Thursday, December 8, 2011

CHICKEN GRATIN





                                               CHICKEN GRATIN







Today is a sunny and bright day. It invites everybody to go outside. They say it is going to snow in the next few days. It is hard to believe .... Also Istanbul gets her share from the climate change. Normally we were having full four seasons but not anymore. It was fun at that time.... Everything was changing when the season changes.... like clothes, food, the view of nature. It looks too late to cry for the old good days. We have to do what we can do today.!!!
My recipe is from my childhood memories. I was a very picky child when the issue was nutrition. My mum was trying to feed me with rich food.
You have to careful about the chicken. Super markets chicken can be tasteless. I prefer organic ones. I know they are much more expensive then the others. According to my experience if you want to eat delicious meal you need good quality ingredients.

CHICKEN  GRATIN serve 6

1 lb (500g) chicken (any part of chicken is suitable with bone)
1 medium onion
3 stalks parsley
3 medium carrots
3 medium potatoes
1/2 lb (250g) spinach

For the white sauce
1 1/2 table spoon butter or vegetable oil
2 tablespoon plain flour
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon nutmeg
3 tablespoon grated tasty cheese


Combine chicken , onion, parsley, 1 teaspoon salt and 2 cups hot water in a deep pan. Bring to boil and reduce the heat. Cook 2o min or until chicken is tender. Drain and reserve the stock for the white sauce. Remove meat from bones and cut chicken meat into small pieces.
Meanwhile, boil or steam chopped carrots , potatoes and stalks removed spinach separately. Drain all well.
Melt the butter over a medium heat, add flour. Stir 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Add hot chicken stock and stir. Continue to stir over heat until sauce boils and thickens. Season with salt and pepper and nutmeg.
Combine white sauce and vegetables. Place in well greased ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with cheese.
Bake at 400F-200C degrees for 30 min or until surface get well brown.
It can get well with green salad.


Tuesday, December 6, 2011

LENTIL AND PASTA SOUP






                                            LENTIL AND PASTA
                                    SOUP







Today is a very dark and windy day in Istanbul. Winter is at our door. I live in one of Istanbul suburbs. I feel myself lucky to live here because it has gardens, trees and lot of greens. Everywhere is cover with yellow to red leaves. I love spring and fall.
I guess everybody enjoys eating a delicious bowl of good soup on a day like this.
I learned this recipe is my fathers mother's. She was from middle of Turkey , Burdur. This region is a wheat barn for Turkey. There are many recipes with fresh home made pasta. This recipe is so good with home made pasta if you can't find any you can use pasta.... Another ingredient is yogurt. We use yogurt for cooking lot. If you don't like yogurt you can use lemon juice instead of it.
The name of soup is LENTILS AND PASTA SOUP

INGREDÄ°ENTS Serves 6-8
1 cup green lentils
4 cups (1 Lt) water and a can of chicken broth (10 1/2 OZ-300g9)I prefer low salt
OR 5 cups water and 1 chichen broth cube
1 can tomatoes puree (250g)
1/2 cup fresh home made pasta or ricori-rice shaped pasta or any short pasta
1 cup yogurt(150g)
2 table spoon flour
1 garlic clove crashed (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 table spoon butter
1 teaspoon dry mint
1/2 teaspoon paprika or  chili powder



Put the green lentil in a saucepan, cover with hot water and boil 5 minutes. Drain well. Place it in a saucepan add 4cups water and chicken broth and tomato puree and salt. Let it boil and cook 15 minutes until lentil is tender.
Add pasta, cook 10 minutes more or until pasta is cooked. Meanwhile mix well yogurt, flour and garlic in a bowl. Add some hot soup in to it to lukewarm the yogurt. Otherwise yogurt gets set. Pour it very slowly in to the soup. Continue to stirring until it boils.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan add dry mint and paprika. Just before serving pour over the soup.
Other option... if you don't want to use yogurt, Mix 2 table spoon lemon juice, flour , and garlic in a bowl . Add this in to the soup.


As you see this soup has very low fat (just melted butter as a sauce on it) and lot of protein because of lentils and yogurt.
AFIYET OLSUN.....(Bone appetite in Turkish)