Stuffed Chard with Bulgur and Cheese / Lorlu Pazı Sarma

Stuffing green leaves with ground meat, herby rice, or grains is a common practice in Turkish cuisine. Although not as popular as grape leaves, stuffed chard is a staple dish for both Black Sea region and eastern Anatolia. The two different types of stuffed chard I had had were with ground meat and cracked corn, so I was very excited when I found this recipe for stuffed chard in a book in Yasemin's kitchen. The recipe is from Sahrap Soysal, a popular Turkish chef, food connoisseur and writer, whose book Bir Yemek Masalı won several Gourmand Awards in 2004 in Spain, including "Best Local Cookery Book in the World." I adopted the recipe from the English translation of this award-winning book, A Cookery Tale.

for four people
2 bunch green chard
1 cup fine bulgur
1 very generous cup of cottage cheese or ricotta
1/4 cup crumbled feta
1 big onion, grated
2 tbsp dry basil
1-2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp black pepper
3 tbsp butter
salt

-Cut the stems of chard.
-Boil some water in a big pot. And cook chard leaves in boiling water for ~2 minutes four or five leaves at a time.
-Put the leaves on a colander and let cool.
-In a bowl put the bulgur and add 1 cup of boling water. Wait until bulgur soaks the water.
-Add the rest of the ingredients to bulgur except for butter and mix well .
-Place a chard leaf on a flat surface (kitchen counter, tray, plate, etc.) the veiny part up. Cut the big vein in the middle out-otherwise it'd be hard to roll.
-Depending on the size of the leaf put 1-3 tbsp of stuffing on the top, not the stem, part of the leaf and roll like a cigar. Chard is much easier to deal with than grape leaves, and far more forgiving.
-Place the rolls side by side in an order in an oven proof dish.
-Place the small pieces of butter evenly on top.
-Pour 2 cups of hot water on top.  
-Bake rolls in a preheated oven at 385F for approximately an hour checking frequently after half an hour to make sure it still has some water.
-Serve rolls hot with yogurt, and even better, with garlicy yogurt (=1 clove of smashed garlic mixed well with 2 cups of yogurt)

  

Fennel with Meat (Etli Rezene)

The Aegean cuisine in Turkey is known for its greens.  It is truly unbelievable how many different green plants/weeds and in how many different ways the Aegeans can cook. Among all those greens fennel is a popular one. Although it has numerous health benefits, fennel has a distinct flavor resembling anise that a lot of people, including myself, cannot stand. Mainly for this reason, although intrigued, I avoided cooking with fennel for a long time. When I finally decided to give it a try, my first choice of recipe was a very traditional and a very basic one which would not require any kind of spice to cover up that distinct flavor. Although I was prepared for the worse, I have to admit that I was nicely surprised. This is a very easy-to-make, very light recipe with fantastic flavors. I follow a Turkish blogger's, Miss Cilek's recipe.

1 bulb fennel, washed and coarsely chopped

1/2 lb stew beef (the original recipe asks for lamb on bone, but for me one strong smell was enough)

1 bunch green onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp butter (this is my addition; the original recipe does not ask for any)

salt and pepper

-Place the stew beef at the bottom of a pot so that they won't be on top of each other.

-Put first green onion then fennel on top and finish with the butter. 

-Add salt and black pepper and cover.

-Cook on low for ~1 hour. 

-Serve with rice or bread.

   

Spinach Stem with Wheat Berries (Buğdaylı Ispanak Kökü)

The move is finally over and we have been Californians for almost two months now. I am loving the Palo Alto farmer's markets (who wouldn't when you can buy a celery root for a dollar!) and cooking a lot; just not blogging. Finally emergence of fresh spinach at the market made it. In Turkey, when you have a bunch of fresh spinach you can cook a variety of different dishes with green spinach leaves: such as "the" spinach dish,   spinach dish known as "the bachelors' dish", or delicious börek/phyllo dough dish. Before cooking any of these dishes, you pinch off the stems and save them for other equally scrumptious dishes. They are great in salads, in stir fry, or in avgolemono sauce. The following simple recipe is inspired by the traditional spinach dish or the most common spinach dish, for which you basically stir spinach, onion, and tomatoes with rice. I replaced leaves with stems and rice with soft wheat berries. It is simply delicious. More spinach stem recipes to follow.



