Wednesday, March 21, 2012

2nd Class - 2012

Hi Everybody,
I am late, as always , but we did have a lovely lunch right? :) I hope everybody liked the Hunkar Begendi.. Here are the recipes:


Hunkar Begendi (Sultan's Delight) :


5-6 eggplants (if you are using chinese eggplants or italian eggplants add 1-2 more)
3 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
salt, black pepper to taste


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First, bring oven to broil and stick a fork in the eggplants so they don't explode in the oven :) Roast the eggplants in a baking pan until the skins blister black, about 1 hour. Once they are cool enough to handle, remove the flesh from the charred skins and transfer to a strainer. Leave to drain for about 30 minutes. (Note: If you want a smokier taste, you can first burn the skins on the stove with high heat, than put them in the oven). You can chop/mesh them after all the juices are drained.


 In a large pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat, then stir in the flour to form a roux and cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring. lower the heat and whisk in the milk slowly until a thick white sauce without lumps has formed. Stir in the pureed eggplant, and on medium-low heat , let it  simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the cheese and beat well until smooth. Season with salt and pepper and serve.  (note: if it becaomes to thick, you can add milk like we did in the class)


for the lamb stew:
2 pound boneless lamb stew meat, cut into cubes
2-3 tomatoes
1 onion
1 italian pepper
1 red pepper
1 tbsp pepper paste
1 tbsp tomato paste
3 tbsp oil
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp
Cook the lamb cubes until almost tender, add all the other ingredients and cook them.


put the eggplant puree into the plate, serve with lamb stew on top.


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Rice Pilaf
1 cup rice
2 cups hot water
2 tbsp butter
salt


Wash the rice several times with warm water and drain. Then cover the rice with hot salted water  and leave for about 15 minutes, then drain. Melt the butter in a cooking pot. Saute the rice with butter for 2-3 minutes while stirring. Pour 2 cups of hot water or chicken stock in it. Add salt. Turn the heat to low and cook until the rice absorbs all the water.


Take the cooking pot away from the heat. Open the lid, place a clean kitchen towel across the top of the pot on the rim and put the lid on it. Let the Pilaf stand for about 5 minutes. We call this brewing time. Then serve.


* Don't stir Pilaf while it's cooking.


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Shepherd's salad:
Tomatoes
Cucumber
italian pepper
green onions
parsley
red onion (finely sliced, mix the sliced onion with some salt, and squeeze to drain all the bitter juice from the onion, then wash it.)
olive oil
pomegranate molasses
sumac
salt
fresh lemon juice


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there isn't an exact amount of ingredients for this recipe. you can add as many veggies as you'd like. chop them finely,  drizzle olive oil, pomegranate molasses, lemon juice and mix it.


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Friday, March 2, 2012

1st Class - 2012

Hello Everybody!
I am sorry it took me so long to post this. I hope you enjoyed our first class. Here are the recipes:


Tennuri Soup:

1/2 cup canned
chickpeas
1/2 cup red lentils
1/4 cup rice
1 tbsp butter
1/2 tbsp tomato paste
1 onion, chopped
1/2 pound ground
beef
1 tbsp flour
salt
mint flakes
paprika

Melt the butter in a deep pot and add the chopped onions.  Cook it about 1-2 minutes and add in the ground beef. When the ground beef is cooked (2-3 min.) add the flour and stir constantly about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and stir it. Pour 3 cups boiled water and put in the red lentils and rice. Lower the heat from medium to slow and let it simmer until lentils are cooked thoroughly and almost invisible. Add the chickpeas and water until desired consistency. Sprinkle mint flakes, salt, pepper and paprika.
ps: do not put the lid while it is cooking, can make a mess on your stove :)

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Turkish Style Braised Green Beans:

2 pound green beans
3 tomatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1 big clove garlic, chopped finely
1/2 tbsp tomato paste
3/4 tbsp sugar
1/3 tbsp salt

Layer green beans, tomatoes and onions in a pot. Add olive oil, garlic, sugar, salt, ground paprika and tomato paste at the top.  Cover the pot .On a moderately slow heat, let it cook until the onions are tender then stir all of it and cover the pot again. Let it cook about 40-50 minutes until the green beans are very tender. Serve at room temperature.

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Borek:

1 pack of triangle cut pastry leaves (called yufka/jufka) or 1 pack of whole pastry leaves (you can cut each pastry leaf like a pizza, each leaf makes 8 triangles)
1 cup yogurt
 ¼ cup oil
2 egg

For its filling:
5 middle potatoes, boiled and peeled and mashed/grated
1 big onion,chopped
1tbsp pepper paste
1tsp cumin
1/2 tbsp black pepper
1tbsp salt
1 tbsp  olive oil.

Drizzle the olive oil in a saucepan and add the chopped onions. When they are tender add the pepper paste and stir it and sauté it about 1 minute. Add the mashed potatoes and mix it well. Add the cumin, black pepper and salt to taste.

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In a deep bowl add the yogurt, oil and eggs together and mix it well.

Lay the pastry triangle flat and spread some yogurt/oil/egg mix on it. For each triangle, place the filling  in the form of a line, at the bottom or the larger end of the triangle, along the bottom edge but not too close to the edge. When placing the filling, leave some space from the bottom and from the sides of the triangle.
Flip two sides (not the bottom) over the filling - it won’t cover- and then start rolling from the bottom towards the tip of the triangle, making sure the filling  is tightly rolled into the pastry but not bursting out of it. 

Place all your boreks to a greased pan/pyrex and spread the leftover yogurt/egg/oil mix on top of them. You can sprinkle nigella seeds or sesame seeds on top.

Bake the boreks in a preheated 350K oven until they are golden color.


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Apple walnut bites:

2 Apple, grated (without peeling)
2 packs of tea biscuits
Cinnamon
Walnuts, chopped
Coconut flakes


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Crush the biscuits and mix it with the apples until it is formed like a dough. Add the walnuts and cinnamon. Make little balls by rolling small amount of mix with your hands. Dip them in coconut flakes.


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Afiyet Olsun!