Traditional Turkish 'Börek' with Courgettes and Cheese

Making bourek (börek) or filo pastry is such a heart-warming activitiy that reminds me of my childhood days, when my grandmother would come and bring fresh filo pastry to make yummy stuff. Generally it would be bourek or fried small envelope pastries made with filo. My paternal grandmother used to make the best courgette filo pastry with milk, and however much I try, I cannot attain the same texture. There are numerous delicious recipes you can make by using filo pastry (ready made or home made). It is a good snack to have at home, great for a quick breakfast on work days, an amazing afternoon tea and if you are making it yourself, you know what's inside, thus you can make it healthy.

  
Ingredients:

4 sheets of big filo pastry (or 8 sheets of Greek baklava filo pastry)
2 small courgettes
400 gr of white cheese (or Greek feta cheese)
1 egg white
A splash of milk
Olive oil
Salt, pepper
Dry mint
Dry red chilli

How to:

1. First, let's start with the courgettes. Wash and grate them in a bowl, add the cheese, one egg white, 2 or 3 tablespoons of milk, a pinch of salt, half a teaspoon of black pepper, 1-2 teaspoons of dry mint and a sprinkling of dry chilli. Mix well in a bowl and set aside.

2. Take a big oven tray and lightly grease it with olive oil.

If you are using big Turkish filo pastries, the filo should be bigger than the tray, so keep the bigger parts drooping outside of the tray, so that you can overlap it on top of everything and it will look like a big envelope.
If you are using Greek filo sheets, they may be the same size as your tray, which is fine.

Lay the first filo sheet and sprinkle with some extra virgin olive oil. Lay your filo pastries one by one and between each layer keep spreading olive oil. This will make your bourek very crunchy.

3. Once you have used a little bit more than half of your filo pastries, take the bowl with the courgettes and cheese mixture and pour it over the filos, spread evenly and add a splash of milk (yes, even more milk).

4. Keep layering the filos, brushing with olive oil in every layer. And when you come to the last filo, put it on top firmly. If you are using big Turkish filo pastries, fold the overlapping bit on top and tuck in from the sides, so you will have a big envelope kind of bourek.

5. Now brush the top layer with generous amount of extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle some sesame seeds and black cumin (nigella sativa) seeds and sprinkle a little bit of water with your hands.

6. Bake in the preheated oven of 200 degrees for 45 minutes or until it rises and is golden brown.

 

 7. Leave to cool before you slice your bourek. Perfect for tea time, or for kids when they come back from school. I know because I used to love it so much! Eat and enjoy. 

 Utterly delicious snack for the afternoons when you feel peckish! 

Colourful Veggies Bread Pizza

  Making pizza out of stale bread is a very common technique. Sometimes we forget to do it but actually, it is one of the best comfort food you can prepare. It is easy and practical, also very flexible, you can put any type of ingredients you like. In my stale bread pizza, I went for the vegetable love again. I made some bacon to go with it. Chicken would also be a very good alternative. I wouldn't mind having this pizza all by itself, as it has loads of cheese. Just go inside your fridge, take out the bits and pieces of vegetables, add some chorizo, sausages, ham, prosciutto, chicken or anything you think will be fit for a pizza. No dealing with a dough, no rolling, no flouring... Only one important tip: Use a deep baking dish, not a flat tray. In order to turn the bread into a soft and gooey pizza dough, we are going to add some milk, an egg and olive oil. Let's start!

Ingredients:
Depending on the size of your baking dish

10 thin slices of stale white bread
4 table spoons of tomato puree and pepper puree (you can put 3 tomatoes and one big red pepper into a blender and mix until it makes a sauce) 
100 gr mushrooms
1 red pepper
1 green pepper 
1 small onion 
2 cups of milk
1 egg
A small bunch of spirng onions (to sprinkle over the top)
A small bunch of parsley (to sprinkle over the top)
Olive oil
Thyme
Black pepper
200 gr melting cheese (cheddar, mozarella, gruyere, any type of cheese you like on your pizza)

How to:
1. Thinly slice the bread. I had a whole bread, which made 10-12 slices. Line the bottom of your dish with the bread. My dish was a square sized one, so I could get four big slices that are enough for one person each.

2. In a separate medium size bowl, mix the milk, egg and two table spoons of olive oil, then pour a little bit more than half of it over the bread to soak.

3. Grate a thin layer of cheese on top and add another layer of bread and pour the rest of the milk mixture. If you think that two layers of bread will make the bottom of the pizza too thick, don't worry. Slice your bread very thinly, so when they come on top of each other, with the cheese in the middle, it will be just thick enough and very delicious. That is the whole point of this pizza. It is not a crispy flat bread, on the contrary, it is loaded vegetables on top of a soft cushion of bread. =)  One last thing, if you find the milk mixture is not enough, add some more milk and olive oil. If you have a big dish, use 2 eggs.

