Ozlem’s Turkish Table | Page 85 | Turkish CuisineOzlem's Turkish Table

Pasta with eggplant (aubergine), garlic and tomato sauce – Patlicanli Makarna

By Ozlem Warren on November 28, 2011 in Pasta – Makarna, Uncategorised 0

Our family, especially the children love pasta and I like to try different sauces to make it exciting, delicious and that I can prepare ahead of time. Patlican (eggplant or aubergine) is an ingredient we use a lot in Turkish cooking, and its meaty, sweet flesh adds a wonderful flavor to the pasta. Eggplant has a lot of water content and the trick is to get all that moisture out before cooking, as shown in the recipe, so that they won’t go soggy.

You can prepare this sauce ahead of time and freeze any leftover sauce. It is a wonderful, comforting dish that may save that weekday supper!

Serves 2-3
Preparation time: 25 minutes Cooking time: 20 minutes

350gr/12oz penne pasta (about 100gr per person is suggested)
1 medium eggplant (aubergine), diced into small chunks
4 cloves of garlic, crushed and finely chopped
400gr/14oz can of chopped tomatoes
30ml/2 tablespoons olive oil
10ml/2teaspoons dried oregano
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Grated parmesan or pecorino romano to serve

Cut the eggplant in half lengthways and then dice each eggplant into bite size chunks. Spread them on a wide tray, sprinkle salt over and leave aside for 15 minutes. With using paper towel, squeeze excess water out of eggplants.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy pan and lightly sauté the eggplant for 3-4 minutes. This will help eggplants to soften up and start bringing out their lovely sweet flesh. Stir in the garlic and sauté for another minute or two. Add the chopped tomatoes, give them a good mix and cook for a further two minutes. Season with salt and black pepper, add the oregano and mix well. Simmer for a few more minutes.

In the meantime, place the pasta in a saucepan of boiling water, add a little salt and a dash of olive oil. Stir occasionally and boil for about 10 minutes (for penne), until “al dente”. Towards the end of the cooking, take 2 tablespoons of the pasta’s cooking liquid and add to the pasta sauce, mix well. Once pasta is cooked, drain the water and mix in the eggplant & tomato sauce.

Serve hot immediately, with some grated pecorino or parmesan over the pasta, if you like. Plain green salad with lemon and olive oil dressing goes well with the pasta.

Afiyet Olsun!

Time to be Thankful and Share the Love of Food

By Ozlem Warren on November 23, 2011 in A Slice of England, Uncategorised 2

I prepared a Turkish stall for my son’s school’s Christmas event; there were yummy Turkish Delights all the way from Istanbul (my heartfelt thanks to my sweet sister Oznur and my parents who very kindly provided them); lovely Turkish “blue eyed” key chains and necklaces; wonderful dried peppers, baby okra, aubergines (eggplants);

I made some spinach and cheese fillo pastry and let folks try them. There were copper pots, Turkish coffee pots and lovely little hand painted pottery for spices and dips. It was just wonderful to talk about food, hear everyone’s happy memories visiting Turkey. And it was wonderful to share all good things Turkey, my homeland has offered.

I just wanted to express how grateful and thankful I am for all the support from my family, friends and you all, who kindly share love of cooking.

I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving and Festive Season; it is time to be thankful. And why not revisiting some wonderful appetizers like the cheese & spinach pastry, or red pepper paste & walnut dip or a lovely aubergine (eggplant) recipe from the blog to share with family and friends? I feel they all taste better when shared 🙂

My best wishes,
Ozlem

Celeriac with winter vegetables, cooked in olive oil – Zeytinyagli Kereviz

By Ozlem Warren on November 14, 2011 in Appetizers and Mezes, Vegetables Cooked in Olive Oil 6

Celeriac is a knobbly root closely related to celery, and has a wonderful flavor; a mix of aniseed, celery and parsley, and perhaps with the meaty bite of mushrooms. In Turkey, we like to poach the chunks of celeriac in olive oil & lemon sauce, with carrots, potatoes, onions and peas. This kind of cooking, called “Vegetables cooked in olive oil” or “Zeytinyaglis”, are very healthy and delicious.

I love this easy style of cooking and that you can prepare ahead of time. This lovely dish can accompany to fish, meat or and other vegetable courses, also it can be a wonderful starter. The lemon & olive oil sauce adds a wonderful, refreshing taste to celeriac. You can enjoy this course cold, at room temperature or slightly warm.

Celeriac. carrots and peas cooked in olive oil, with lemon and dill; Zeytinyagli Kereviz

Serves 2-4
Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 35 minutes

2-3 small celeriacs, peeled and cut into small chunks
30ml/2 tablespoons peas, fresh or frozen
1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
1 small potato, peeled and diced
5 small shallots, peeled or 1 small onion, chopped
120ml/4 tablespoons olive oil
8 fl oz/1 cup water
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and sugar to taste
Fresh dill to garnish

To prevent discoloration during the preparation, keep the raw celeriac in a bowl of water with a squeeze of lemon juice. Cut each one into small chunks.

Cook the peas separately until tender and put to one side.

Drain the celeriac chunks and place in a heavy pan together with the other prepared vegetables. Add the olive oil, water, a little sugar (perhaps 1/2 teaspoon), season with salt. Give them all a good stir, cover and cook on a low to medium heat for about 25 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the cooked peas and the juice of lemon, combine well. Check the seasoning and add more salt if needed.

Finally, add a little chopped dill, heat through and then remove from heat. Set aside to cool.

Serve the celeriac with vegetables warm at room temperature, with a little garnish of dill over and a wedge of lemon by the side.

Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem