I mentioned this recipe recently, in another form though. This time I placed the dough in a 28cm tart pan and cook the same way as before. The result was a crispy tart, which was enough to serve to 8-10 people. You can apply the same dough to an even wider pan in a thinner layer. I also added some raspberry jam to the apple stuffing. I think it can be a lifesaver in the future:-)
Angelika's Nutella Cupcakes
The second copy that I made is, from dear Angelika, who published these delicious cakes in her blog a while ago. They immediately caught my attention and the result was very good just as her other recipes. I strongly recommend it. I just forget to sprinkle powdered sugar over them , but they were very tasty anyway, had to eat two at once to satisfy my sweet tooth:-)
Thank you very much Angelika and enjoy everyone!
Aubergine is definitely my most favourite vegetable (ok, it is considered a "fruit" botanically, but I'd like to eat my "vegetable"). You can find it cooked in a large number of ways across mediterranean. You can have it fried in the most simple way; also cooked with or without meat, grilled in salads, roasted in kebabs, mixed up with bechamel for Hünkarbeğendi (a traditional Turkish dish, grilled aubergine puree served with lamb or veal ragu), mixed up with tahini for delicious babaganoush or the baby aubergines in pickles and unbelievably at your breakfast, cooked as jam. The list goes on and on but todays choice is another well known Turkish dish: dolma, which means stuffed. Dolma refers to a big family of dishes which are stuffed in similiar ways with similiar ingredients. Such as bell peppers, potatoes, onions, celeriac and of course grape leaves, as well as calamari if you prefer seafood.
Lately I found small, round aubergines in a farmer's market which sells only biologically grown fruits and vegetables. I did not wait another second to decide what to do:-) It has been a long time and we all miss aubergine cooked this way in the oven. If you have different vegetables at home as I mentioned above; you can make a colourful mixture for your dinner. You can cook them in a pot over the flame but oven-baked dolma tastes much better. If small rounded aubergines are not available, use long ones, cut in the middle and cleaned the same way. For four persons:
- 8 small, rounded aubergines
- 1 to 2 tablespoons short grain rice for each one
- 2 medium onions (diced)
- 1 clove of garlic (optional)
- 1 medium tomato (diced)
- half a bunch of chopped greens, such as fresh mint, parsley and dill (especially mint and parsley are essential)
- salt, freshly ground blackpepper, red pepper flakes (according to taste)
- 1 tablespoon dried currants
- 1 tablespoon pinenuts
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Wash and peel aubergines as shown above and clean insides with the help of a melonballer, leaving the outer skin as thin as possible without tearing it apart. You can chop insides and add to the stuffing or just saute them with a little olive oil and serve with strained yoghurt. Immediately rub the aubergines inside out with tablesalt to help diminish the bitter taste they have; as well as to prevent browning. Leave them in a colander in the sink for at least half an hour. You can see the bitter, brown juice dripping away slowly. In the meantime mix all the ingredients including olive oil and check the taste. You should feel the sugar as well as salt.
This stuffing is prepared in other ways, like sauteéing the rice with onions and cooking, till the (somewhat) risotto consistency but it takes longer time and surely needs more oil. What I used is a lighter (and quicker) version which my grandma would not approve:-)
Preheat your oven to 220C. Wash the aubergines and pat dry. Fill them loosely with the stuffing and place them in an oven dish which has a lid. I used my pyrex one. You can add potatoes to fill the empty space and to support the other vegetables, they will cook nicely and can be served along dolmas. I also filled an onion with the leftover amount of stuffing. Add around 1 glass of water, vegetables will also release enough. Drizzle them a little olive oil for a shiny look. Close the lid and put it in the oven. After 50mins-1 hour, lower the temperature to 180 and cook another 30 mins. You can lift off the lid in last 15-20mins to evaporate excess water and get them well browned.
Dolma is best served warm, along with yoghurt and lots of green salad:-) Afiyet olsun! (Enjoy)
Here is one of my favourite dishes: gnocchi! I am not a particular fan of italian cuisine but gnocchi has a special place in my culinary adventure. I eat pasta occasionally of course (my husband can eat it everyday!) but mainly I prefer pilav to accompany meat or fish.
