Potato Rollups

Potato Rollups

This is one of my "California meets Turkey" recipes. Boiled, mashed potatoes are used as filling for many Turkish savory pastries along with cheese and olive based fillings. I wanted to serve bite size appetizers with potato filling. Cream cheese and turkey rollups that are common on party platters in California came to my mind. I combined the tortilla rollup idea with the flavor of  Turkish potato salad (see recipe in my blog) and came up with this appetizer that I believe you'll like. You can serve these as party appetizers or with afternoon tea. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 medium potatoes, boiled, mashed 
• 3 large tortillas
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• ½ cup fresh mint, finely chopped
• ½ cup fresh dill, finely chopped
• ½ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon chili pepper (optional)
• Salt to taste

Directions:

Boil potatoes, peel them and mash them with a fork. Put tortillas aside. Mix chopped green ingredients in a large bowl. Save aside 2 tablespoons of the mixture to be used as garnish. Add potatoes, olive oil, peppers and salt into the large bowl. Mix them with a fork. Place a tortilla on a flat surface. Spread 1/3 of the potato mixture evenly on the tortilla. Starting at the bottom, roll it into a cylinder. Cut the edges. Cut the roll into ¼ inch slices. Place the slices on a serving dish on their flat sides. Repeat for the other 2 tortillas. Sprinkle with chopped herbs.

Afiyet Olsun! Bon Appetit!

Zucchini & Peppers Braised in Olive Oil

Zucchini & Peppers Braised in Olive Oil

My friend Ugur is a master magician when it comes to cooking and presenting food. Her family roots come from the Agean Islands, thus she cooks many delicious olive oil based vegetable dishes even uncommon among the Turks. I used to cook zucchini in a similar way (olive oil, herbs, etc.), however, it never tasted this good. I think what made the difference is the pine nuts she adds after it is cooked, and the colorful (red, yellow and green) peppers that visually enhances the dish as well as the taste. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb zucchini
•  6 peppers (red, yellow, green mixed)
•  2 medium onions, cut in half and sliced
• 5-6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cups hot water
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts
• ¼ cup fresh dill, chopped
• ¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
• salt to taste

Directions:

• Peel and cut zucchini into slices 1/4 inch thick
• Wash, core the peppers removing the seeds. Cut into slices ¼ inch thick
• In a heavy saucepan put oil and onions. Sauté onions for 2-3 minutes.
• Add peppers, zucchini, water, salt and sugar. When it starts to boil, lower the heat. Simmer over low heat for about 25-30 minutes until vegetables are tender.
• Remove from the heat. Transfer into a serving dish. Sprinkle pine nuts, dill and mint over it. Serve at room temperature.

Afitey Olsun! Bon Appetit!

Potato Salad

Potato Salad

This is a very healthy version of potato salad. It is mayonnaise-free! 

Ingredients:

• 3-4 medium size potatoes
• 1 medium red onion
• ½ cup olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• ¼ cup fresh dill, chopped
• ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
• ¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
• 1 teaspoon dry oregano
• 1 teaspoon chili pepper
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• Salt to taste

Directions:

Boil potatoes until tender but not mushy. Peel and cut in half, then slice each half into ¼ inch thick slices, set aside. Cut onions in half and thinly slice them. In a large bowl place all of the ingredients except the potatoes. Mix them with a fork. Add potatoes to the bowl, gently mix them with a spoon. Transfer into a serving dish.

Afiyet Olsun! Bon Appetit!

Gypsy Salad

Gypsy Salad (Cingen Pilavi)

Although the original name, Cingen Pilavi means Gypsy Pilav when translated word by word, this is a salad. It is only known in a small region in Western Turkey. It is a very simple recipe that mainly consists of tomatoes and peppers with olive oil dressing. The key ingredient here is a kind of curd called “cokelek”. It is a byproduct of the process used in making butter. It is sort of like cottage cheese, except it is very dry and flaky. This salad is part of a typical Turkish breakfast in the summer, but, commonly served with lunch as well. For the lunch version dry onions are added to the recipe. I cannot find this special curd in California, so I substitute feta cheese. You can also substitute cottage cheese. But if you do that, I suggest that you put it in a strainer first, letting the juices drain before adding to the salad. 

Ingredients:

• 2 large tomatoes diced
• 2 sweet green peppers, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil 
• 1 small onion, cut in half and thinly sliced (optional)
• ½ cup curd (cokelek) or feta cheese, crumbled
  
• 1 teaspoon dry oregano (optional)
• 3-4 black or green olives for decoration
• Salt to taste

Directions:

Mix tomatoes, peppers and onions(optional) in a bowl. Transfer to a serving plate. Add crumbled feta cheese to the top. Sprinkle dry oregano(optional). Garnish with olives.

Afiyet Olsun! Bon Appetit!

Green Lentil Salad

This is a recipe from my sister Nuvit's friend Ahu who lives in Istanbul.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry green lentils
• ½ cup rice
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 small onion finely chopped
• 3 roasted red peppers chopped
• ¼ cup dill pickles, finely chopped
• 2-3 green onions finely chopped
• 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste
• ¼ cup fresh dills finely chopped
• 4-5 green or black olives (optional as garnish)
• 1 small cucumber peeled, cut into slices or lengthwise (optional as garnish)

Directions:

Place lentils in 3 cups of boiling water. Let it simmer over low heat until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain lentils in a strainer. Place rice in 2 cups of boiling water. Let it simmer over low heat until rice is cooked, about 15 minutes. Drain rice in a strainer. Place olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add chopped onions, saute onions until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Place all ingredients except chopped fresh dills, olives(optional) and cucumbers(optional) in a large bowl, mix with a spoon. Transfer on to a serving dish. Sprinkle fresh dill over the salad. You can garnish with olives and cucumbers or other vegetables.

Afiyet Olsun! Bon Appetit!

White Roughy in Tomato-Olive Oil Sauce

White Roughy in Tomato-Olive Oil Sauce

Ingredients:

• 3 pieces of white roughy, approximately 4 oz each.
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed (optional)
• 2-3 medium tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 3 table spoons olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cut tomatoes in half, place in blender, coarsely chop them. Place oil, crushed garlic (optional) and chopped tomatoes in a large pan. Cook over medium to low heat until tomatoes are soft, about 5 minutes. Place fish in the pan. Cook each side about 5 minutes.

Afiyet Olsun !Bon Appetit!

Cabbage Salad

Cabbage Salad

I had this salad at my friend Vega's house first. Her husband Haluk is the king of salads. I came home and tried to remember what was in it. Of course I ended up adding a few new ingredients (almonds and walnuts) and leaving out a few. When he sent me the recipe, it was too late to go back to the original.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups white cabbage chopped
• ½ cup green apples finely chopped
• ½ cup carrots finely grated (optional)
• ½ cup jicama diced (optional)
• 2 green onions finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon honey
• ½ cup rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon sliced, toasted almonds
• 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts
• 1 tablespoon currants or raisins

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and let is stand in the refrigerator for at least half an hour before serving. This allows all the flavors to mix. It will stay in the refrigerator for a couple of days. 

Picture below features Chinese cabbage instead of regular one. I've added 1/2 cup chopped red cabbage to give it some color.

Optional Red Cabbage adds color

 Afiyet Olsun! Bon Appetit!