Mushroom Dible

(Mantar Dible)

~225g portobello mushrooms, cleaned, sliced
1 small onion, sliced
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp rice, rinsed
1/4 cup water
Salt

Saute the onion with olive oil for about 2 minutes in a small pot. Than add the remaining ingredients. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes at low heat until the rice is tender. Do not open the lid! Let it rest for about 5 minutes then serve.

2 servings.

Sea Bass in White Sauce

(Firinda Meyaneli Levrek)

1 (~250 gr) Sea Bass Fillet or any kind of white meat fish you like

White Sauce:
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
1/2 cup milk, warm
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
7-8 mushroom, cleaned, sliced
1 Bay leaf
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp oregano
1 pinch crushed pepper
Salt
Pepper

Oil the oven dish and place the fillet in it.

In a sauce pan, melt the butter. Add the flour, stir and slowly pour the warm milk in it while stirring constantly. The milk and flour should blend very well. Then add rest of the ingredients. Cook for about 2-3 minutes at under medium heat while stirring constantly.

Pour the sauce all over the fish, be sure all the fish covered with the sauce. Cover the dish with aluminum foil.

Preheat the oven to 400F (200 C) and bake for about 20 minutes. Place the dish in a serving dish with a large spatula. Spoon out the sauce all over it. Sprinkle some peppercorn all over the fish. Serve Sea Bass in White Sauce with lemon wedges.

Ricotta Baklava

(Lorlu Baklava)

4 sheets Phyllo Pastry
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
300g fresh Ricotta Cheese, unsalted

Syrup:
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups sugar or 1 1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice

To prepare the syrup place the water and sugar in a medium-size pot. First melt the sugar, bring to a boil. Add the lemon juice, stir. Turn the heat off. Let it cool down.

Take one sheet of Phyllo Pastry, lay it down on the counter with the long side in front of you. Brush with the olive oil. Place the 2nd layer on top. Spread the 1/2 Ricotta cheese along on the long side of the sheet. Fold the top and bottom ends over the filling. Continue to fold until it's finished. Finish all the sheets. Now you have 2 logs filled with Ricotta cheese.

Brush with the olive oil all over the tops. Then cut the logs in 3 cm wide pieces. Place on oiled oven tray or oven proof dish (I used 3L (13x9x2") Pyrex casserole dish)

Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C). Bake for about 25 minutes until the tops turn to a golden colour. Immediately pour the lukewarm syrup all over evenly. Let it cool down.

Sprinkle some ground pistachios over the tops. Then serve this traditional Ricotta Baklava dessert at room temperature.

24 Ricotta Baklava.

Bairam Menu:
-Zucchini Soup , Vegetable Borek and Kofte Kebab Wrapped in Eggplant .

Kofte Kebab Wrapped in Eggplant

(Patlican Sarmali Kofte Kebap)

Kofte Ingredients:
~500 gr medium ground beef
1 slice of Turkish bread without the crust (1 cm thick), soak the bread into milk, then squeeze the milk out
1 medium size onion, finely grated
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped
1 egg
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp red pepper
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt

2 Chinese or Japanese eggplants, washed
2 medium tomato, sliced
1 cubanelle pepper, stems cut off, seeds discarded, cut in 4 pieces

For frying:
1/2 cup liquid oil
4 tbsp flour

3 tbsp crushed tomato, canned
1 1/4 cup hot water

Mix all the kofte ingredients using your hands in a large bowl. Divide it into 15 pieces and give each a long shape, as shown in the picture. Pour the liquid oil in a frying pan and heat it up. Place the flour on a plate and roll each Kofte in it. Fry the Kofte evenly for about 3-4 minutes. Afterwards, place them on a paper towel to soak up extra oil.

Peel the eggplant skin in strips lengthwise. Cut the eggplant vertically about 0.5 cm thick. Sprinkle some salt all over the slices, wait for 15 minutes. Then, dry with a paper towel.

Pour the sunflower oil in a large skillet. Fry both sides of the eggplants until the colour turns medium brown. After frying, place the eggplants on a plate with a paper towel to soak up any extra oil. Cut the eggplants to wrap each köfte. Then wrap them individually. Arrange in a casserole dish. Put one slice of tomato on the top of the each köfte. Place the green peppers to the top. Mix crushed tomato with hot water. Pour it into the side of casserole dish.

Preheat the oven to 375 F (180 C). Place the dish on the middle rack of the oven. Cook for about 30 minutes. Serve it while still warm with Bulgur Pilaf.

4 servings.