stems of 1 lb spinach
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tomatoes, grated or diced (if you can find them, if not use 2 tbsp tomato paste or 1 can of diced tomato)
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp white sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1 c cooked wheat berries (you can substitute wheat berries with brown rice)
salt
1 tsp spicy pepper flakes, if you wish
hot water

-Soak wheat berries in water over nights. The next day wash them well and boil them until soft with lots of water (they soak incredible amount of water)
-Wash the spinach stems well, discard any hard spots at the ends, and cut them into med pieces.
-Heat olive oil in a pot and stir onion and garlic until soft.
-Add tomato and cook for at least 5 minutes.
-Add lemon juice, sugar, salt, and pepper flakes. Stir once.
-Add spinach stem, and stir for a couple of minutes.
-Add cooked wheat berries, stir, and pour hot water to barely cover everything.
-Cook until spinach stems are soft on low to med.
-Serve warm or cold.

Dried Eggplant Dolma (Kuru Patlıcan Dolması)

I have been receiving complaints from readers, friends, and friends of friends about lack of new recipes on the blog. I know; it's been a while. I've been busy and lazy at the same time. But here we go.

Dried eggplant dolma is a popular winter dish mainly in the southeastern part of Turkey. Reasonable size eggplant are cut in half, carved, put on strings, and dried out in the sun to cherish eggplant deliciousness in the winter. You can find strings of dried eggplants easily at Turkish or Middle Eastern markets. The number of dried eggplants on a string vary between 30-40. Why am I cooking dried eggplants when we can find tasty fresh ones? We're moving across the country and I am cooking our pantry one item at a time!

1 string of dried eggplants (~30)

for the stuffing
1 lb ground beef
2 medium onions, finely chopped
6 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp spicy pepper paste (it's ok not to use it if you cannot find it)
1 medium tomato, grated or 1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 cup white rice
1/2 cup bulgur (if not, substitute with rice)
juice of one lemon (In the southeast, in stead of lemon they use a thick sour sauce made from plums, similar to pomegranate sauce) 
1 tbsp dry sumac (obviously sourness is a must with this dish)
1 tsp black pepper (or more--I usually go up to 1 tbsp)
1 tbsp dry mint flakes
1 tsp cumin

1/4 cup water
2 tbsp olive oil
salt

for the sauce
3-4 tbsp butter
3 tomatoes, grated or 1 can of petite diced tomato
hot water

-Boil a big pot of water and add dried eggplants. Cook for ~ 20 minutes or until they soften enough that a fork can go through easily. Rinse in cold water and set aside.
-Mix all the stuffing ingredients well.
-With the help of your hands or a small spoon, stuff eggplants. Do not stuff all the way; leave room on top to fold the top. This way you will secure overflowing. (Look at the first picture; do not stuff your dolmas like the one on the left. The one on the right is the good model!)
-Place dolmas side by side in a wide pot.
-Pour grated tomatoes and sprinkle butter pieces. Add hot water to cover dolmas. On top of the pot, place a flat-ish plate upside down. It will hold dolmas down when you're cooking them.
-Bring to a boil and turn down to low for 30-35 minutes or until rice is cooked.
-Let it sit in the pot for 5 minutes and serve with crusty bread.

Semolina Sponge Cake (Revani)

If you are a libertine, don’t turn from the cup of pure wine

If you are wise, take your glass in the direction of Galata

…

Pious one, should you see those Frankish (European) boys but once

You would never cast an eye on the houris in paradise

…

Everywhere is filled with paradisiacal boys and girls, Revani,

Who enters it looks no more to the highest heaven

(from The Age of Beloveds by Walter Andrews and Mehmet Kalpakli) 