My search for a trustable recipe for gnocchi started looong ago but never stopped until I saw it prepared in an italian food channel. I made hopeless attempts to cook gnocchi at home but each time they were becoming too mushy, too sticky, too elastic or something similiar. I also tried different types of potatoes since I am not able to find "russet" potatoes as it advised in all american versions of gnocchi. Finally with the recipe I mentioned above and potatoes which are only to be used for "boiling" and "pureéing" ; I succeeded. I still do not know the name of this special type of potato across europe, but I can describe it as "old" and "starchy" potato.
It is another challenge to give them the traditional shape but thankfully, during those hopeless attempts I made enough practice... Since I do not have a gnocchi board, I use the back of a fork and a little imagination to pretend that they seem better than the way they look. Of course I do not think that it will be a sin to leave them cut in squares or rounded as balls. Anyway, whoever loves gnocchi and has the necessary patience; I invite them to try this recipe.
- 400 grs starchy potatoes (around 4 medium)
- 1 whole egg
- 100 gr flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- freshly ground blackpepper
Cut squares from the rope and press each small piece to the back of a fork with your thumb. While keeping it pressed, pull it down gently, shaping a small roll with lines on it. It is a time consuming work, you may prefer to leave them as small squares if you wish.
Keep gnocchi on a floured tray in a single layer. If you like to cook a couple of hours later, you may cover them with cling film and place the tray in the fridge. But as humidity cause softness, I recommend to cook them quickly. You may freeze the extra amount, again in a single layer with the tray and transfer to freezer bags and store.
Bring the water to boil in a big pot, add a little salt and slowly lower the gnocchi into the pot. They will cook quickly, in 2-3 minutes and start rising to the surface. Using a slotted spoon take them out and divide in plates. Drizzle with olive oil and pour your favourite sauce over. Especially salvia suits gnocchi very well in sauces. If you do not have fresh salvia, a branch of rosemary will do as garnish. Do not forget the shredded parmesan! Enjoy!
I mentioned my "problem" with the little creatures of the sea, here on this blog once. Well, since I am continuing to cook them, and strangely, whoever tastes the food leaves the table satisfied; I decided to put another recipe. This one is made Turkish style, very similiar to the stuffing that we use for filling grape or cabbage leaves. You need to use a short grain rice here, which softens easily and sticks without getting mushy. The recipe serves 2 or 3 depending on the size of the calamari. Small ones are better looking, but the big ones are easier to fill and can be served in slices. You can substitute canned baby squids , if you cannot find fresh ones.
- 6 small or 2-3 bigger calamari
- short grain rice (1tbs for each small calamari, or 2tbs for big ones)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- half a bunch of dill,chopped
- 1 medium tomato, diced
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- blackpepper to taste
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl and fill the calamari. Use the heads to prevent the rice from spilling out. Do not fill them completely. Calamari tends to shrink, as the rice swells during cooking. Put the leftover rice mixture among calamari in the pot, it will cook up to a nice pilav. Add 1 glass of water and bring the pot to a boil. As soon as it boils, reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 35-40 minutes. Do not put salt from the beginning, as they have a salty taste already, like most of the sea food. You can test the amount of salt and the water as they cook and add if necessary. Do not overcook, we do not want them to harden all over again. Serve warm with a glass of good white wine, enjoy:-)
