabilirsin.
Hepsinin hamuru farkli ama bizim evde en cok sevilen Peynirli Pogaca ve Mayali Pogaca tarifleri. Hamurun malzemesine gore, pogaca yumusak, kitir veya sert oluyor:) Mesela yogurtlu daha kitir, sutlu daha yumusak...istedigin hamura istedigin ic malzemeyi kullanabilirsin.
Baska sorularin olursa, yardimci olmak isterim:)
Kendine iyi bak,

 
At 9:05 PM, Anonymous Billur said...

Oncelikle cevabiniz icin cok tesekkur ederim Binnur Hanim. Dediginiz gibi en olmadik zamanlarda en olmadik tatlar cekiyor canim hatta annem bile sasiriyor hamur aciyor olmama :) doktora yuzunden stres atma yontemleri bulmaya basladigimi soyluyor kendisi :)
Ben mayasiz hamur tarifinizi ic malzemelerini zeytin ve kurutulmus domatese cevirerek bir arkadasimin dogumgunu icin supriz olarak yaptim. Sanirim ic malzemelerin kendide yagli oldugu icin hamurun tarifindeki kadar yagda ekleyince pogaca olmasi gerektiginden daha yagli oldu ama yinede lezzetliydi :) arkadaslarim begendiler ama ben resime baktigimda daha cok aycoregi kivaminda- biraz daha puf puf bir hamur olacagini dusunmustum- benimkisi daha cok catal kivaminda oldu. sanirim dediginiz gibi yogurt hamurun daha kitir olmasina neden oldu.. acaba baking powder dan dolayi da daha sert olmus olabilirmi? bundan sonrakinde mayali tarifi denemeyi dusunuyorum. bu konudada birsey danismak istiyorum yas maya bulmak cok kolay olmadigindan tarifi kuru maya ile yapmak istersem nasil bir olcu denkligi kullanmam gerekir? simdiden cok tesekkur ederim :)

 
At 2:40 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Merhaba Sevgili Billur:)
Bu pogaca hamuru yagli, malzemelerde yagli olunca, sonuc normal galiba:))
Eger yaptigin hamurisinin yumusak olmasini istiyorsan; firindan cikarttiktan sonra, kagit havlu koydugun tencerenin icinde kapagi kapali olarak tut, hamurun yumusak olsun:)
Baking powder hamurun kabarmasina yardim ediyor, kullanmazsan cok yassi olur.
Verdigim butun mayali tariflerde kuru maya kullandim. Burada, ben de kolaylikla bulamiyorum yas mayayi.7 gr lik minik paketlerde maya bulamazsan; olcun 1 tk kasigi olacak.
Simdiden ellerine saglik diyorum:)
Kendine iyi bak,

 
At 7:51 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello. First I would like to thank you very much for all of your recipes, I use them to cook everyday. I have a question about this recipe.. I just made this and it seems kindof like a cookie texture, it is delicious, im just wondering if this is how its supposed to be?

 
At 9:54 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
Thank you:) If you meant crispy and want it softer, keep them in the container layered on paper towel with the lid while still warm. They will be softer when they cool down:)

The texture of pogaca depends on the the ingredients in it...like yogurt or vinegar or water or yeast:) I've posted a few pogaca recipes with different kinds of ingredients...

Mayali Pogaca with yeast
http://english.turkishcookbook.com/2009/05/mayali-pogaca.html

Pogaca Filled with Eggplant with vinegar
http://english.turkishcookbook.com/2012/02/pogaca-filled-with-eggplant.html

Black Olive-Feta Cheese Pogac with water
http://english.turkishcookbook.com/2011/01/black-olive-feta-cheese-pogaca.html

 
At 6:53 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi I want to try this but im not sure what result should like look for. Is this pogaca hard or soft? Should it taste like a cookie?

 
At 7:14 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi,
The pogaca has a soft texture. The dough and filling don't have sugar
in it so it doesn't taste like a cookie.

 
At 4:34 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Hi Binnur
I made these today and just wondered should the pastry have a crumbly texture? I think I may have done something wrong?

 
At 5:03 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Deniz,
This pogaca is a little bit crumbly but not that much. Mayali pogaca is
more solid because of the yeast in it. As long as you follow the
recipe, it should be fine:)

 
At 7:45 PM, Anonymous Duysal said...

Hi I have one quick question. Could you put picture up of how to shape the dough and add the feta and close? Love this site. Duysal

 
At 9:06 PM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Duysal,
Sure, I am going to add them at my earliest convenience:)

 
At 5:15 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Hi, is all purpose flour, plain flour ?

 
At 8:54 AM, Blogger Binnur said...

Hi Angela,
It is all purpose flour :)

 

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