These lines which depict the life in Istanbul of 16^th century are from a poem by Revani, an Ottoman poet, an infamous libertine who lived in late 15^th and early 16^th centuries. And revani the dessert is said to be named after Revani the poet. The association is not rooted in Revani’s notorious ways in entertainment or financial matters (he never gets any positive remarks on his character in biographies), but in his famous unique and novel work İşretname (Book of Wassail) which deals with anything related to Ottoman carousals: the wine, best seasons for drinking wine, wine glasses, flagons, young men serving wine, and, of course, food. E.J.W. Gibb in his colossal work on Ottoman poetry defines Revani as a “thorough-going hedonist” but not a “mystic.” In “Book of Wassail” he proves Gibb right. Revani gives a long list of delicasies in his lines and with vivid metaphors likens them to serpents (sausages), pearl (rice), or blond beauty (saffron) (see Gibb for more info on “Book of Wassail”).

Although he wrote couplet after couplet praising pleasures of food, I don’t know why particularly revani, a sponge cake, a semolina sponge cake to be accurate, soaked in syrup is named after Revani. 

for the cake

2/3 cup semolina

1/3 cup flour (white)

5 eggs, separated 

2/3 cup sugar

2 tbsp or less orange zest (optional)

for the syrup

2 1/2 cup water

2 1/2 cup sugar 

2 tbsp lemon juice 

1 tbsp lemon zest (optional)

for the top

coconut flakes or

ground pistachio 

-Beat egg yolk with sugar until creamy. 

-Add orange zest, semolina, and flour gradually as your mixing them all with a whisker or a mixer.

-In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until they turn into firm foam and add them into the cake. 

-Grease a deep cake pan 9-10 inch in diameter.

-Pour the batter and bake in a preheated oven at 350F for approximately 30 minutes or until golden brown. Check with a knife or a toothpick to make sure the cake is done. They should come out clean.

-Meanwhile, mix sugar, water, and lemon juice + zest in a pot and bring to a boil. Then simmer on medium for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. 

-When revani is still in the cake pan and warm, not hot but warm, cut in into diamond shape slices or in squares. 

-Pour the lukewarm syrup on top with a scoop slowly, waiting the cake to soak it in.

-Serve diamond with coconut flakes or ground pistachio on top. Revani is also good with vanilla ice cream or clotted cream on the side.       

Bulgur Kofte (Bulgur Köftesi)

I don't know if you have noticed that I like bulgur, different types of bulgur, and anything with bulgur. I like bulgur especially in kofte form such as this, this, and this. Bulgur kofte is yet another bulgur dish in kofte form. The recipe belongs to my mom and has long been a family favorite. Bulgur gives a nice, nutty flavor to otherwise a regular kofte recipe. We usually enjoy it during summer days since it is lighter than 100% meat recipes and delicious when grilled. Although I have a copy of Ayla Algar's Classical Turkish Cooking, I hadn't noticed before that Algar has a similar recipe to my mom's bulgur kofte recipe. The following is a combination of both.   

for 4 people
1 pound ground beef (80% lean) [Algar asks for ground lamb]
1/2 cup fine bulgur
1 big or 2 medium onions, grated
1 green pepper, preferably a spicy one, chopped finely
1 tsp crushed spicy red pepper flakes
1 to 1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/3 bunch flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/3 cup mint, finely chopped or 1 1/2 tbsp dry mint flakes or dry basil
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and ground pepper

-Place bulgur in a bowl. Pour hot water on top to barely cover it. Let stand for 15 minutes to soak.
-Add the rest of the ingredients. Salt to your taste.
-Take pieces little bigger than walnuts and shape into oval patties.
-Either grill until both sides are crispy or cook them in a lightly oiled pan on both sides.

Baked Cabbage with Ground Meat (Fırında Kıymalı Lahana)

Baked cabbage with ground meat can be described as either a kind of no-pasta lasagna, börek, or mousakka. However you name it, it is simply delicious and healthy. If not witness the preparation of the dish, it might be even impossible to tell it's cabbage.