This is the traditional sweet dish of muslims new year celebrations. After the big flood, prophet Noah had to prepare one last dish using what has been left in the boat. They had to mix 40 different ingredients to prepare this last dish, just before they had reached the safe land. That is how ashura had been born. Nobody prepares it using so many ingredients anymore though. You will find the basics below. We leave the ingredients in water bath in different bowls overnight, but you can use directly a can of boiled legumes. The amount of sugar depends on your taste, just keep in mind that it tastes sweeter when it is hot and boiling. So consider some loss of sugar taste until it gets cool. The only thing that I cannot guide you is, the amount of water. It depends on how you start to cook, with cans or not? Add water in any case; until you reach the consistency of a soup and it will get kind of "jellied" during the cooling process. It may seem strange to you to link legumes to a "sweet" dish but it is healthy and light, also nutricious considering the fiber and vitamin B it contains. It would sound a complicated process but you can divide the work in a couple of days or minimize it by using canned food. - 2 cups hulled wheat
- 1 cup chickpeas
- 1 cup canellini beans
- 1/4 cup rice (preferably short grain)
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 7-8 dried apricots
- 1/2 cup raisins
- chopped walnuts, cinnamon and pistachos to decorate
If you are using dry ingredients, start buy washing the wheat throughly a couple of times and put it in water bath, preferably in the morning, for at least 12 hours. Before you go to bed in the evening, bring it to a boil with enough water in a big pot and leave overnight to cool. Also remember to soak other legumes in water bath separately in the evening. Next day you will have your wheat doubled in volume and quiet soft, and the legumes ready to cook. Boil the wheat until they get soft enough to press with your fingers. You can prepare boiled wheat this way and divide in portions to be kept in freezer to use in salads or your cereal bowl later on. Cook chickpeas and beans together until they get soft too. At this stage you can leave them to cool and continue next day if you are already feeling exhausted:-) Finally mix wheat, rice and the legumes in the same pot, add water to reach the soup consistency (and a little more) and put on low heat. In the meantime cut apricots in small cubes and soak them in warm water with raisins for 15-20 mins. Add sugar in wheat mixture while stirring slowly and boil for additional 10 mins. Sugar will rise the amount of water in the pot, nevermind. Strain raisins and apricots before adding to the pot and turn off the heat. Pour ashura in small bowls while it is hot and garnish with cinnamon and walnuts. Pomegranate bits are another item to decorate, if they are available. Serve warm or cold.
I love fennel. Its fresh smell and crisp taste suits any kind of salad for me. I use fennel in my kitchen regulary but just recently I tried to roast it and liked the result very much indeed. The taste changed completely, got sweeter and somewhat more delicate. Seeing that endive is used often for roasting with fennel, I gave it a go. Endive kept its shape much better than I expected and I met another taste which would be a part of my salad buffet from now on.
I like salads made of roasted vegetables very much. Served warm or cold with different vinegrettes or just balsamic vinegar, sprinkled with basil or parsley and drizzled generously with olive oil.... they are just irresistable! Mostly I slice onions, aubergine, zucchini and portobello mushrooms and roast them in the oven after brushing with a little olive oil on both sides. Fennel and endive could succesfully accompany them or stand on their own as well.
Cut the vegetables in quarters and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and coarsely ground black pepper. Roast them at 200C for about 40 minutes, mixing a couple of times. Place them on serving plate and add balsamic vinegar. A little more olive oil will do good...after all it is one of the lightest salads you can eat :-) Enjoy!
Apple, cinnamon and walnuts are the unbeatable trio for me. One of the best culinary combinations being they are, very difficult to resist eating, in whatever form you prepare them. No wonder, apple strudels or pies are two of the most wanted desserts around. This recipe is from my dear aunt Şencan, who makes delightful desserts in the kitchen as well as teaching maths at high school. This also has similiar memories as the yeast roll; I got the recipe during same winter. I have been gladly eating the ones she was preparing, but now I am away and trying to make them myself, remembering the past. Because I love the stuffing to be in bite-sized pieces; I thinly slice the apples instead of shredding them and leaving walnuts also coarsely chopped. The recipe yields only 16 with my way of cutting the pieces, but normally you will end up having around 25, by cutting smaller triangles from the dough.
- 125 gr. butter (at room temperature)
- 1/2 cup of olive or sunflower oil ( around 125 gr.)
