Tag Archives | Turkish breakfast

Greetings from Istanbul! Sights, people and food, glorious food

By Ozlem Warren on August 1, 2014 in Appetizers and Mezes, Fascinating Istanbul, Turkish Breakfast, Turkish Street Food 15

The Bosphorus bridge, Kiz Kulesi – the Maiden tower and the glorious Bosphorus

Istanbul’dan merhaba! Home, sweet home; I think the more I age, home, my roots calls me even more eagerly, it is wonderful to be back home. Here are a few snap shots of what we have been up to.

It’s been only a few days since we’ve been here and we managed to fit in a lot of family visits and said “Mutlu Bayramlar.” I especially enjoyed having a chance to visit the elderly with the children, hearing their stories to them, such precious moments to savour. Istanbul is the place to be during the Bayram holiday as most folks left for holidays. So wonderful to be able to enjoy the city minus the traffic.

Cay, peynirli borek and pogaca; a very warm welcome home

Cay, peynirli borek, Turkish tray bake pastry with cheese and parsley and pogaca made a very warm welcome home.

Turkish mezzes and vegetables cooked in olive oil

One of the things I very much long is enjoying a vast array of freshly prepared mezzes and enjoying them along the Bosphorus. With a beautiful breeze and friends and family nearby, it is heavenly.

Enjoying a glass of cay and Turkish breakfast at Rumelihisari, Istanbul

Enjoying a glass of cay and Turkish breakfast with dear friends at Rumelihisari, Istanbul

I was grateful that a few dear friends were still in Istanbul during Bayram and we enjoyed a long, leisurely Turkish breakfast and multiple glasses of cay at Rumelihisari, Sade Kahve.

Sigara boregi, ciborek, freshly squeezed orange juice and many more; Turkish breakfast

Gozlemes, Anatolian flat breads with fillings are made at the oval sac oven in front of you, with an infectious smile. Impossible to pass on.

Ciborek with a smile

Gozleme; Anatolian flat breads with fillings

And we’re off again; this time taking the ferry, vapur, to visit our dear, elderly aunt with the children. I love traveling with the traditional ferries, vapur; it is nostalgic, offers spectacular views and a wonderful way to be a part of the local life. The ferry itself promises a lot of fun and excitement to us all. Children loved looking at to the sights with the ferry’s telescope – only 1 TL –

The traditional ferries, vapur, is an ideal way to cross the Bosphorus

My son trying the telescope at the ferry

Of course, one can also have a delightful glass of cay and Simit, sesame encrusted bread rings to nibble while on the ferry – again, served with a wonderful smile.

Simit and a glass of cay at the ferry, vapur – one of my favorite rituals

Hagia Sophia and the Topkapi Palace, over the Bosphorus

Once in Kadikoy, we decided we need more Simit; so popped in the local bakery to get some more, along with some white cheese, beyaz peynir and tomatoes for the afternoon tea at our Meskure Hala, our dear aunt.

Freshly baked Simit at the local bakery, firin

The following day started with a visit to Besiktas; I love Besiktas Carsisi; it’s market, small scale shops, fish monger and endless eatries. It has a village feel where folks greet one another, get their daily bread from the bakery, firin, the Turkish coffee and nuts from the local kuruyemisci; the list goes on and on. I got lost for words at Simit Molasi Cafe – Sigara Boregi; pastry rolls with cheese and parsley for us. And more simit, if one desires more.

Sigara boregi, cheese rolls with filo pastry and Simit, sesame encrusted Turkish bread rings galore at Simit Molasi, Besiktas

Next stop is Ortakoy; lovely to see the restoration at the Ortakoy Mosque is compiled – looks fascinating.

Ortakoy Mosque, Istanbul

If you’re after a really good quality Turkish delight, have a look at Yeni Ugur Helvacisi in Ortakoy; I loved their new Turkish delight with pomegranates, they are packed with flavor. If you fancy making your own Turkish Delight, here is my home made Turkish Delight recipe.

Freshly ground Turkish coffee at Meraklilar Kuruyemiscisi, Ortakoy – Istanbul

Last stop, freshly ground Turkish coffee at Meraklilar Kuruyemiscisi, Ortakoy; smells heavenly. Hope you enjoy yours, Turkish coffee really is more than a drink – afiyet olsun!

A delightful visit to Burgazada, Burgaz Island

It’s our last day in Istanbul before we depart for Bodrum and we took the ferry to Burgazada, one of the Princes’ islands near to Istanbul. Children got very excited with the prospect of getting on the ferry again and riding bicycle in the Island. We had a special purpose of this visit too, as we arranged to meet up with dear Mark and Jolee from the wonderful blog Senior Dogs Abroad. Mark and Jolee live in Istanbul and blog about the life in Turkey as well as world affairs, they’re a pleasure to follow, a delightful company.

