Chicken roulade

                                            CHICKEN ROULADE

The recipe which I am going to give you is from East Europe. I learned it from my dear English friend , who is a marvelous cook. My international cuisine interest started after I met her 34 years ago. She said that she learned this dish from her mother. I was lucky to meet her mother. She was a notable German lady and a fantastic cook too. This talent now continues with her daughter and grand-daughter.
I like to try new recipes, but also I like to change them my way. As usual I have changed this recipe too. I use chicken instead of mince meat sauce. If it sounds more familiar to you , possible to make it with mince meat sauce.
When my friend and I have chance to be together we enjoy to try different tastes. I am going to share these recipes with you time to time.
Chicken roulette is a very tasty and presentable main dish. The good thing is, it can be prepared a day before to serve.

Ingredient :
4 tablespoons plain flour
100g butter or margarine
1/2 Lt milk
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs

Filling: (with chicken)
300g chicken thighs -chopped into small size cube
1 onion- chopped
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 tablespoon corn flour +2 tablespoon water
1 cup hot water

OR

Filling: (with mince meat)
300g mince (ground) meat
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoon tomato puree
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup hot water

For sauce
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
250g mushrooms , sliced
1/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

22cmx30 cm Swiss roll pan and baking sheet


Preparation:
Melt butter in a pan, add flour ,milk and salt. Stir constantly over heat until mixture thickens. Let it cool. Separate eggs white and yolks. Add eggs yolk one at time, mix well. Beat egg whites in a glass bowl until soft peaks form. Fold it into mixture using a metal spoon . Pour mixture into well greased and lined with
baking sheet. Bake in 180C-350F hot oven for 20 min until it is light brown.

For filling
(Chicken) Put 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a pan ,fry chopped onion 2 min, add chicken cubes, stir until turn brown. Add salt and pepper. Add hot water , cook until chicken is tender. Mix corn flour with water, add into cooked chicken. Stir until mixture boils and thickens. Let it to cool.

(Mince meat) Fry chopped onion in vegetable oil, add mince meat. Stir until it gets brown. Add tomato puree , water and seasoning. Cook until all water absorbed. Let it to cool.
Turn baked roulette onto a tea towel. Remove baking sheet. Spread chicken or mince meat mixture. Start to roll roulette from the short side. It is possible to refrigerate like this. Before to serve cover with foil and heat in the oven 180C-325F 5 min.
For sauce: Fry chopped onion in vegetable oil, add sliced mushroom and seasoning. Stir until mushrooms cook, add sour cream.

 

For serving cut roulette into 3cm slice, pour mushroom sauce onto each slice.

Patties-Lady's tigh

                                          PATTIES
                     








Meat takes important place in Turkish cuisine. The main use of meat in cooking is minced (ground) meat. Typical minced meat dish KOFTE is mixture of minced meat, onion, bread and spice and shaped oval, round and grilled, baked, fried or boiled.
My today's recipe is a traditional Turkish recipe which has a funny name... LADY'S TIGHT... I wonder why they give a name like this. I searched about it but I couldn't reach any information.
I was just married with my husband , me and my mother in law went to Ankara (capital city of Turkey) to visit her mother, grandma.
Mother and daughter decided to make Lady's tight. This patty dish has been very popular in my husband's family. After grandma mixed all ingredients , they shaped together. When they fished , grandma started to yell ' Look at you , who taught you to make them this big , reshape them...' Believe me grandma reshape all patties which my mother in law shaped and shaped all of them herself... At that day I understood everybody has hers own cooking style even mother and daughter ....and child doesn't grow enough in the eyes of her mother....

Ingredients:

500g (1lb) lean minced (ground) meat
1 medium onion , chopped
2 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 small egg
1/2 cup short grain rice
1 cup hot water

For fry:
3 tablespoon plain flour
2 large eggs
1 cup vegetable oil

Preparation:

Place rice in a pan, add a cup of hot water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Boil it until all water absorbed. Let it cool.
Put onion, parsley, egg and seasoning in a food processor. While it is working add meat. Transfer the mixture in a large bowl. Add cooked rice , mix well. Leave it in the fridge half an hour.
Take an egg size mixture, shape oval and flatten.
Beat the eggs in a bowl. Place flour in a plate.
Heat oil, cover koftes with flour and dip into beaten egg. Fry both sides over medium heat, until they get golden brown. Serve hot with potatoes and green salad.

chocolate cake

                                       CHOCOLATE CAKE







We celebrate my husband's 63rd birthday last week. You can see only three candles on it in the picture... because there wasn't enough room for 63 candles!! It was a small party but amusing. We had some family members and friends from Germany.
January is a very busy and expensive month in our family. It starts with my husband's birthday and continues with my sister in law's, my nephew's, my niece's, and my twin sons'. What a month!
As birthday cake I made chocolate cake which is one of my favorite. I don't know anybody who doesn't like chocolate. They say it increases serotonin which makes you happy...I'm not a sweet eater but I love chocolate.
The earliest record of chocolate was over two thousand years ago in Central America. They were making drinks with grounded cocoa beans, maize and chili.
It was brought to Europe by Cortes. The first factory opened in Spain. They changed the ingredients for more " European taste, mixing the ground roasted beans with sugar and vanilla. In few years time the cocoa drink had become popular all over the Europe.
English colonists brought cocoa beans to North America. So adventure of cocoa beans started in South America ended in North America.

Ingredients:
100g dark chocolate
250ml (1 cup) hot water
125g unsalted butter
200g (1cup) brown sugar
3 medium eggs
150g (1 cup) self-raising flour
25g (1/4 cup) cocoa powder
60g (1/2 cup) almond meal

For glaze:
200g dark chocolate
160ml (2/3 cup) whipping cream
3 tablespoon Cherry liqueur
10-12 cherries

22cm round cake pan

Preparation:

Put chopped chocolate and water in a pan. Stir over low heat until chocolate melts Let it cool.

Beat butter and sugar with hand mixer. Add eggs 1 at a time. Add flour , cocoa powder, almond meal, and last chocolate mixture.Pour mixture into well greased cake pan. Bake in oven 160C -325F about 1 1/4 hours. Leave cake in pan 15min and turn onto wire rack to cool.


Glaze

Melt the chocolate with cream in a heatproof bowl over hot, not boiling water. Remove from the heat. Leave it until warm. Brush cake with cheery liqueur or rum or brandy. Spread glaze over the cake. Decorate with cherries.

RICE WITH FISH

                                             RICE WITH FISH


Turkey is settled down on Anatolia Peninsula. Three sides of my country surrounded by four seas, Black Sea, Marmara Sea, Aegean Sea and Mediterranean Sea.
All seas are different from each other by qualitatively. Of course type of fish is different too. Each area has its own cuisine.
The Black Sea coasts curling besides mountains covered with green forests, tea, hazelnut, tobacco and corn fields.
At Black Sea region, regional cuisine is traditionally reliant on fish. Most known fish is Hamsi -Black Sea Anchovy ( UK- spart, Us smelt) .They cook all varieties of this fish....like pickled , stuffed , patty, bread , grilled, fried, omelet....Also there is a myth about hamsi  jam which I have never eaten.
Today's recipe is Hamsi with rice. It is delicious and also visually nice. You can serve it as a main dish.

Ingredients
1kg (2 lb) Hamsi- smelt-spart or any small oily fish
2 cups short grain rice
3 tablespoons butter or 1/2 cup olive oil
2 medium onions
2 tablespoons dill
2 tablespoons dried mint
2 teaspoons allspice
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons currants
2 tablespoons pine nuts
salt and black pepper
3 cups hot water

Preparation:
Place rice in a large bowl. Add 1 tablespoon salt and cover with hot water. Stand it 30min. Drain the rice and wash cold running water until the water is clear.
Remove fish head and backbones. Wash and drain. Flatten them by opening from the center. Season with 1 teaspoon salt.
Chop the onions well. Melt the butter or heat the olive oil in a saucepan. Add onion and fry 3min add pine nuts. When the pine nuts turn light brown add the rice. Stir 3 min more. Add allspice, dried mint, currants, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Add 2 cups hot water. Let it boil and simmer on low heat until all water absorbed.. The rice must be half cooked. Add chopped dill .
Well grease an oven proof round dish, place 2/3 the fish , shiny side must be down. Lay down rice, cover with rest of the fish. Add rest of hot water (1 cup)
Cook in the oven 160C- 325 F 20min. Turn the dish over in a serving dish and serve hot.

CREP WITH SALMON

 

 

              CREPES WITH  SALMON

 

 

 

 

 

 

A party at home is fun but  can be stress full. There are many things you have to organize before the party. One of the most difficult decisions is what to serve. You have to choose a selection of finger food which must be tasty and easy to serve and can be prepared a day ahead.

 The history of crepe begins with the pancake . Pancake began popping up Europe in the year 15th century. Crepe word is of French origin . Pancakes turn up all over the world like .....dosa in India, blinis in Russia , tortillas in Mexico , kaygana in Turkey ..

The crepe originate in Brittany in northwest of France. They make sweet or savory various.

The crepe was brought to America in the 1930s by French Chef Henri Charpentier.

Today crepes are served all over the world on streets, in restaurants and at homes. In France there is a celebration for crepe on February 2nd.

Making pancake is not difficult, but making a good thin crepe needs more effort. First of all you need heavy-based pan - about 15cm.

INGREDIENTS

For basic crepe :

3/4 cup plain flour

3 eggs, beaten

1 tablespoon oil

1 cup milk

1/2 cup oil for grease to pan

For filling

250g cream cheese (Philly)

2 tablespoon chopped dill

2 clove garlic, crushed

2 tablespoon olive oil

100g smoked salmon

1 Tablespoon capers

PREPATION

Process flour ,  eggs, oil and milk ,  until batter is smooth. You can use liquid blender or food processor to whisk. If there are lumps into the batter, strain it.

Heat the pan over medium heat. Brush pan with oil , pour 3 tablespoon of batter, swirl round to cover the base of pan.

When crepe is lightly browned underneath, turn to brown other side. Repeat with remaining batter. Make 6 crepes.

Mix cream cheese, garlic, dill and olive oil.

Lay down 3 crepes on lining paper by one by , make second row with other 3 crepes. Do not let any space between crepes. Spread with half of cream cheese mixture then top half of smoked salmon (100g). Roll the crepes tightly.  Refrigerate at least an hour or over night. Cut crepe rolls 2cm slice. Place them into serving dish, decorate with dill and capers.

Another severing suggestion is keeping whole. Before spread the cream  cheese mixture separate  2 tablespoon of it  . After roll it cover with the mixture. Decorate with dill and capers.

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.

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

INGREDİENTS 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)