- 1/2 cup of yoghurt
- 1/2 cup of milk
- 1/2 cup of powdered sugar
- 2.5 cups of all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda (not heaped)
- 1 sachet of vanilla
- 3 apples (shredded or thinly sliced)
- 2-3 tablespoons of sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup of chopped walnuts
Gather rest of the ingredients in a mixing bowl and knead a soft dough by adding the flour slowly. You may need to add some more, though the dough should be slightly sticky. Wrap with cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for 20 minutes. In the meantime heat your oven to 180C. Cut the dough in 2-3 pieces on a floured surface and roll to 1/2 cm thickness. Cut to 6-8 triangles and place a tablespoon of stuffing on the wide end. Roll and tuck their ends, place on lightly greased baking sheet; giving the crescent shape.
Cook in preheated oven around 30 minutes or until the colour turns light golden. Sift with powdered sugar immediately and leave on wire racks to cool. They stay fresh and crisp at room temperature; in a tightly closed tin, 4-5 days. Time to prepare the tea...or coffee you prefer?
Enjoy!
This is a recipe that I found on allrecipes.com some time ago. It became our regular bread for preparing sandwich and toasts. Maintains its softness 2-3 days at room temperature and ideal for putting in freezer for future use. Makes 16 medium buns:
- 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 egg
- 80 grs butter
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 package (9grs) dry yeast
After the first rise of the dough, put it on a floured surface, divide in 16. You may prepare 12 buns but they will be pretty big at the end. The amount of yeast helps the dough to get quite big, enough for 16. Make evenly shaped buns and place them on a lightly greased oven tray. If you have cornmeal, you can sprinkle the tray generously with it, instead of greasing. The result will be more like "baked on bricks" then. Press on each bun to flatten a little and leave, covered with paper kitchen towels, for the second rise. Heat your oven to 200C. When they are doubled in bulk, put them in preaheated oven for 20 minutes. You can "polish" them a little with egg yolk if you wish and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. When they are done, quickly transfer them on wire rack to cool.
You can freeze the left overs, if you will have any. Great for picnics or homemade hamburgers. Afiyet olsun ( enjoy).
Really, why it is called "Swiss Roll"? Does anyone know? The origin is Switzerland maybe? I really do not know. In Turkey we call them just "roll" or "the log" when it is made with chestnuts inside.
This is a very old recipe, acquired from a neighbour 23 years ago. I was very young then, but breave enough to volunteer to try the recipe.It has a story of course, eaten one night in a house gathering, in beautiful city of Edirne which is next to the greek border; snow outside and a warm house with laughters.My dear friend Angelika surely would describe it better, just as she does with her sweet stories.
Well back to the cake... the yeast inside helps it to rise fully but does not effect the taste. Because of my obsession with the Black Forest cake, I usually made it with sour cherries but any kind of fruit is ok. Also any type of cream is ok to use, I used a sachet of chantilly here. If you prefer a sweeter filling, just do reduce the sugar inside the batter. If you want to make a darker cake, try adding 2-3 tablespoons of cacao and reduce the same amount of flour from the recipe. Sift together the dry ingredients before adding to the batter.
- 4 eggs at room temperature
- 125 grs of sugar
- 75 grs of all purpose flour
- 50grs of starch
- vanilla sugar
- 1 full teaspoon of dry yeast
- 1 sachet of cream chantilly
- 1 cup of cold milk (240ml)
- canned or fresh cherries (250grs)
- shredded chocolate for garnish
Reverse the tray on a wet kitchen towel and peel off the baking paper. Roll the cake with the towel inside and allow to cool. You can prepare the cream now. I whipped the chantilly by adding a glass of cold milk.
If you are using canned fruit, strain them first and keep the juice. Open the cooled roll and sprinkle with the reserved juice. Apply the cream with a wide spatula, add the fruit (reserving some pieces for the topping) and roll again. Transfer the cake to the serving plate and apply a thin layer of cream outside , garnish with remaining fruit and chocolate granules. Our cake should stay in the fridge for a couple of hours for the right texture to develop. Before serving; cut thin slices from both edges for a better look and serve with your favourite cup of tea or coffee.I always prefer roiboos:-) Cover the remaining cake loosely with cling film. Enjoy!