Charming horse carriages at Burgazada

No vehicles are allowed in the island except the horse carriages and bicycles, which makes the islands even more inviting; a breath of fresh air.

Friday is the Market day, Pazar in Burgazada and I am grateful that the Senior Dogs kindly guided us to the right direction! Fresh, breathtaking produce galore; one can easily spend a day there, just wonderful.

Market day in Burgazada; fresh produce in abundance

Sivri biber, green pointy peppers and eggplant, patlican at Burgazada.

Preserved vine leaves, ready for stuffing, so inviting – presented with a wonderful smile.

Vine leaves, sold at Burgazada, ready for stuffing

Time to say farewell and see you soon, many thanks to Mark and Jolee for having us at Burgazada!

Visiting dear friends at Burgazada

With best wishes to all; hope to be in touch from Bodrum!

Ozlem

Pastry rolls with pastirma, cheese and vegetables; Pacanga Boregi

By Ozlem Warren on April 14, 2014 in Appetizers and Mezes, Savory Pastries, Turkish Breakfast 16

Filo rolls with Turkish pastirma, spicy pastrami – Pacanga boregi

Delicious delicacy pastirma, dried cured beef with a coating of spices called cemen, consisting of cumin, fenugreek, garlic and hot chili flakes is also very much enjoyed in pastries, as part of a mezze spread in Turkey. Pacanga boregi, as we call in Turkish, showcases flavorful pastirma, kasar cheese (Turkish cheddar cheese) and in some versions like mine, diced peppers and tomatoes. It is one of our favorite pastries for a Turkish style weekend brunch or as a mezze spread.

Turkish dried cured beef with a spicy cemen coating, Pastirma

Rolling the pacanga boregi; tomatoes and peppers make a delicious filling with pastirma & cheeese

Rolling the pacanga boregi; tomatoes and peppers make a delicious filling with pastirma & cheese

Paçanga böreği is regarded as a “traditional Sephardic Jewish specialty of Istanbul, filled with pastirma, kasar and julienned green peppers that is fried in olive oil and eaten as a mezze, appetizer”. There are a few versions of pacanga boregi, pastry rolls with pastirma; I like to include some tomatoes and green bell pepper (or pointy pepper, sivri biber in Turkey) in the filling. These juicy vegetables complement the rich, spicy taste of pastirma. They are traditionally made with fresh, paper thin sheets of yufka pastry and it’s great if you can get them. I used filo pastry sheets for my pacanga borek, and they worked well and boreks disappeared very quickly! They are also fried traditionally and I chose to bake them; they turned out very well.

Pacanga Boregi; Turkish pastry rolls with pastirma, Turkish pastrami

I hope you enjoy these delicious rolls, Afiyet Olsun,

Ozlem

Pastry rolls with pastirma, cheese and vegetables; Pacanga Boregi

I hope you enjoy these delicious rolls with Turkish pastirma, dried cured beef with spicy coating, cheese and vegetables. They are great served as mezzes, appetizers, part of a weekend brunch or a delicious snack.

Author: Ozlem Warren

Recipe type: Savory pastries with Turkish pastrami, dried cured beef

Cuisine: Turkish Cuisine

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

6 sheets of filo pastry (app. 48cmx25cm, 19”x10” each) or equivalent of yufka sheets
½ green bell pepper or 1 pointy green pepper (sivri biber), finely diced
2 small tomatoes, finely diced
15 ml/1 tbsp. olive oil
8 slices of pastirma (Turkish dried cured beef), or a pastrami of your choice, roughly chopped
150 gr / 5 oz. shredded Turkish kasar (cheddar) cheese or mozzarella, for a milder taste
Salt and ground black pepper for seasoning
1 egg, beaten to brush the pastries
15ml/1 tbsp. olive oil to brush the pastries
Bowl of water to seal the pastries
Preheat the oven to 180 C / 350 F/ Gas Mark 4

