Ozlem's Turkish Table | Page 111 | Turkish CuisineOzlem's Turkish Table

Baked bread with egg, cheese, tomatoes and spring (green) onions

This is a wonderful and easy bake for the weekend brunch or everyday lunch. As a child, I used love the smell of the baked melted cheese happily married with the egg and tomato & spring onions on bread, now my children can’t get enough of it! Big bonus; even the pickiest children wouldn’t mind the tomatoes and onions baked in the mixture:)

Serves 3-4
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 20-25 minutes

4 eggs, beaten
2 medium tomatoes, finely diced
2 spring (green onions), finely chopped
100 gr/3 1/2 oz shredded cheddar or mozzarella (or crumbled beyaz peynir or feta)
15 ml/ 1 tablespoon olive oil
6 slices of medium sized bread
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Pul biber or red pepper flakes for sprinkle for serving (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180 C/ 350 F

Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the tomatoes, spring (green) onions, cheese and olive oil. Season with salt and black pepper and combine well.

Place the slices of bread over non-stick baking paper on the baking tray. Spread the mixture evenly on each slice and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until the mixture starts turning to golden color.

Serve hot with pul biber or red pepper flakes sprinkled over if you like. Shepherd Salad of chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers in sumac and olive oil sauce goes well by the side.

Turkish cuisine is wholesome, easy and packed with healthy, delicious recipes. I compiled my recipes at my cookery book, Ozlem’s Turkish Table, Recipes from My Homeland – with stunning photos and stories from my homeland. Signed copies are available at this link and delivered worldwide including the US.

Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

Etli Taze Fasulye – Green beans with ground meat and vegetables

By Ozlem Warren on September 15, 2010 in Casseroles and Stews 1

Etli Taze fasulye; green beans cooked with onions, tomatoes, potatoes with ground meat; delicious, healthy and easy

I spotted some lovely runner beans in the market and made this very popular Turkish dish. I like to add potatoes too, though traditionally we wouldn’t. It is wholesome, healthy, delicious and very easy to make – and you get your 4 vegetables a day in one go! If you can’t find runner beans, you can use French beans too.

You can cook this dish ahead of time and gently reheat just before eating. It is a huge help and comfort not to worry about dinners during the week and this recipe certainly helps! You can serve with pilaff rice and Cacik dip, Cucumber and yoghurt dip with mint, for a complete meal.

Serves 4 – 6
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 45-50 minutes

250 gr/9 oz ground (minced) lean beef
500 gr/1 1/4 lb runner beans (or French beans), trimmed and cut in 3-4 pieces
115 gr/4 oz small potatoes, halved and sliced
2 medium onions, finely sliced
400 gr/14 oz can of chopped tomatoes
30 ml/ 2 tablespoons olive oil
240 ml/ 8 lf oz water
Salt and pepper to taste
Red pepper/ paprika flakes to serve – optional-

Sauté the onions with the olive oil for a couple of minutes over medium heat and add the ground meat. Continue cooking for further couple of minutes. Add the potatoes, beans and tomatoes and mix well. Season with salt and pepper, cover and cook over medium to low heat for about 40 minutes (French beans may take shorter to cook). Cook for a further 5-10 minutes if needed. Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper to your liking.

Serve hot, sprinkled with red pepper/ paprika flakes if you would like, with some crusty bread or plain rice by the side.

Afiyet Olsun!

Note: I previously made the vegetarian version of this dish, “Runner beans cooked in olive oil”, Zeytinyagli taze fasulye, which is lovely for hot summers day.

Cevizli Kurabiye – Cookies with Walnuts

By Ozlem Warren on September 10, 2010 in Cakes and Desserts, Uncategorised 0

My friend Tina baked some wonderful cookies with pecans – she is from Louisiana, and that was her mother’s recipe. As soon as I tasted, these wonderful cookies took me back to my childhood, as my mother used to bake a very similar version using walnuts. It is amazing to see the similarities we share wherever we are in the world, a very nice feeling, and makes the world feel smaller!

These cookies are very easy make, get ready in no time and they melt in the mouth. It is the end of Ramadan at the moment and we celebrate this special feast period with lots of sweets shared with friends and family. I hope you enjoy this little treat, Iyi Bayramlar to you all!

Serves 6 – 8
Preparation time : 15 minutes Cooking time: 15 – 20 minutes

460 gr/ 16 oz/2 cups self raising flour (whole meal or plain)
230 gr/8 oz/generous 1 cup sugar
230 gr/8 oz unsalted butter, melted
200 gr/7oz walnut (or pecan) pieces
Pinch of salt (labout 1/2 teaspoon)

Powered (icing) sugar to coat the cookies

Preheat oven to 150 C/300 F/ Gas Mark 2

Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. With using your hands, mix them well. Take large egg sized portions and roll into balls with your hands and then slightly flatten into oval shapes. Place them on the greased baking tray.

Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, and check if they start turning golden / light brown color. If not bake for another 5 minutes.

Once cooked, cool the cookies and when they are slightly warm, coat them with icing sugar. You can serve them with tea, coffee or cold refreshments.

Afiyet Olsun!