Some Iftar recipes.

As this is the month of the beginning of Ramadan for our Muslims sisters we thought it would be a good idea to share some Iftar recipes with you.
For those of us who do not know what Ramadan and Iftar mean let me help you out.

Ramandan:- “Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed, providing guidance for the people, clear teachings, and the statute book. Those of you who witness this month shall fast therein. Those who are ill or traveling may substitute the same number of other days. GOD wishes for you convenience, not hardship, that you may fulfill your obligations, and to glorify GOD for guiding you, and to express your appreciation.”
Iftar:- A meal served at the end of the day during Ramadan, to break the day’s fast.  Literally, “breakfast.”

Ok now that we all understand and know what the words mean let me now give you recipes to try out.

Rose Sherbet.

4 fragrant petals of a leafy Rose, red or pink
3-4 tbsp sugar, you can add more if you prefer it sweeeter
1 cup water
1 tsp lemon juice

Place rose petals and sugar in a medium sized bowl. Crush the petals with the sugar using your hand until the petals break down very well. Add lemon juice and water. Stir until the sugar dissolves.

Cover the bowl and leave in the fridge* for at least 4-5 hours. Drain using a strainer over a bowl. Serve with ice cubes.

* I prefer to leave this drink in the fridge over night. The taste and colour are much better in this way.

Or:

1 tsp rose water
2 tbsp sugar, you can add more if you prefer it sweeeter
1 tsp lemon juice
1 cup water
One drop of pink food coloring

Combine all ingredients and blend with an egg whisker or a blender. Leave in the fridge* for at least 4-5 hours. Serve with ice cubes.

Makes 1 glass..

What is Sherbet?

Sherbet “şerbet” is the world’s first soft drink. Ottoman Turks drank sherbet before and during each meal. There was no custom of drinking water during the meal; sherbet or compote taken in the end replaced the water in the Palaces. Sultans drank fruit juice, lime juice or a sherbet during meals. They used an embroidered porcelain or coconut shell spoon placed on a special open box.

Sherbet is also served during Ramadan in crystal bowls or in tall cut glasses, or ornamented (with gilt flowers) glasses with ice cubes or snow. The sherbet glasses should be placed on a tray covered with lace or a piece of embroidered cloth.

Sherbet is still a traditional cold drink in Turkey. It is believed that sherbet has healing effects. In the gardens of the Ottoman Palace, spices and fruits to be used in sherbets were grown up under the control of pharmacists and doctors of the Palace.

Traditionally cold sherbet is served on especially hot summer days to please visitors. Also at weddings or during childbirth to increase lactation of the mother. This type of sherbet is called “loğusa şerbeti (birth Sherbet)” which is crimson in colour and is flavoured with cloves and herbs.

Sherbet is made from fruit juices or extracts of flowers or herbs, combined with sugar, water and ice or snow. Depending on the season, types of fruit sherbets include; pear, quince, strawberry, apple, kizilcik (cornelian cherry), mulberries, pomegranate, bergamot, mint, strawberry, orange, etc. There is also a honey sherbet and a green coloured violets sherbet which is made by pounding violet-flowers and then boiling them with sugar.

Ramadan Pide.

7 gr instant yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 3/4 cup warm milk
~4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil

Glaze:
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp milk

In a small bowl, mix the yeast, sugar and 1/4 cup warm milk. Stir well so the yeast dissolves (picture). Cover it with a towel, let it rest 15 minutes.

In a large bowl, sift flour and salt (picture). Add the bubbly yeast mixture and 1 1/2 cup warm milk (picture). Mix and put the dough on the lightly floured counter and knead well for about 10 minutes until it becomes smooth (no more crumbles). Then spread 1 tsp of olive oil inside a clean bowl. Place the dough in it and spread another tsp of olive oil with your hands all over the dough (picture). Then cover it with a clean, damp towel. Put aside for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours at room temperature until the dough rises to double its size.

Place the dough on the lightly floured counter. Press all over it with your hands to get rid of air bubbles (picture). Cut the dough in 2 pieces with a knife. Knead and give a ball shape to each, cover with a damp towel, and put aside for about 15 minutes. Place parchment paper on two oven trays, then arrange the doughs on the trays. Then use your palm to flatten each ball into a flatter rounded shape.

Lightly beat the glaze ingredients in a small bowl. Dip your finger tips in it and press all over the dough. Sprinkle some black or regular sesame seeds all over and cover with a clean damp towel. Leave for about 35-40 minutes to rise at a warm place.

Preheat the oven to 450 F and put some water in an oven-safe bowl. Place it on the bottom of the oven. Place one of the trays on the middle rack. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes until the colour becomes light golden. Place the pide on the clean towel to cool it down a bit. Then bake the second dough. Serve while still warm.

Makes 2 Turkish Ramadan Pide.

* After baking Pide, let it cool for 5 minutes, then place in a clean plastic bag. It will be more soft this way.

Chicken with Walnuts

(Cerkez Tavugu).

2 chicken breasts
3-4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup walnuts, crushed into little pieces
1/2 loaf of day old bread, Italian/French style bread, without the crust
2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tsp red pepper or Cayenne pepper
Salt
Pepper

Place the chicken breasts in a medium-sized pot and cover with water. Cook for about 20 minutes on medium heat. Remove the chickens and keep the chicken broth.

As for the bread, make sure it is stale (ie. leave out overnight), remove the crusts and soak the rest in the chicken broth. Take out, squeeze with your palms and place in a large bowl. Then cut the chicken into small pieces and add into the bowl along with the salt, pepper and garlic. Mix very well with a fork into an even consistency. Add the walnuts and mix again. If the mixture is too dry, slowly add and mix some chicken broth with a tablespoon until softer.

Place on a service plate and shape with a fork. Heat the sunflower oil in a small skillet and add the red pepper. When the oil starts bubbling, turn the heat off and pour over the chicken.

Serve this chicken dish as an appetizer with small, toasted bread slices.

Stuffed Tomato with Eggplant.

4 large tomatoes

Filling:

1 onion, finely sliced
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Chinese or Japanese eggplant, peel, cut in cubes, soak into salty water for about 15 minutes, drain, squeeze the excess water
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
1 tbsp basil, chopped
1/3 cup feta cheese, cut in cubes
1 slice day old Turkish bread (or French or Italian), without crust, crumbled
1 egg, beaten
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp crushed pepper
Salt
Pepper

Cut off the tops of the tomatoes using a small knife. Then spoon out the inside of the tomatoes and cut them in small pieces, put aside.

Saute the onion with olive oil in a medium sized pan. Add the garlic. When the smell comes out, add the tomato pieces and eggplant. Saute for about 10 minutes on medium low heat. Then turn the heat off. Add the rest of the filling ingredients and stir. Fill the tomatoes using a teaspoon.

Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C). Place the stuffed tomatoes in a greased casserole dish and bake for about 30 minutes.

This is a great entree dish for dinner parties, especially during Summer nights

Stuffed Mushrooms

(Mantar Dolmasi)

6-8 large mushrooms

Filling:

5-6 cherry tomatoes, cut in small pieces
2 tbsp chopped green peppers
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
Pepper for taste

Topping:

1 1/2 tbsp breadcrumbs
4-5 tbsp mozzarella, grated
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Clean mushrooms with a soft brush or wipe with a piece of cloth. Don’t wash them as they will retain water. Discard the stalks.

Mix all filling ingredients and fill in the mushrooms equally with a teaspoon. Then mix all the topping ingredients and cover the mushrooms with it. Place them in a greased dish suitable for the oven.

Preheat the oven to 175 C (350 F) and bake for about 15 minutes until the top is golden brown. Don’t overbake.

You can serve Stuffed Mushrooms while still hot as an appetizer or with any kind of beef or chicken dish.

Pilaf with Lamb

(Etli Pilav).