1 small to medium cabbage
1/2 lb ground meat
2 medium onions, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced (my addition)
2 big tomatoes, diced or 1 can diced tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
3 tbsp olive oil
1 cup grated mozzarella
1/2 cup ricotta (my addition)
1-2 tbsp basil flakes
1 tsp spicy red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
1/2 parsley, finely chopped

-Take cabbage, discard bad leaves, and break leaves one by one. Wash well.
-Boil water in a big pot with 1 tbsp salt. Cook cabbage leaves in water for 5-7 minutes, or until tender. Preserve 1/3 cup of cooking water.
-Heat oil in a pan. Add first onions and garlic. Stir for a couple of minutes. Then add ground meat and cook until brown by breaking it into small bits.
-Add 1 tbsp tomato paste, black pepper, basil, and salt. Stir for a minute.
-Add diced tomato and cook for 5 minutes.
-Grease an oven safe dish. Layer half of cabbage leaves on the dish.
-Pour the ground meat mix on leaves. Spread ricotta on top and then layer the other half of cabbage leaves.
-Mix 1 tbsp tomato paste well with 1/3 cup of cooking water. Pour it on top of cabbage leaves.
-Sprinkle mozzarella on top.
-Bake in a preheated oven at 380-390F for 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted.
-Serve with parsley on top.

Collard Greens Soup (Karalahana Çorbası)

The apartment that I lived in Ankara was on the first floor of one of those old 4 story buildings with just two apartments on each floor and a back yard that the residents didn't care about. A month after the move I remembered there was a back yard and looked over to check it out. Among the things that you can find in the back yards of apartment buildings in Turkey are gazebos, junk, flower beds, people playing "okey," a tile-based game similar to Rumikub, or people drinking tea and eating sunflower seeds. Therefore, I was quite surprised when I saw collard greens in my building's back yard. And I am not talking about two or three plants here; I am talking about endless rows and rows of collard greens. Collard greens is an indispensable component of the Black Sea cuisine in Turkey, and it is difficult to find them outside that province. So I immediately knew there was a homesick Karadenizli (a person from Black Sea) in the building who apparently had a big craving for collard greens. I was right; our concierge Pakize was from Trabzon and capable of consuming a back yard worth of collard greens with her husband in 2-3 months.

The discovery of garden of collard greens intrigued me to cook with them. The next winter I borrowed a bunch of collard greens time to time from Pakize and made collard greens soup based on her instructions. Later, I had this soup a couple of times at different seafood restaurants, but they were not even close to Pakize's recipe. This soup, a specialty of Black Sea, is just perfect for cold winter nights. It has greens, beans, and corn in it; what else can you ask for?        


1 large bunch collard greens
1/2 cup dry white beans (cannellini or northern beans)
1/2 cup cracked corn (you can find cracked corn at Middle Eastern or organic food stores or feeder stores) OR 1/2 cup coarse grits if you cannot find cracked corn
1/4 cup corn flour
7-9 cups of water
3-4 tbsp butter
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp red hot pepper flakes (in traditional recipes you cannot find spice for this soup, but I think hot peppers, hot pepper flakes, or sauces makes this soup even better)

-A night before, put beans in a pot with 3 cups of water. First bring to a boil, then turn it off. Cover and soak overnight.
-The next day cook the beans until soft. (Or use 1 can of beans)
-Wash collard greens well, discard bad leaves and leaf tops. Chop the stems finely. Cut the leaves first into stripes, then into edible-size squarish pieces.
-Boil 7-8 cups of water in a big pot.
-Add collard greens and cracked corn into the boiling water. Cook until soft: ~20-25 minutes.
-Add beans.
-Add corn flour and keep stirring constantly while adding it to prevent lumping.
-Turn the heat to low-medium and cook for almost half an hour to let the soup thicken stirring every 3-45 minutes.
-Heat butter in a small pan. When it's hot but nit burning, add paprika. Let sizzle for a couple of seconds.
-Serve the soup with a spoon or two of butter and paprika on top.

