Lamb Saute with Roasted Eggplant

(Kuzu Etli Patlıcan Söğürme - Hatay)

~350 - 400 g lamb, cut in cubes
1 medium size onion, sliced
2-3 garlic cloves, sliced
2 tbsp butter
2 large tomatoes, peeled, diced
Salt
Pepper
~
2 medium size eggplants, roasted
3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp pepper flakes
Salt
Pepper

Peel off the skins from the eggplants, place in the strainer to drain the excess water. Cut in small pieces. Then add in the extra virgin olive oil, pepper flakes, salt and pepper, mix. Keep it warm.

Meanwhile cook the lamb and onion with butter in a medium size pot until there is no water in it. Then add the tomato, garlic, salt and pepper. Cover and cook until the tomatoes are cooked.

Place the roasted eggplants in a serving platter. Arrange the lamb over the top. Serve while still warm.

2 servings.

Black-Eyed Peas in Olive Oil

(Loğlaz Aşı / Zeytinyagli Börülce)

1/2 cup black-eyed peas, boil in 2 cups of water until tender (for 15-20 minutes), then rinse
2-3 green onions, chopped
1-2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 small carrot, peeled, cut in small cubes
1 small potato, peeled, cut in cubes
1 medium tomato, peeled, diced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (half for cooking, half for after cooking)
1 small cubanelle pepper, chopped
1-2 tbsp canned crushed tomatoes
~1 1/2 cups water, warm
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp sugar
Salt

Garnish:
Parsley, chopped

Place the carrot, potato, olive oil, diced tomatoes, garlic and salt in a medium size pot. Cook for 5 minutes at low heat. Then, add the rest of the ingredients. Cover and cook for 20-25 minutes at medium-low heat, turn the heat off. Let it cool down in the pot. Then, place on a serving platter. Drizzle the rest of the olive oil. Garnish with parsley.

Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Green Tomatoes Soup

(Kavata Çorbası - Ottoman Kitchen)

500 g green tomatoes, washed, diced
1 small green Bell pepper, discard the seeds, diced
3 tbsp butter
~3 cups beef broth
1/2 cup milk + 2 tbsp flour
Pinch of nutmeg
Salt
Pepper

Dill butter sauce:
2-3 tbsp dill, chopped
1 tbsp butter

Saute the tomatoes and green pepper with butter for 4-5 minutes at medium heat. Add in the beef broth and cook until the vegetables are done at medium-low heat. Then strain it using a strainer. Pour the liquid back into the pot. Whisk the milk and flour in a bowl. Slowly pour into the soup. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper. Stir constantly and cook for about 10 more minutes at medium-low heat.

Heat up the butter in a small pan, when it starts to bubble, add in the dill and then turn the heat off. Drizzle all over the soup. Serve immediately.

4 servings.

Mussel Borek

(Midye Börek)

Phyllo Pastry
Olive oil
One Egg, beaten

Filling:
Crumbled feta cheese or Ricotta cheese
Parsley, chopped
Egg yolk

Fold the sheet of phyllo pastry in triangle (picture & picture). Brush some olive oil. Fold the sheet starting from the middle of the long side through to the tip (picture & picture). Place one side on top of the other one. Place 1 tsp filling on it (picture). Close the two sides, then fold over the top and roll to close it up (picture & picture). Turn it upside down (picture) and line them on an oven tray with the parchment paper. Egg-wash them all.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Bake until the tops turn to light golden colour.

*One Phyllo Pastry makes one Mussel Borek.
If you use Turkish yufka; cut in 4, so one Turkish yufka makes 4 Mussel Boreks.

Lemon-Almond Cookies

(Limonlu Bademli Kurabiye)

200 gr unsalted butter, at room temperature
50 ml extra virgin olive oil
1 cup sugar
1 lemon's zest
1 orange's zest
3 eggs + 1 egg yolk
1/2 cup lemon juice + 1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
~4 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Topping:
1 egg white
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup almond, crushed

Cream the butter, extra virgin olive oil, sugar, eggs, lemon and orange zests. Mix the lemon juice and baking soda and add into the cream. Then slowly add the flour and baking powder. Make sure they are well mixed.

