Turkish Cooking Classes

Acma; Turkish Style Soft Bagels

By Ozlem Warren on May 28, 2016 in Savory Pastries, Turkish Breakfast, Turkish Cooking Classes 20

Acma, home made Turkish style soft bagels

Acma, Turkish style soft bagels have always been one of the Turkish style breakfast treats at home for us. It is also a delicious snack you can enjoy with cup of tea, Turkish cay, all day long. I had a chance to recreate these delicious bagels at home recently, everyone enjoyed them.

We have been pleased with the result; they turned out softer inside and a little crispy outside (this home made version is a little crispier than the Acma you get in Turkey but still very delicious and satisfying).

You can enjoy Acma, sliced in half, and buttered with jam or honey. They are also delicious with a cheese of your choice, sliced cucumbers and tomatoes aside.

Acma; home made, Turkish style soft bagels

I hope you enjoy making Acma; Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

5.0 from 1 reviews

Acma; Turkish Style Soft Bagels

Acma, Turkish style soft bagels have always been one of the favorite Turkish style breakfast treats at home for us. It is also a delicious snack you can enjoy with cup of tea, Turkish cay, all day long. I had a chance to recreate these delicious bagels at home recently, everyone enjoyed them. Hope you enjoy making Acma at home!

Author: Ozlem Warren

Recipe type: Turkish style pastries

Cuisine: Turkish

Serves: 6

Ingredients

7 gr (1 pack) of instant dried yeast
4 fl. oz. / ½ cup luke warm milk
2 fl. oz. / ¼ cup luke warm water
15 ml / 1 tbsp. sugar
4 fl. oz. / ½ cup light olive oil
238 gr/ 2 cups / 8 oz. + 1 tbsp. all-purpose plain flour
½ teaspoon sea salt
To finish / glaze:
1 egg, beaten
15 ml / 1 tbsp. Sesame seeds – optional -

Instructions

Preheat oven to 200 C / 400 F
Combine the yeast with warm water in a bowl, stir well and let the yeast dissolve for a few minutes.
Add the sugar, warm milk and the olive oil to the mixture, stir for the sugar to dissolve.
Sift the flour in a large bowl and stir in the salt. Make a well in the middle and pour in the yeast mixture.
Combine and knead the dough for a few minutes; you will get lovely, soft dough. Cover the dough with a cling film and tea towel and leave to rise at a warm spot (near an oven or in a warm airing cupboard works well) for 2 hours. The dough will double in size.
Once doubled in size, divide the dough into 6 balls. One at a time, roll each dough ball between your palms to make it about 16 cm / 6 inches long. Then swirl and roll and seal the two ends together. Repeat this with the rest of the dough balls.
Place the Acma rolls on a baking paper on a tray, making sure there are minimum 1 inch / 2.5 cm. between each Acma roll, as they will expand while baking. Brush with the egg mixture and sprinkle sesame seeds over the top if you’d like.
Bake in the preheated oven (200 C/ 400 F) for 10 minutes. Then turn the heat down to 190 C / 375 F and bake for another 10 minutes or until the Acma has a rich, golden color.
Serve warm, afiyet olsun!

Turkish cookery class at Blid & Hatton Gatherings (The Food Studio), Medicine Garden, Cobham

Wednesday, July 13th, 10 am – 2 pm

Kisir: Spicy Bulgur Wheat Salad with Pomegranate Molasses

I am delighted to share my next Turkish cookery class on Wednesday, July 13th, 10 am – 2 pm at the Blid&Hatton Gatherings (The Food Studio) at Medicine Garden, Cobham, England. We have a feast of a class featuring wholesome and delicious spicy bulgur wheat salad with pomegranate molasses, Kisir, ever-popular stuffed aubergines with minced meat and vegetables, Karniyarik, savory filo pastry with spinach & feta, Ispanakli Borek, stuffed baked dried apricots, Kayisi Tatlisi and more.

Spinach and feta filo pastry pie; Ispanakli Borek

Here’s the details and booking information, booking will be through the Blid & Hatton Gatherings, the Food Studio at this link. Early booking is advised and the participation is limited.

Ozlem1

Hope you can join us!

Ozlem

Turkish Vegetarian Feast; Ideas from our Turkish Cookery Class

By Ozlem Warren on March 15, 2016 in Appetizers and Mezes, Turkish Cooking Classes 10

Merhaba All,

Talking about Turkish culinary heritage at Divertimenti Cookery School, London

We had a delicious Turkish cookery class at the Divertimenti Cookery School in London last Sunday. It was wonderful to be hands on with 9 enthusiastic participants and create a Turkish feast. Here are some photos and recipes we made at our class, I hope they inspire you too.

Ezo Gelin Corba, Spicy Bulgur and Lentil Soup

Ezo Gelin corba, spicy bulgur and lentil soup flavored with dried mint and red pepper flakes, was one of the highlights of the class, everyone really enjoyed it and pleasantly surprised how easy it was. A wholesome, delicious soup you can prepare ahead of time and left overs freeze beautifully too.

Turkish flat breads with crumbled feta, red pepper paste, za’atar mix

Biberli Ekmek, southern Turkish style flat breads with crumbled feta, za’atar and red pepper paste, was another easy recipe we did at the class. These flat breads take me back to my childhood in Antakya immediately, as my mother and grandma used to prepare the topping for the flat breads and we would take it to our local bakery to bake. Za’atar here is a delicious, aromatic blend of spice mix, including wild oregano, ground cumin, sesame seeds, crushed pistachio, crushed chickpeas and many more, utterly delicious.

