Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers (Zeytinyağlı Biber Dolma)

Another great traditional olive oil dish recipe: Stuffed peppers with olive oil. Olive oil dishes are cooked only with olive oil; best when they're served cold; and are usually summer dishes. There are two ways to cook stuffed peppers with olive oil: on the stove and in the oven. In my family we like baked stuffed peppers. Here's another certified Turkish recipe from my mom.












2 lb small green bell peppers (approximately 18-20 peppers)

2 cups white rice

4 medium size onions, finely chopped (you can use a food processor)

3 tomatoes, grated

1 tomato (this one is for covering the tops of bell peppers after stuffing)

1/3 cup pine nuts

1/3 cup currants

1 tbsp all spice

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tbsp mint flakes or ¼ cup fresh mint, chopped finely

1 tsp white sugar

salt

juice of 1/2 lemon

1 cup olive

-Mix well all the ingredients (except for peppers and 1 tomato) in a bowl.

-Wash peppers and take out the top part and the seeds.

-Stuff the peppers with the rice mix with a spoon or your hand.

-Cut small pieces from 1 tomato to cover the top part of peppers. Press the tomato slice down a bit so that it won’t come out.

-Place the dolmas in an oven dish which is as tall as dolmas. Pour on top 2 cups of boiling water.

-First let it boil for 5 minutes on stove. Than, bake it in a preheated oven at 400F for 35-40 minutes until rice is cooked and tops are browned. Check them regularly if you don’t want to burn the tops.

-It’s better cold, but good when it’s hot, too.

Cornelian Cherry Marmalade (Kızılcık Marmelatı)

There are two Farmers markets in my hometown; one is on Tuesdays, the big one is on Fridays. We got these cornelian cherries from the Tuesday market so that my mom could make my favorite marmalade. My mom's cornalian cherry marmalade is the best I know, so here's the recipe--and this one is really Turkish.


























1 ½ kilo cornelian cherry (after you pit them, you’ll have approximately one kilo)

2 kilo sugar (approximately 8 cups) 1 1

2 cups water

1/4 tsp citric acid

-Wash cornelian cherries and boil them in a big pot with 2 cups of water for 15-20 minutes or until they are soft.

-Once they cool down, smash them in a colander in small patches. You’ll have cornelian cherry puree in the end.

-Mix 8 cups of white sugar and the puree in a big pot, and cook on medium heat. Once it starts boiling, check the time; cornelian cherry marmalade will be ready in 6 to 7 minutes. Do not let it boil more than 7 minutes.

-When it starts boiling, there will be pink foam on top. Remove the foam with a spoon.

-A minute before you turn it off, put ¼ citric acid (it preserves that magnificent color and prevents crystallizing)

Since cornelian cherry is one of those fruits that has a jelly-like structure, you need to put marmalade into jars when it’s still hot

Eggplant Bulgur Pilaf (Patlıcanlı Bulgur Pilavı)

This is a perfect summer dish and is especially good with cold refreshing yogurt, or as a side dish for red meat. Traditionally this recipe is made with white rice, and eggplant cubes are deep fried. I decided go healthier and lighter so I made a couple of changes. To have a certified Turkish eggplant rice, use white rice and deep fry cubes of eggplant until golden brownish with vegetable, corn, or canola oil.

On Sunday I'm leaving for Turkey for 3 weeks. Although I will be very busy indulging myself in food and non-food related activities, I'll try to post "absolutely" Turkish recipes of my mom and my aunt, and, possibly, of our neighbors.

2 cups of bulgur (I chose to use fine bulgur, but it'll be great with coarse bulgur, too)
3 1/2-4 cups of water
1 big American eggplant or 2 regular size ones, peeled in stripes and diced
4 tomatoes, diced
1 onion, chopped finely
2 banana peppers, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 tbsp pine nuts
1 tbsp currants
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped
salt & pepper

-Brush olive oil on a shallow oven pan (use aluminum foil to avoid a mess) , put diced eggplant on it, and bake for 20-25 minutes at 375F.
-Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a pot (it's easier to cook bulgur with non-stick pots). Add onions and stir for a couple of minutes. Add pine nuts, red and green peppers, and currants. Stir until peppers are cooked and nuts are golden brown.
-Add diced tomato and cook for 4-5 minutes.
-Add bulgur, stir constantly for a couple of minutes.
-Add water. Start with 3 1/2 cups of water. Cover and cook on low-medium until bulgur soaks water--this will take approximately 20-25 minutes. Some bulgur would be fine with a bulgur to water ratio of 1 to 1 1/2, some with 1 to 2. So check if the bulgur is cooked; if not add the rest of the water. Cover and cook on low.
-After you turn it off, cover the top of the pot with a clean kitchen towel or a paper towel. Put the lid back on and let rest for 10 minutes.
-Fluff the pilaf with a serving fork. Add eggplant and parsley. Mix well and serve.

Bon appetite! Afiyet olsun!

Baked Ratatouille (Fırında Ratatouille)

After watching Ratatouille: Rat-a-too-ee last weekend, I was intrigued to replicate Remy's ratatouille recipe, not ingredients-wise, but by following his cooking style. The result was baked ratatouille with vegetables put together in a fancy order. Preparing the dish was fun, and the dish was delicious.





































2 yellow squashes, cut in thin rounds
3 zucchinis, cut in thin rounds
4-5 small tomatoes, cut in thin rounds
1 big or two medium tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp fresh basil
2 tbsp dill
3 tbsp parsley
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp red pepper flakes
salt





































-Put olive oil, vinegar, 2 medium tomatoes, tomato paste, 3 cloves of garlic, 1 tbsp fresh basil, dill, oregano, black pepper, pepper flakes, and salt in a food processor and blend. You'll have nice smelling tomato + herby sauce.
-Wet the bottom of an oven dish with this sauce.
-Place thin rounds of zucchini, yellow squash, and tomato one after the other in an order you like.
-Pour the rest of the tomato sauce on top. (Don't add extra water; the vegetables will release more than necessary) Scatter finely chopped parsley.
-Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated oven at 375 for approximately an hour.
Serve as a side dish with meat or serve as a main dish with any kind of rice.

This replicated ratatouille with all the fresh and fried herbs is for Kalyn's WHB which is hosted by Susan of Food Blogga this week.

Lemon Cheesecake (Limonlu Peykek)

As much as I love cheesecakes, I cannot make a cheesecake crust. I tried many times, but for some reason it doesn't work. Yet it didn't stop me from making cheesecakes; I buy the crust.

This is a very light and refreshing cheesecake recipe, perfect for summer time.

9 inch cheesecake crust

16 oz (app. 225 gr.) cream cheese (I used 1/3 less fat cream cheese)
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp lemon zest (app. zest of 1 lemon)
1/4 cup lemon juice

-Leave cream cheese out in room temperature for at least an hour.
-Mix cream cheese with a mixer for at least 2 minutes until softened.
-Add sugar, mix for another minute.
-Add eggs one at a time.
-Then add lemon zest and juice, mix for another minute.
-Pour the mix into the crust.
-Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes.
-Let it cool completely on a wire rack. Cover an chill for at least 8 hours.
-Serve with Nolan's delicious chocolate sauce.

This recipe is for YE#24 Recipes with Lemon hosted at Limon Cicegi.

Dill-Mint Pilaf (Dereotlu ve Naneli Pilav)

Cooking rice with green vegetables and herbs is not alien to Turkish cuisine. In her wonderful book, 500 Hundred Years of Ottoman Cuisine, Marianna Yerasimos inform us about a 16th century pilaf recipe called Dane-i Yeşil which is made with spinach, mint, parsley, dill, celery stalks, etc.

My mom wasn't raised up in the palace kitchens, yet years ago she's come up with her own green pilaf recipe. She makes this pilaf whenever we have any kind of white fish for dinner. So within the family it's known as the fish pilaf.

serves 4

1 1/2 cups of white long grain rice
1 onion, finely chopped
3 tbsp olive oil (or butter)
1/2 bunch green onion, finely chopped
1/2 bunch dill, chopped
2 tbsp fresh or dried mint
1 tbsp green peppercorn
1 tbsp pine nuts
salt
3 cups of water

-Heat oil in a pot. Stir onions, green onions, green peppercorns, and pine nuts. Cook until soft.
-Add rice and mint. Stir for 2-3 minutes.
-Add water (with most rice the ratio of rice to water is 1 to 2) and salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low until rice soaks the water (approximately 20 minutes)
-Turn it off and stir half of dill. Cover the top of the pot with a paper towel or a clean kitchen towel. Place the lid on paper towel and let rice sit for at least 10 minutes before you serve.
-Scatter the rest of dill before you serve.

With all the herbs this recipes is for Kalyn's WHB which is hosted this week by Chris of Mele Cotte.