Make chestnut-sized balls with your hands. Dip one part of the ball first in the egg white, then almonds and then sugar. Place them on the parchment paper on an oven tray with the sugar parts on top.

Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C) and bake until the tops turn to a light pink colour. Takes app. 25-30 minutes. Transfer to the wire rack, let cool completely.

Makes about 30 Lemon-Almond Cookies.

Pickled Chard Stems

(Pazı Sapı Turşusu - Sivas - Central Anatolia)

Bunch of red Swiss chard stems, washed and cut in 1 cm long
1/4 cup red Bell peppers, cut in strips
1 cayenne pepper or 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, optional
1-2 garlic cloves, minced with salt

For the pickling liquid:
2 cups water
1/2 cup vinegar
2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp lemon juice

Place the chard stems, red Bell peppers, red pepper flakes and garlic into the clean glass jar.

Bring to boil water, vinegar, salt, oil and lemon juice for 2-3 minutes in a medium size pot. Turn the heat off. Put it aside to become tepid. Pour into the jar, cover the stems.

Place a heavy object on top of them. Tightly cover the jar. If you don't have any heavy object, keep the jar upside down. Keep it in a cool and humid place for 15 to 20 days.

See, How to Make Pickled Chard Stems Stir-Fry:)

Tomato Tava

(Domates Tavası - Gaziantep)

~200 g regular or medium ground beef
1 medium size onion, sliced
1 cubanelle pepper, discard the seeds, sliced
2 large size tomatoes, peeled, diced
Salt
Pepper

Garnish:
Crushed red pepper
Parsley, chopped

Saute the ground beef with onion at medium-low heat until all the water evaporates in a shallow pot, while stirring. Add the tomatoes, cubanelle pepper, salt and pepper. Cover and cook until the tomatoes are tender.

Garnish with some crushed pepper and parsley. Serve with Rice Pilaf, Ayran and freshly baked Turkish bread on the side.

2 servings.

Pan Fried Mushrooms

(Sacda Mantar Kavurma)

~350 g mushrooms, cleaned, cut in bite size
1 tbsp butter or 4-5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 medium size onion, sliced
1 garlic clove, sliced
2 medium size tomatoes, peeled, cut in small pieces
1 cubanelle pepper, cut in small pieces
Salt
Pepper

Garnish:
Paprika
Oregano

Start to saute the onion with butter. The cooking process is supposed to be in a sheet pan but since I do not have it, I used a Chinese pan (wok). Add the rest of the ingredients. Continue to saute for 4-5 minutes. Turn the heat off.

Season with paprika and oregano. Serve while still warm with pide or Pilaf on the side.

2 servings.

Strawberry Milk Pudding

(Çilekli Muhallebi - Istanbul)

4 + 1/2 cups 3.25% whole milk
1/2 cup cream, 35% (heavy cream)
3/4 cup sugar
3 tbsp rice flour
4 tbsp corn starch
~
400 g strawberries, rinsed, sliced + 3 tbsp powdered sugar

First, mix strawberry slices with powdered sugar in a bowl. Put aside for an hour. Place it in a blender and pulse 3-4 times.

Place and whisk 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup cream, sugar, rice flour and corn starch in a medium-size cooking pot. Dissolve the sugar at medium heat. Slowly add the 4 cups of milk. Stir constantly to make it thick enough. Add in the strawberries and continue to cook for about 2 more minutes while stirring. Immediately pour into the individual bowls. Let them cool down first. Cover and refrigerate.

Garnish the muhallebi with strawberry slices and serve.

Makes 6 - 8 servings.

Chicken Stew with Sweet Peas

(Tavuklu Bezelye)

250 g chicken, cut in cubes
1 1/2 cups sweet peas, frozen or fresh
1 small white potato, cut in small cubes
1 small carrot, cut in small cubes
2-3 green onions, chopped
4-5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
~1 cup hot water
Salt
Pepper

Garnish:
2 tbsp dill, chopped

Saute the chicken with olive oil at medium-low heat until the chicken change its colour. Then, add the rest of the ingredients. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes at medium-low heat.

Sprinkle some chopped dill over the top and serve with Turkish Rice Pilaf on the side.

2-3 servings.