Baked Halva with Carrots (Güveçte Havuçlu Helva)

A couple of years ago there were quite a number of fisherman boats tied at the Yenikoy coast in Istanbul serving as seafood restaurants. Although those floating restaurants had limited menus, they served the freshest and by far the cheapest seafood, the best salads (especially Tuana), and surprisingly simple yet delicious desserts (Takanik was the #1 when it came to desserts). All those boat restaurants moved tot the land after the ban; they're all still in Yenikoy, but in buildings in stead of boats. In the past years I tried different types of halva based desserts on these boats and loved them all. Normally I don't eat halva and this should give you an idea about how good their halva desserts are. I had purchased a box of Koska pistachio halva months ago from the Turkish market in Atlanta, for whom or what I have no idea. When I saw it in the pantry I decided to make one of the floating restaurants' halva desserts. The dessert was great, but it definitely lacked the preceding fish platter served on the boats. Although it is hard to find horse mackerels, halva is highly common here in the States in Middle Eastern markets or online.  

for two people

two 1" halva slices--use one slice per person (I used pistachio halva, but you can use plain, coco, or any kind)

1 carrot, grated

1 tsp lemon juice

cinnamon

2 tbsp ground pistachio or walnut 

-In an oven safe small bowl (a small souffle bowl) place a slice of halva. Make it as thick or thin as you wish.

-Squeeze a couple of drops of lemon juice on top: approximately 1/2 tsp.

-Cover halva with grated carrot; not too much, just enough to cover halva ~approximately 1/2 cup

-Sprinkle cinnamon on top.

-Cover the bowl with aluminum foil and bake for 15-20 minutes in preheated oven at 380F.

-Serve hot with ground walnut or pistachio on top.

-If you don't have a oven proof bowl, you can layer everything on a square aluminum foil, wrap it by bringing the corners together, and bake like that.    

Beet Salad with Yogurt (Yoğurtlu Pancar Salatası)

A popular appetizer / meze for Turkish brandy, rakı and red meat, and a very common winter salad.

2 medium size beets
1 cup yogurt (better to use strained yogurt)
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp finely chopped dill or 1 tbsp basil flakes
salt and vinegar to taste

-Wash beets well, cut the stems, and boil them for ~25-30 minutes until cooked.
-When they cool down, peel and grate them. (While doing so, use an apron and gloves if you wish and don't wear white)
-Beat garlic, yogurt and olive oil in a bowl until smooth, and then mix with beets.
-Season with salt and vinegar

-Sprinkle dill or basil on top.

-Serve with bread, pita chips and / or as a side for red meat dishes.

Leeks with Stew Beef (Etli Pırasa)

Although the most popular way to prepare leeks is in olive oil (a vegetarian recipe served lukewarm or cold), leeks with ground meat or with stew beef are also widely enjoyed winter dishes.

3 leeks, washed and cut in 1/2 inch rounds
1/2 lb or more stew beef (some people like cooking leeks with lamb)
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, cut in half rounds
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp dill, finely chopped
1 tsp dry rosemary
1 1/2 cup water
salt

-Heat olive oil in a shallow pot and add stew beef. Cook until brown on all sides.
-Add leeks, onion, and carrots, and saute for 6-7 minutes or until soft.
-Add water, rosemary, dill, lemon juice, and salt.
-First bring to a boil, and then turn it down to low and simmer for approximately 1 hour.
-Serve hot with rice and / or crusty bread.

Cannellini Beans with Eggplant (Patlıcanlı Kuru Fasulye)

A great twist to a very traditional recipe: white beans, which are generally referred to as the national dish of Turkey.

1 medium size eggplant, diced
1 cup of dry cannellini beans, soaked over night or 1 can of cannellini beans
1/4 lb stew beef [for a meatier stew you can use more stew beef and for a vegetarian version skip it completely]
1 big onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tomatoes, diced or 1 can of diced tomatoes
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
2 green chilies (slightly spicy anaheims?), finely chopped
3 tbsp butter
frying oil, ~1/2 cup
salt
red pepper flakes

-Heat frying oil in a pan and fry eggplant until golden brown. Let fried eggplant cubes soak on a paper towel. If you want to keep the oil level low, you can bake the eggplant in stead of frying. Brush an oven tray with oil and place eggplant cubes. Bake ~20-25 minutes at 390F.
-Heat butter in a pot. Add onion and garlic. Stir until soft.
-Add pepper and stew beef. Cook until beef releases and then soaks its juice.
-Add diced tomatoes, 1 cup of hot water, salt, and red pepper flakes--optional, [and if you are using dry beans, add them now, too.] Cook for 30 minutes.
-Add fried eggplant cubes and beans [if you are using canned beans] and cook for another 15-20 minutes on low-medium.
-Serve hot with crusty bread and rice.

