London is buzzing at the moment, it is the London Fashion Week (16-21 September) and the wonderful Somerset House, home of the British Fashion Council has been hosting various shows. My sweet sister-in-law, Judith, very kindly took us to a few shows – thank you Judith! :), the whole experience is amazing -Scottish designer Holly Fulton won the hearts! By simply people watching at the Fashion Week, you appreciate how London embraces and celebrates diversity; folks from all sorts of ethnic backgrounds – and outfits!- blending and existing in harmony. A feast to the eye!
Any excuse for going to London is welcome, what a fascinating city. This is one of the best views of London; you simply need to walk over the Waterloo Bridge and look both ways! One side is the City and the glorious St Paul’s Cathedral,
On the other side are the Big Ben, House of Parliament and the London Eye, quite a spectacular viewing – and free!
Cookery Classes
I teach Turkish cooking classes in England,Turkey & USA, hope you can join us!,
Find Out More
Recipes
Turkish cuisine provides healthy, hearty, delicious food for family and friends.
Find out moreBaked Fresh Figs with Honey and Clotted Cream;Kaymakli Incir Tatlisi
Fresh, luscious fresh figs, they are a treat
I love figs; my grandmother used to have a huge fig tree in her garden and we grandchildren used to love “helping” picking them up. Turkey produces some of the finest figs; they are sweet, juicy and darker than the average fig, especially the Bursa variety.
Figs are packed with fiber; they are not only delicious but very healthy too. It is so wonderful to eat just plain; what a treat to have them by the salad for lunch or for a special treat. But if you’d like to turn them into an easy, healthy, delicious dessert, here is the recipe, an adaptation from Ghillie Basan’s version:
Serves 2-4
Preparation time: 5-10 minutes Baking time: 5-8 minutes
4 ripe (preferably) Turkish figs
15ml-30ml/1-2 tablespoons clear honey
30ml-45ml/2-3 tablespoons clotted cream (or kaymak, Turkish clotted cream or crème fraiche or plain yoghurt)
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
Preheat oven to 180F/350C
Using a sharp knife, cut a deep cross from the top of each fig to the bottom, keeping the skin at the bottom intact. Place the figs upright in a baking dish.
Drizzle the honey and the lemon juice over the figs and bake in the oven for about 5-8 minutes. Take out the baking tray from the oven. Spoon a dollop of clotted cream or yoghurt into the middle of each fig, or serve them in bowls and let everyone help themselves with yoghurt or cream.
Afiyet Olsun,
Ozlem
Happy (Past) Sugar/Ramadan Feast – Gecmis Mutlu Bayramlar!
This post has been intended two weeks ago, but my laptop had other plans and got broken. Now that it’s fixed and back to life – joy to the world!- I am back! Apologies for not being in touch for a while.
Early September, we celebrated the end of Ramadan, so Happy Belated Ramadan Feast -or as we call it “Sugar Bayram”. We celebrate the end of a month of fasting with arrays of delicious sweets and desserts. We visit friends and family and enjoy these treats, and Turkish Delight is amongst them. When I was in Istanbul in August, I discovered a new Turkish Delights shop in Ortakoy, their name is Yeni Ugurlu Helvacisi – www.yeniugurluhelvacisi.com. I was delighted with this discovery, they have a vast array of Turkish Delights – plain ones, with rose water, with pistachios, with chocolate(!), with coated shredded coconut, all amazing. If you ever stop by in Ortakoy while in Istanbul, do check them out.
And while in Ortakoy, one cannot resist going through the market – it is especially very lovely on Sundays. Here is a little colorful snapshot to brighten the day!:)