4. The rest is the easiest part. Spread the tomato and pepper puree generously on top of the bread. You can also use tomato paste instead.

5. Slice the red pepper, green pepper, onion, mushrooms and layer one by one. Cover the breads with vegetables so that the bread should not show. Then, top everything with grated cheese. Cook in a 200 degrees oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the bread looks golden.

6. For extra indulgence, add some more cheese after you take the pizza out of the oven. Sprinkle some chopped spring onions or chives and parsley. Share, eat and enjoy!

First the red peppers and tomatoes...

 Then the whiteness of the mushrooms and cheese...

 Some freshness with spring onions and parsley; here goes our colourful pizza!

Three Herb Salad

So practical, healthy, low in calories, high in presentation looks, delicious and fresh salad recipe. Perfect for spring as the fresh herbs on the market are getting better and better. No need to prepare beforehand. This is not only a healthy salad, but it is also pretty filling because of the pomegranates. The dressing is made from sour pomegranate dressing, which is found in any market in Turkey. It is made from the sour pomegranate juice and it is a little bit sweet, too. You can use balsamic vinegar instead. I made this salad for my friends, so the recipes goes for 6-7 people. The only important thing is all the fresh herbs used have to be in the same amount. I used a bunch of each. Have this salad for lunch with a slice of grilled chicken and you will not be needing anything for the rest of the day.

Ingredients:
A big bunch of parsley
A big bunch of dill 
A big bunch of fresh mint  
A big bunch of spring onions  
1 big pomegranate 
1 cup of raisins  
1/2 cup of boiled orzo pasta
2 table spoons of poppy seeds
Juice of 1 lemon
Sour pomegranate dressing, olive oil, salt 

How to:
1. We begin with washing our herbs, parsley, dill, mint and spring onions. While waiting for them to drain, we boil a cup of orzo pasta. The whole point of this salad is that it is healthy, so we use very little orzo. If you like, you can add more but in my salad you can practically count the pasta.

2. Finely chop all the herbs once they are washed and clean. I separate half of the stems and throw them away, but I like including some of the stems of the herbs in my salad. As long as they are finely chopped, there is nothing wrong. They don't give a bad taste and they are good for you to eat as well.  It is up to you, of course.

3. Put all of the herbs and chopped spring onions into a large bowl, add the raisins and orzo and mix well.

4. Now the dressing, add the lemon juice, pomegranate sauce (or balsamic vinegar), generous splash of olive oil, salt, pepper, poppy seeds and stir everything.

5. Just before you serve, add the seeds of one big pomegranate on top. The flashy red of the fruit makes it really beautiful. Eat and enjoy!

English Tea Bread or Bram Brack

This is a traditional bread I learned from my English mother-in-law. It is so yummy and light! It is commonly known as an Irish recipe -which is special to Halloween. Today I will share my take on the bram brack. I give it another name: English Tea Bread. Traditionally, it is made with only tea. However, in my cake mixture, I have a little bit of milk, plus walnuts and some cinnamon. The best thing about this cake is it has no oil in it. So, when you bake this bread, try to serve it when it is still warm, with butter and jam. It is perfect for your tea time. Make this cake and leave on your counter for a week, it will be fresh. It is pretty filling, so good for the young ones when they come back from school as well.  It is very easy to make. Although there is just one tip my mother-in-law told me. Before using the raisins or sultanas, soak them in tea for at least two hours. It is not compulsory but better to do it. :)

How to:
2 cups of strong brewed tea 
2,5 cups of flour
3 eggs
2 teaspoons of baking powder
2 cups of white sugar
1/4 cup of milk
1 cup of chopped walnuts
1 cup of raisins/sultanas
1 heap teaspoon of cinnamon

How to:

1. Soak the raisins in cold tea. Leave for at least a couple of hours. (You can do this one day before).  Brew some tea and leave it to cool. In the same way, you can use your leftover tea. =)

2. Mix all of the ingredients in a deep bowl, pour into a rectangular bread tin and bake for 50 minutes in 175 degrees.

3. Serve with butter and jam for tea. Bonne appetite!

 

 

It is still good with coffee the next day. 

Leek Fritters

A very practical recipe for your dinners and summer night parties. You can never go wrong with fritters, everybody loves them. Easy to make, fun to serve and delicious. The most common known fritters here is Courgette Fritters, which is called Kolokitihokeftedes in Greek. Both Greek and Turkish cuisines have this wonderful food. It was my favourite as a kid and I remember feeling very happy whenever I saw my mother frying them. You can also make fritters with potatoes, but I'm more into vegetables, so my recipe includes a different type of green vegetable. Since my Leek Sponge has been tried and likes by many, I wanted to continue with this dish. This recipe makes 10-12 fritters depending on the size. Eat and enjoy, them make some more -because it is so good!

