Turkish Breakfast

Tahini Bread Rolls with Sesame and Nigella Seeds; Tahinli Ekmek

By Ozlem Warren on February 15, 2011 in Appetizers and Mezes, Savory Pastries, Turkish Breakfast 13

Tahini bread with sesame and nigella seeds

This tahini bread recipe is from the southern part of Turkey, Antakya (Antioch), where my roots are from.
Tahini is widely used especially in southern and eastern parts of Turkey for making dips (like hummus), casseroles, sauces and baking. When used in baking, you could smell the wonderful aromas of these breads from the local bakeries as of early in the morning, very inviting. Sesame and nigella seeds are widely used especially at decorating the savory pastries (boreks) and breads at home. They all add a wonderful taste and texture, like in this delicious bread rolls, worth trying.

These tahini bread rolls are delicious with dips, cheese or salads.

This delicious Tahini bread rolls and over 90 authentic Turkish recipes are included in my cookery book, Ozlem’s Turkish Table, Recipes from My Homeland. Signed copies are now 20 % off until July 31st, if you’d like to get your signed copy here (worldwide delivery). Please enter the promo code: summer-sale at check out at this link.

Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

Serves 4 – 6
Preparation time: 15 min (+45 min for the dough to rise)
Cooking time: 30-35 minutes

For the dough:

455gr/1lb plain flour
7gr/1sachet of dry yeast
5gr/1 teaspoon sea salt flakes
1/2 teaspoon sugar
240ml/8fl oz/1 cup warm water
45ml/3 tablespoons mild olive oil

For the filling and decoration:

30ml/2 tablespoons tahini
15ml/1tablespoon nigella seeds
15ml/1 tablespoon sesame seeds
30ml/2 tablespoons mild olive oil

Preheat oven to 180C/350F

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt, sugar and yeast. Stir in the olive oil. Add warm water and mix to form a soft dough. Knead for 10 minutes on a floured surface or until the dough is smooth and elastic. Shape like a ball and cover the dough with cling film or a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes or until double in size.

Generously oil a baking tray. Take about a tennis ball size dough and roll out the ball to make a small oval shape, about 15cm/6in long. Spread a generous teaspoon of tahini in the middle of the dough and roll like a cigar. Then swirl to make a spiral, tucking the end of the roll under the roll. Place the finished roll on the greased tray and decorate with sprinkle of sesame and nigella seeds. Tap the top of the dough gently for the seeds to settle. Repeat these steps for the rest of the dough.

Place the tray in the center rack of the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until the top of the rolls start to get a golden color.

Serve the rolls warm with delicious dips like walnut red pepper paste spread, hummus or soups. They are also nice with butter and jam.

Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

Note: Tahini is a thick, smooth paste derived from ground sesame seeds. It has a wonderfully rich, nutty flavor with a creamy texture, and it is rich in protein, iron, and essential fatty acids but has no cholesterol. It is natural for the sesame oil to separate; simply stir to blend the oil back into the pulp.

Chicken and Vegetables Soup – Sebzeli Tavuk Corbasi

By Ozlem Warren on February 9, 2011 in Soups, Turkish Breakfast 2

Chicken soup with vegetables, sebzeli tavuk corbasi – great way to finish leftovers

Soups have a special place in Turkish cuisine and meals traditionally would start with a soup. In rural parts of Turkey, it is common to have soup for a hearty breakfast.

This soup is a great way to finish up the left over chicken from the roast, and use the chicken stock you got while making the roast chicken (please see the Roast Chicken recipe). You can add any vegetable you have at that time; carrots, onions, garlic, zucchini, tomatoes, celery, all work well. I also like to add small pasta like orzo or conchigliette, and you get a substantial meal. Squeeze of lemon and use of red pepper flakes over the soup add extra zing and flavor.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 30 – 35 minutes

Left over chicken from the roast, deboned and cut into stripes
1 large onion, finely chopped
4-6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1-2 medium courgette (zucchini), coarsely chopped
2 medium carrots, coarsely chopped
115gr/4oz orzo or conchigliette pasta
1 bunch of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
400gr/14oz can of chopped tomatoes
1.75lt/3 pints chicken stock
15ml/1 tablespoon olive oil
10ml/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

4-6 lemon wedges and some crusty bread to serve

Heat the oil in a heavy pan and stir in the onion and garlic. When they begin to color slightly, add the rest of the vegetables and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, add the red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper.

Pour in the stock, stir well and bring to boil. Lower the heat, cover the pan with a lid and cook for about 15 minutes. Stir in the pasta and left over chicken stripes and mix well. Cook for a further 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is cooked. Stir in the parsley and check the seasoning, add more salt or spices if you would like.

Serve warm with a wedge of lemon to squeeze over the soup and crusty bread by the side.

Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

A Delicious Cheese and Parsley Tray Pastry; Peynirli Tepsi Boregi

By Ozlem Warren on January 18, 2011 in Savory Pastries, Turkish Breakfast, Turkish Street Food 0

This wonderful pie has to be the most popular and loved pastry in Turkey. It has been cooked at homes often, and you can eat almost in every café or restaurant at home. I use the fillo pastry sheets for this recipe and it works well (traditionally, we use the fresh paper thin pastry sheets called yufka and it is wonderful, if you can find it). If frozen, you need to defrost the fillo pastry overnight in the fridge and leave at room temperature about 2 hours before using. I like to combine the feta cheese with mozzarella in this recipe to make it moister.
At home, boreks, savory pastries are a very popular snack with ladies’ tea time gatherings and immensely popular with children. This Tepsi Boregi is also a popular street food at Turkey, and sold in pastry shops and street stalls. It also makes a wonderful lunch or appetizer with a little green salad by the side.

Serves 6-8
Preparation time – 25 minutes Cooking time – 35 minutes

150gr/7oz feta cheese, mashed with a fork
115 gr / 4oz shredded mozzarella
2 eggs, beaten
120ml/4fl oz/1/2 cup milk
15ml/1 tablespoon olive oil
24 sheets of fillo pastry (24cmx25cm/about 9″x10″)
1 bunch of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

For the egg&milk; mixture:
2 eggs, beaten
120ml/4fl oz/1/2 cup milk
30ml/2tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 180c/350 F/gas mark 4

In a bowl, mix the feta cheese, shredded mozzarella, parsley and two of the beaten eggs. In a separate bowl, mix the remaining eggs, olive oil and milk (for the egg&milk; mixture).

Grease a rectangular baking dish with a little olive oil. Lay the pastry sheets along its long side and trim or cut if needed, as the size of the sheets vary in each country. Open the sheets only when you are ready to use them and cover the rest with a damp towel so that they don’t dry out.

Lay two sheets in the greased baking dish. Pour a little of the milk-olive oil-water mixture (about 3 tablespoons) all over the sheet. Repeat this layering until you reached the 12th sheet. The pastry may look like swimming in the milky mixture a little, don’t worry, that’s the way it should be. Once cooked, the pastry will absorb all this moisture and you will have a lovely, moist pie.

Spread the cheese filling over the 12th sheet evenly. Continue laying two sheets of fillo, pouring over each the milk mixture, until you reach 24th sheet. Sprinkle the milk mixture on the top of the pie.

Bake the borek or the pie in the oven for about 35 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Serve hot, cut into pieces. This dish can be successfully reheated. A glass of cay (Turkish tea) goes very well with this borek!

Peynirli Tepsi boregi; cheese and parsley tray bake with fillo sheets; it goes so well with Cay, Turkish tea.

Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

Important tips: If you would like to cut back on the amount of the eggs, you can omit or decrease them in the cheese filling. 2) Once cooked, if you keep the pie covered with flax or parchment paper, this will keep the pie moist. 3) This pie freezes wonderfully. Once cooled, put the pie in a freezer bag and seal. When you’d like to reheat (at 180C/ 350 F for about 15 minutes), put the pie in a greased baking tray and sprinkle the top with a little milk and water mixture to give some moisture.