Instructions

For best results, thaw the frozen filo pastry in the fridge overnight and bring it to the room temperature 1 hour before using. That enables the filo thaw completely. If it is sold fresh as in the UK, you only need to bring the filo sheets to the room temperature 30 minutes before using.
Heat the olive oil in a pan and stir in the diced pepper and tomatoes. Stir and cook over medium heat for 3 -5 minutes, until the peppers start to soften. Season with salt and ground black pepper to your taste (You may use a little salt or omit, as the pastirma is quite salty too). Set aside to cool.
Place the chopped pastirma or pastrami of your choice and the cheese in a wide bowl. Stir in the cooked tomatoes and peppers, combine well. Filling is ready.
Cut the filo sheets into 11cmx25cm (4”x9”) rectangular stripes and stack on top of each other. Place a damp towel over them so that they don’t dry out.
Lay two rectangular strips of filo sheets on top of one another.
Place a generous tablespoon of the filling along the short end near you (take care not to overfill as the filling may ooze out while cooking). Fold over the pastry from each side to seal in the mixture and then roll up like a fat cigar.
Seal the end of the pastry as well as any openings/ cracks with little water. Repeat this with the remaining filo sheets.
Mix the egg with the olive oil in a small bowl. Brush the boreks, pastries with this mixture and place them on a greased tray.
Bake the pastries in the preheated oven for about 25 - 30 minutes or until golden.
Serve hot as a mezze spread, weekend brunch or a tasty snack.

Gorgeous tulips in Istanbul in April

Spring is in the air, trees are in full blossom, I love this time of the year. It’s the tulip season in Istanbul, and they are such a gorgeous sight to see. Here is a favorite tulip photo to share from my culinary & cultural trip to Istanbul last April; I hope it brightens your day!

Eggs with Peppers and Pastirma, Dried Beef with a Spicy Coating

By Ozlem Warren on March 10, 2014 in Appetizers and Mezes, Turkish Breakfast 23

Eggs with peppers and pastirma; Pastirmali Yumurta

I love the aromatic, delicious taste of Pastirma, dried cured beef with a coating of spices called cemen, consisting of cumin, fenugreek, garlic and hot chili flakes. This thinly sliced delicacy is very much enjoyed in Turkey as part of a mezze spread, as well as in casseroles with dried beans, Pastirmali Kuru Fasulye and in boreks, pastries. We Turks also very much enjoy pastirma with eggs, as part of a leisurely weekend breakfast, Turkish style.

Air dried pastirma; dried cured beef with aromatic spices

This wind-dried beef, pastirma has been made in Anatolia for centuries. It’s also been enjoyed throughout Middle Eastern as well as Eastern European countries and has a special part in Lebanese and Armenian cuisine. Some of the finest pastirma is being produced in Kayseri region, in Middle Anatolia, Turkey; it almost has a silky texture and just melts in the mouth, very aromatic with the spicy cemen coating; I hope you can have a chance to enjoy pastirma in Kayseri. Making pastirma is a bit of a labor of love though and requires a lot of patience, as fellow blogger Peter Minaki of Kalofagas explains. Pastirma is prepared by salting the meat, then washing it with water and letting it dry for 15 days. The blood and salt is then squeezed out of the meat and the meat, this time is covered with a special cumin paste called cemen, consisting of crushed cumin, fenugreek, garlic and chili flakes. Afterwards, the meat is air dried up to a month. You can get pastirma in Turkish and Middle Eastern markets, as well as from Turkish online stores such as Marketurk in the UK and Best Turkish Food in the US.

Eggs with pastirma and peppers

Here is our delicious and easy egg dish with bell peppers and pastirma. I love how the sweetness of peppers complements the aromatic pastirma and their marriage with eggs is divine. This dish is wonderful for a brunch or a light lunch / supper with crusty bread aside. Cacik dip of yoghurt with cucumbers and dried mint goes very well with this delicious egg this too.

Afiyet Olsun!

5.0 from 2 reviews

Eggs with Peppers and Pastirma, Dried Cured Beef with Spices

Delicious and easy Turkish style eggs with dried cured beef, pastirma, and peppers, for a lovely brunch, lunch or dinner.

Author: Ozlem Warren

Recipe type: Turkish Breakfast

Serves: 1-2

Ingredients

2 free range eggs
½ red bell pepper, deseeded, quartered and cut in thin stripes
½ green bell pepper, deseeded, quartered and cut in thin stripes
2 free range eggs
4 -6 stripes of thinly cut pastirma, roughly cut
30 ml/2 tbsp. olive oil
5 ml / 1 tsp. ground cumin
5 ml / 1 tsp. Turkish red pepper flakes / chili flakes
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a wide, heavy pan and stir in the red and green bell peppers.
Sauté for 4 - 5 minutes, until the peppers start to soften.
Create two holes amongst the bell pepper mixture and crack the eggs.
Place the pieces of pastirma around the eggs and cook for 4 – 5 minutes, depending on your taste.
Sprinkle ground cumin and the red pepper flakes over the egg, serve hot with crusty bread aside.