Ingredients:
2 leeks
2 cloves of garlic
1 cup of corn flour
1 egg
2 - 3 table spoons of yoghurt  
Salt, pepper, dried mint to season
Olive oil
Fine bread crumbs

How to:
1. Finely chop your leeks. Put in all of the ingredients (ezcept bread crumbs) and mix thoroughly. 
2. Put the bread crumbs on salightly deep plate. Take a spoonful of the mixture and cover with bread crumbs, give a flat round shape and fry in olive oil. Leave on a paper towel to get rid of the excess oil, then put into a serving dish. Sprinkle some feta cheese on top. (Alternatively, you can mix some feta cheese inside the mixture as well.) Serve when hot. That's it. Bon apetit!

Easy Apple and Cherry Pie

So simple, so quick for every day and it is a pretty light recipe. Made with mainly fresh apples and some cherry jam, this pie can take other fruits such as strawberries, cherries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches, apricots, pears and nuts. I first made this in autumn when first fresh apples were on the market and I wanted to sweeten them with my home-made thick cherry jam, instead of using only sugar. With a very thin and crispy base, yummy-smelling cinnamony topping this easy pie will win your heart.

Ingredients:
4 small sweet apples
Juice of one orange
Juice of one lemon
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Thick cherry jam

130 gr of flour
3 table spoons of butter
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
2 teaspoons of granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon of salt

How to:
1. First squeeze the lemon and orange and pour the juice inside a bowl. Peel and chop the apples in small pieces, put them inside the orange and lemon juice. You can add the rind of either the orange or lemon if you like. Especially, the orange rind will give an amazing flavour. In this recipe I focused on cinnamon, so didn't add either of them.
2. Add the cinnamon and toss all of them together. Now add 3-4 tablespoons of thick cherry jam, with the cherries inside. Alternatively, you can add any other jam you like, but make sure it has little juice and big pieces of fruits. This is the only sweet the pie topping has, so try to adjust it to your taste.
3. Now mix all of the ingredients to make a pie pastry and chill for 15 minutes. Use this time to clean up your kitchen, heat your oven and prepare your pie tray. Once the pie crust is ready, roll it out on a clean counter. A small tip here: Instead of using a rolling pin, try rolling your dough with a cold bottle from the fridge. The coldness will help the dough to spread without crumbling.
4. Leave a small piece of the dough aside and take the rest and spread on your baking tray. Pour the apple mixture on top of the dough. Cut small shapes with the leftover pie pastry to decorate. Easy as that. :)
5. Next, the yummy pie goes into the 175 degrees oven for 35-45 minutes. Eat and enjoy!

Savoury Leek Sponge

Today's star is leek. It is my favourite winter vegetable and since the season is changing, I wanted to share this savoury cake recipe because it is really so good. I have tried it many times and I can say that corn flour is the key. It makes the cake so crispy and crumbly and it works very well with leek. This cake is perfect for teatime or as a snack at any time of the day; it's got only olive oil and feta cheese inside, so I can say that it is pretty healthy. And easy to make as well.

Ingredients:
4-5 leeks
2 eggs
1 cup of corn flour (not corn starch)
3/4 cup of flour
1 cup of full fat Greek/Turkish  yoghurt
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 up of extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of mahlab (if you can't find it you can skip it)
1 teaspoon of pepper
A small chunk of feta cheese
Sesame seeds and black cumin to sprinkle over the top


How to:
1. Start with washing the leeks carefully. I have learned that if you cut the edge of the leek a little bit, then the water can go in easily and any leftover soil will be removed. Chop them into very thin slices or you can use your blender for this. But I want to feel the leek pieces when I bite into the cake, so I prefer chopping them by hand.
2. Mix the eggs, flour, corn flour, baking powder, olive oil, yoghurt, salt, pepper, mahlab in a large bowl. Add the leeks into the mixture.
3. Take your baking tray or dish (I recommend using a two-three centimeter/1-2 inch deep dish), brush with some olive oil and pour the mixture into the pan. Try to spread it evenly by using a spatula or a spoon. Then, crumble some feta cheese on top, mix a little bit, not too much that the cheese will sit at the bottom.
5. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and black cumin and bake in the 200 degree hot oven for 35-40 minutes. Leave to cool before you slice it -if you can wait that is! Bon apetite.

 Cake batter is ready to go in the hot oven.

Yummy! Crispy top and soft and smooth inside.