2 lamb shanks
1 cup rice
4-5 fresh green onions, cut into little pieces
2 medium size tomatoes, diced
Salt, pepper
30 ml. butter, diced

First, place lamb shanks in a medium sized pot. Cover with water and cook on medium-high for 35-40 minutes. When finished, separate the meat, discard the bones, strain and put aside the remaining stock for use later.

Place washed, uncooked rice in a large skillet (not a pot). Put the lamb pieces between the rice equally. Put tomatoes, green onions, butter, salt and pepper as well around the lamb. Then, take the stock from before and pour it over. The stock should be 1 3/4 cups, if not, you can add water. Keep the lid half covered and cook on medium-low heat for approximately 20-25 minutes until the rice is cooked (water should be completely absorbed).

Suggested serving: With Shepherd’s Salad.

Shepherd’s Salad

(Coban Salatasi).

1/2 cup cucumber, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
1 cubanelle pepper
1/2 red onion, sliced
1/4 cup fresh mint
2 tsp lemon juice
2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
50 ml feta cheese, crumbled
Salt
Pepper

Place all the vegetables in a medium size salad bowl. Add salt and pepper to liking. Add the feta, lemon juice and olive oil. Don’t add any other dressings.

This salad goes very well with lamb dishes.

Turkish Baklava

(Baklava).

Baklava is of Turkish origin and is the world’s favourite Turkish Dessert. It’s extremely delicious. You can find the history of Baklava at Wikipedia.
History of Baklava
Source: Wikipedia

The history of baklava, like that of many other foods, is not well documented. Though it has been claimed by many ethnic groups, the best evidence is that it is of Central Asian Turkic origin, but its current form was developed in the imperial kitchens (Ottoman Empire) of the Topkapı Palace (located in Istanbul).

Other claims about its origins include: that it is of Assyrian origin, dates back to ancient Mesopotamia, and was mentioned in a Mesopotamian cookbook on walnut dishes; that al-Baghdadi describes it in his 13th-century cookbook; that it was a popular Byzantine dish; and so on. But Claudia Roden and Andrew Dalby find no evidence for it in Arab, Greek, or Byzantine sources before the Ottoman period.

Vryonis (1971) identified the ancient Greek gastris, kopte, kopton, or koptoplakous, mentioned in the Deipnosophistae, as baklava, and calls it a “Byzantine favorite”. However, Perry (1994) shows that though gastris contained a filling of nuts and honey, it did not include any dough; instead, it involved a honey and ground sesame mixture.

Perry then assembles evidence to show that layered breads were created by Turks in Central Asia and argues that the “missing link” between the Central Asian folded or layered breads (which did not include nuts) and modern phyllo-based pastries like baklava is the Azerbaijani dish Bakı pakhlavası, which involves layers of dough and nuts, but not thin phyllo dough, which probably was developed in the kitchens of the Topkapı Palace. Indeed, the sultan presented trays of baklava to the Janissaries* every 15th of Ramadan in a ceremonial procession called the Baklava Alayı.

* The Janissaries comprised infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan’s household troops and bodyguard. The force originated in the 14th century; it was abolished by Sultan Mahmud II in 1826 in The Auspicious Incident. The name janissary or janizary derives from the Ottoman Turkish:”yeniçeri” meaning “new soldier”.

Syrup:
1 1/4 cup water
1 3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice

Baklava:
454 gr (1 lb) Phyllo Pastry (~20-22 sheets)
1 cup + 3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cup pistachios, grounded (use a mixer but do not grind finely), the measurement is after grinding
6 tbsp cream 35%

3L (13×9x2″) Pyrex casserole dish

To prepare the Baklava syrup place the water and sugar in a medium sized pot. First bring to a boil and continue boiling for 5 minutes. Then simmer for 15 minutes and turn the heat off. Add lemon juice and place the syrup in another bowl so that it cools down quickly.

Place the block of Phyllo sheets on the counter. Cut the sheets in half (8×12 inches) (picture). Now there are two blocks of approximately 40 sheets. After cutting in half, the size of the sheets should the same as the size of the Pyrex dish. Keep the blocks separate as half the sheets will go below the Baklava filling, and the rest above.

