cook-food

Even though this dish may not look appealing, it does taste great. It is also very healthy as it involves a nutritious vegetable; eggplant. This dish was one of my least favorite dishes when I was a kid. Now, I truly enjoy it. Eggplants are not in season now, however they are still available in stores. This dish is a very popular summer dish, but there is no reason why you couldn't make it in the winter if you find the eggplants. This recipe has been waiting to be posted since this summer as it was competing with other scrumptious recipes. Now is its turn. You have the option of making this dish with meat. Most of the time, I cook the vegetable stews without meat. If you choose to add meat, sauté the meat, prior to adding the rest of the ingredients. For this particular dish, the eggplant can be substituted with okra, zucchini, green beans and even potatoes. 5 medium eggplants 3 small tomatoes (peeled and chopped) ¼ white or yellow onion (chopped) 1 large garlic clove (chopped) 2 t...

I had the pleasure of making these chicken breasts for the first time for company we had a while ago. As I enjoy cooking, I enjoy sharing the food I cook even more. These chicken breasts turned out very flavorful and moist. This dish is made Turkish style even though one of the ingredients (Pepper Jack cheese) is not traditionally Turkish. I used this cheese since I did not want to add too many spices, but still have a nice flavor. This cheese already has some peppers in it, so the combination with mushrooms and parsley produces an exquisite taste. If you prefer, you may substitute the cheese with another type of cheese. 8 boneless skinless chicken breasts 6 large white cap mushrooms 1 garlic clove ¼ cup parsley ½ lb pepper Jack cheese 3 tbsp olive oil 1 tsp dried oregano Juices of 2 lemons Salt Cut the mushrooms in half and slice. Cut each slice in three pieces. It is faster to cut a mushroom in half and slicing each half and without separating the slices chopping it again. Heat 1 tb...

Last month, I received a very generous award from lovely Sandra, the blog owner of Get to know Croatia & Always Curious who is one of my first and most loyal readers. Now it’s time for me to pass this award to other fellow bloggers. They all have wonderful blogs. I hope you will get a chance to visit them too. You just need to give this award to 10 other bloggers and link them in your blog along with the person who gave you this award. Simple and easy. 1. Mimi Cooks -Wonderful Arabic cooking blog with great videos 2. Organically Cooked - Great blog from a New Zeland ex-pat who lives in Hania, Crete 3. Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska – Mouthwatering Mediterranean recipes all the way in Alaska 4. Lisa is Cooking - In her own words; an addict of cookbooks, food writing and cooking and other stuff related to food with lovely recipes 5. Joie de vivre: An amateur gourmet’s guide - Someone who has adopted a diet after reading “French Woman Don’t Get Fat” and lost quite a few pounds as a...

One of my favorite pilafs is with peas and carrots. Rice is so versatile; it can be cooked in different ways with various ingredients. I use frozen peas for this recipe (the only frozen vegetable that I ever purchase) since good quality peas are not available fresh. Sometimes, I do find the large pods, but the peas inside are too small. If I could find good quality fresh peas, I would use them. My mother makes rice pilaf with carrots and peas pretty often. It is a good way of putting vegetables in starchy foods. 2 cups white rice 3 carrots (chopped in squares) ½ cup frozen peas 3 cups chicken broth 1 tsp olive oil Salt Heat olive oil in a pan. Add carrots and peas and mix together for 2 minutes. Add rice and mix again. Add the chicken broth and salt. Adjust the salt to your taste. Cook on medium heat until it starts boiling and then turn to low heat. Cook until all the water is absorbed. No need to stir while cooking. Serve with meat or vegetable dishes.

One day I was strolling through the isles of a famous local fish and meat market when I was living in the Northeast and was trying to decide what type of lamb I should purchase. I saw an already marinated, packaged leg of lamb and was trying to figure out its ingredients. Another shopper informed me that she had tried it the week before and it was ‘out of this world’. I had to try it. It was excellent! Now, I do buy the same leg of lamb, except without marinate since I prepare freshly made marinate. If cooked correctly, the lamb can be very tender and flavorful. I like my meat to be cooked thoroughly, but if you prefer it rare or medium rare, cook it a a few minutes less than instructed. ½ lb leg of lamb 1 large sprig of fresh rosemary 2 sprigs fresh oregano 3 cloves garlic (sliced) Juice of 1 lemon or lime 1 tbsp olive oil Ground black pepper Sea salt With a sharp knife, make 10-15 slits around the lamb. Place the lamb in a deep container. Rub with sea salt and freshly grounded black ...

I have to admit that I do not know many recipes with leeks. My mother seldom cooked leeks. I do not recall her cooking it as the main dish but only as an ingredient for another recipe. This dish is known in most parts of Turkey. This recipe is inspired from the Leeks with Carrots recipe from the Turkish cookbook called “ Anatolian Feast ” which is published by the American Turkish Association of Houston a non-profit organization. 4 medium leeks (sliced in ½ inch thick) 1 cup carrots (sliced thick) 1 red bell pepper (sliced lenghtwise) 2 garlic cloves (chopped) 1 cup rice 1 tsp tomato sauce 2 tbsp olive oil ½ tsp cumin ½ tsp ground black pepper Pinch of salt 2 1/2 cups water Wash the leeks thoroughly. Clean underneath each leaf with lots of water. There will be dirt sticking between the leaves. Therefore, after washing and slicing them, I soak them in a pot full of water and triple wash them. Heat olive oil in a large pan. Add garlic and stir for one minute. Do not let them burn. Add le...

A popular winter snack, chestnuts date back to pre-historic times. Mainly grown and consumed in the Mediterranean countries, chestnuts are a major staple in Southern Europe, Asia Minor, Southwestern and East Asia. They are also grown here in the States. In Turkey, it is cultivated in the Marmara Sea region and the Black Sea region mainly in the mountainous areas. The most famous chestnuts (kestane) in Turkey is in the city of Bursa which is around the Marmara region. They grow in trees where the brown colored nut is enclosed in greenish spiny round burs. The nuts are harvested around October. When I saw them in stores recently, my memory awakened for another joy of the winter. I grabbed a bag of the chestnuts and was looking forward to a cold night for roasting. I recollect seeing numerous chestnut carts in Turkey during winter months where the aroma of the roasted chestnuts fills the whole street. Resisting the temptation of the roasted chestnuts caused by inhaling the wonderful aroma...

I made and took this borek for the last day of our Spanish class. Everyone was supposed to bring Mexican or Spanish food for the cultural experience, however I was volunteered into bringing Turkish food. I prepared it late on a Sunday night and the next day I left work early and placed it in the oven while I was getting ready. We took it to class warm, just out of the oven. The smell of it was very tempting. It got a lot of praise. This was my first time making this borek and I will make it again soon, this time for us. For the Filling: 1 lb ground beef 1 medium white or yellow onion (chopped) 2 cloves garlic (chopped) ½ cup parsley (chopped) 1 tbsp olive oil 1 ½ tsp salt ¼ tsp paprika ½ tsp ground black pepper For the Outer Part of the Borek: 1 package phyllo dough sheets 1 cup yogurt ½ cup olive oil 1 egg Preparation of Filling: Heat olive oil in a large non-stick pan. Add the onions and sautee for 3 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and the ground beef. Cook until the beef takes a bro...