Celery Root Rounds with Carrot (Havuçlu Kereviz Halkaları)

I had celery root rounds first at a tea-party in Turkey as one of the 7 or so dishes that the host prepared for an ~3 hour tea-party! Apparently the recent tea-party trend in Turkey is to impress your guests with the number and the presentation of the goodies you make. Mission accomplished; I was impressed by how much I could eat in 2 hours and with only Turkish tea as digestive. Another thing that impressed me was that although at first it seems like celery root rounds with carrot recipe is not different than regular celery root in olive oil recipe in terms of taste, cooking celery root in big pieces rather than diced form did actually contribute to the taste. So here we go: a good and actually very simple recipe if you like the distinct taste of celery root and one to wow your guests with.

for 2 people

1 medium size celery root

1 similar size potato

1-2 carrots

1 medium onion, diced

1 cup frozen or canned green peas

1 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup olive oil

1 cup water

juice of 1 lemon

1/4 cup fresh dill, finely chopped

-Peel celery root and potato and core the middle big enough for the carrots you will use with a corer or the top part of your peeler.

-Put the carrots in the holes and cut extra parts.

-Place celery root and potato in a bowl of water with half of the lemon juice to prevent darkening.

-In a broad pot heat olive oil and saute onion until soft.

-Carefully cut the celery root and potato in ~half inch rounds.

-Push the onion aside in the pot and place celery root and potato rounds in the pot side by side.

-Put the onions on top.

-Add green peas, sugar, salt, rest of the lemon juice, 1 cup water and cook on a little below the medium heat for 25-30 minutes.

-Let cool in the pot with the lid on.

-Sprinkle with fresh dill and serve.

Corn and Bean Soup (Pakla Çorbası)

This Black Sea Region recipe is a recipe from my dad's side of the family. My aunt invites the rest of the family over dinner (in addition to all the special occasions) when she cooks three special dishes. Number one is mantı, number two is dolma, and number three is pakla soup, which by the way draws more attendees than dolmas. This simple soup is so popular among the family members that there had been times when we fought over the second serving. The popularity derives from the limited number of times we get to have this soup in a year, and this scarcity is a direct result of a-hard-to-find ingredient: corn bulgur.

Corn bulgur although widely used especially in the Black Sea Region is rarely found elsewhere in Turkey or here in the States. Corn bulgur is parboiled crushed kernel corn made by a similar process that is used for common wheat bulgur.

When I got the recipe from my aunt years ago I asked her what to do if I cannot find corn bulgur here in the States, she suggested fresh corn kernels--it turned out fıne, but wasn't the same soup. However, back then I didn't know about grits. After moving to South, I was introduced to grits, cheesy grits in particular--I absolutely love it. Through explorations I came across coarse grits, which creates a very similar taste to that of corn bulgur in pakla soup, which literally means bean soup.


1 cup uncooked coarse grits (1/3 or 1/4 of a kernel coarse)
~ 1 cup dry cannellini beans or ~2 cups cooked cannellini beans or 1 can of cannellini beans
1 small onion, grated
2 tbsp tomato paste
3-4 tbsp butter
salt

1 small piece of bone-in lamb shoulder*

-Put  grits and beans if you're not using can beans in a pot filled with water. Bring to a boil, turn it off, cover and soak overnight.

-Next day put grits and beans in a pot with lots of water (~10-12 cups) with bone-in lamb shoulder and salt. Cook on medium for an hour or until both beans and grits are soft.

-In a frying pan, heat butter and saute grated onion until soft.

-Add tomato paste cook for another minute or two.

-Add onions to the soup and cook for another 5 minutes.

*You can skip the bone-in lamb or beef; this soup is also very good without addition of meat.