Brush the inside of the pyrex dish with the butter. Then lay down 2 sheets. Spread more butter on top (picture), and then place two more sheets on top and butter again. Continue until you finish the first block of the phyllo sheets. Then brush on the cream evenly on top (picture).

Spread the pistachios on the cream evenly (picture). Then finish second block of the sheets the same way. Don’t forget to brush the very top with butter.

Dip a big, sharp knife into hot water to cut the Baklava in rectangles. Cut 4 vertically and 6 horizontally to get 24 piece of Baklava. However, don’t cut all the way down, only cut halfway until you reach the pistacchio (picture). This will ensure only the top parts will rise when you bake it.

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Place the pyrex dish on the middle rack. Bake for 25 minutes. At this point turn the heat down to 325 F while the dish is still in the oven. Bake for 30 more minutes and take the Baklava out. Leave it at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Then using the same knife, re-cut the Baklava all the way down. This part may be a little bit hard but is worth it:)

With a tablespoon pour the lukewarm syrup evenly along the cut lines. Make sure not to pour it all over, only between the lines, otherwise Baklava won’t turn out well (picture).

Sprinkle some pistachios on top of each Baklava. Let it rest at least 4 hours before serving. The syrup should be completely absorbed. You don’t need to refrigerate it. Cover Baklava loosely with aluminum foil.

Gullac.

1 pkg Gullac leaves, use 12(Rice Paper or Rice leaves serve to purpose. You can find them any Asian store)
200 gr pistachios, crushed
7 1/2 cups homogenized milk
600 gr sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Boil the milk with the sugar and vanilla extract for a couple minutes. In a round tray the same size as a Gullac leaf, pour in half a cup of the milk. Place one leaf on in the tray and pour more milk on top, until the leaf is completely soaked. Continue this process until you finish the 6th leaf.

Spread 150 gr of the pistachios on top of the 6th leaf evenly. Place the 7th leaf on top and continue the same process above until you use all 12 leaves. Make sure all the Gullac leaves are soaked with the milk and that there are no dry spots.

Wait half an hour and use the remaining pistachios to decorate the top. You can also add cherries as seen in the picture above. Leave the fridge until cold and serve in slices. Gullac is a very popular dessert in Turkey, especially during Ramadan.

If you wish, you can use crushed walnuts for the filling instead of pistachios. However, because walnuts leave their colour in milk, you’ll have to finish Gullac within a day or two in this case.

Turkish Delight

Lokum (Candy).

Turkish Delight is a candy that originated in Turkey in the 1700’s. The candy was featured in “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”, by C.S Lewis. The White Witch tempted a character, Edmund with Turkish Delight.

4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups cornstarch
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
4 1/4 cups water
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons rose water
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
vegetable oil or shortening

Directions

In a 9 inch square baking pan, grease the sides and bottom with vegetable oil or shortening.

Line with wax paper and grease the wax paper.

In a saucepan, combine lemon juice, sugar and 1 1/2 cups water on medium heat.

Stir constantly until sugar dissolves. Allow mixture to boil.

Reduce heat to low and allow to simmer, until the mixture reaches 240ºF on a candy thermometer.

Remove from heat and set aside.

Combine cream of tartar, 1 cup corn starch and remaining water in saucepan over medium heat.

Stir until all lumps are gone and the mixture begins to boil.

Stop stirring when the mixture has a glue like consistency.

Stir in the lemon juice and water/sugar mixture.

Stir constantly for about 5 minutes.

Reduce heat to low, allow to simmer for 1 hour, stirring frequently.

Once the mixture has become a golden color, stir in rosewater.

Pour mixture into wax paper lined pan.

Spread evenly and allow to cool overnight.

Once it has cooled overnight, sift together confectioners sugar and remaining cornstarch.

Turn over baking pan containing Turkish delight onto clean counter or table and cut with oiled knife into one inch pieces.

Coat with confectioners sugar mixture.

Serve or store in airtight container in layers separated with wax or parchment paper.

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