Karides Guvec; baked prawn and vegetables casserole with grated cheese, from our Turkish cookery class

Baked vegetables casserole with chickpeas and grated cheese

We then had a go at the popular Karides Guvec, Prawn casserole with vegetables and grated cheese. A favorite starter at fish restaurants at home, it also makes a wonderful, easy to make main course. If you are not keen on prawns, you can take out and add cooked chickpeas to the mixture instead, as we did for an alternative version. Ground cumin goes well with chickpeas, as well as red pepper flakes for a delicious heat.

Potato and bulgur rolls, patatesli, bulgurlu kofte, with olive oil and pomegranate sauce

These gorgeous potato and bulgur rolls, Patatesli, bulgurlu kofte, with spring onions and red pepper flakes were another highlight. You can make them ahead of time and they are delicious dipped into olive oil & pomegranate molasses sauce.

Revani, semolina sponge cake, light and fragrant with lemon juice and lemon zest.

Moist, delicious semolina sponge cake in light syrup, Revani, was our dessert. I love the lightness semolina gives to this dessert, also fragrant with lemon juice and lemon zest, so easy to make, here’s my Revani recipe.

Turkish coffee and its best accompaniment, Turkish Delight

Last but not least, we finished off with Turkish coffee, a perfect end to a Turkish meal, along with Turkish Delight. Turkish coffee is more than a drink for us Turks; we take time to pause and enjoy a delicious sip with a friend or to reflect. Here’s how to make Turkish coffee and its rituals, hope you enjoy it.

Enjoying the delicious Turkish feast we prepared together at the Divertimenti Cookery School

We then set down and enjoyed the fruits of our labor together, it was a great team effort! Due to popular demand, my Turkish vegetarian class will be repeated at the Divertimenti Cookery School in London on Saturday, April 30th, from 11 am to 2.30 pm. Here’s my cookery class details if you’d like to join us.

My best wishes and Afiyet Olsun to you all,

Ozlem

Festive Offering for My Online Turkish Cookery Course – 50 % Off!

By Ozlem Warren on November 19, 2015 in Online Turkish Cookery Course, Turkish Cooking Classes 4

With the festive season upon us, I am delighted to share that I am offering my Online Turkish Cookery course 50% of its normal selling price (£13.50 instead of £27.00) , until 24th December. I truly hope this festive offering would be an inspirational gift to yourself or someone you know who may enjoy learning Turkish cookery with a selection of classical Turkish dishes.

My online Turkish cookery course covers step by step demonstrations of 4 classic Turkish recipes, including stuffed aubergines/eggplants (karniyarik), potato & bulgur rolls, spinach and feta filo pastry, Ispanakli Borek and Turkish Coffee

Festive Season is about taking the time to spend special moments with family and friends. Turkish culture is about coming together with friends and family to enjoy a delicious meal, share laughter and create cherished memories. I truly hope festive gift giving of my online Turkish cookery course may help reconnecting with our loved ones and sharing plates of wholesome, delicious Turkish food with those you care about.

Making Spinach and feta filo pastry, Ispanakli Borek at my online Turkish cookery course

Turkish cuisine is my passion and I feel very fortunate to be a part of this rich and welcoming Turkish culture. With my online Turkish cookery video, I aim to provide a window into the warm Turkish culture through the delicious, healthy, wholesome Turkish food with thousands of years of culinary heritage. Turkish food is a wonderful expression of the warm, generous Turkish culture has a strong emphasis on sharing, giving, hospitality, that I think is a very strong bond to connect us with our past. I hope that throughout the video, you can feel the warmth, welcoming nature, hospitality of Turkish cuisine, how it nurtures our body, as well as our soul. My special thanks goes to Mer-ka-bah, a wonderful online platform, offering holistic online courses to improve health and well being, for producing my online Turkish cookery course.

I demonstrate Spinach and cheese pie with filo pastry – Ispanakli, Peynirli Borek with step by step instructions at my online Turkish cookery course

Here are the 2 Free Previews of the course for you to get a flavor of what my online Turkish cookery course is all about. First one is Meet the Presenter and the second one is Why Should I Do the Course, explaining the course structure, what you can learn from the course and the recipes I demonstrate. I demonstrate Karniyarik (Stuffed eggplants with ground meat and vegetables), Spinach & filo tray bake pastry (Ispanakli Borek), Bulgur & Potato rolls with pomegranate molasses sauce, Patatesli, Bulgurlu Kofte and Turkish Coffee. I also hope you enjoy the wonderful background Turkish music composed for us and my photos from my travels in Turkey throughout the course; fascinating sites, markets, glorious seasonal produce, gathering with friends to enjoy the Turkish food, as we do it rather well in Turkey : )

I demonstrate Karniyarik recipe, Stuffed eggplants with ground meat and vegetables, during my online Turkish cookery course

Karniyarik, stuffed eggplants with ground meat and vegetables, is part of my online Turkish cookery course too

Here is how it works; once you purchase my online Turkish cookery course and create a user name and password, your course will sit in your “My mer-ka-bah” folder. You can then access and revisit with your username and password whenever you like. You can follow the Chapter order or pick and choose whichever chapter you would like to watch in your own time, whether it is Adding Flavor; 5 Key Spices Chapter or Ispanakli Borek; Spinach and Feta tray bake filo pastry recipe Demonstration; or any other – choice is all yours! Once purchased, the course is yours indefinitely. You can watch the course unlimited times, you can pause and come back later. This video is what I cover and more at my Turkish cookery classes and I hope it inspires and you enjoy it. Please also note that the course is interactive; you can leave me messages at the comment section, I would love to hear from you.

You will be learning how to make the perfect cup of Turkish coffee at my online Turkish cookery course

Happiness is a meal shared… What better way to celebrate this festive season than to connect with your loved ones over a special meal? I hope my festive gift offering of my online Turkish cookery course inspires you to create and enjoy memorable meals with family and friends.

My best wishes & Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem