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Foodbuzz
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Semolina Halva with Turkish Ice Cream
July 06th, 2008 | Category: Dessert, Ice Cream & Sorbet, Turkish Cuisine
The scoop of ice cream above, clotted cream Maras (MA-rush) ice cream to be specific, was nestled on top of a bowl of warm semolina halva with a spoon stabbed in the center for the whole duration of the photo shoot. And the spoon stayed still for at least 20 minutes. All this was possible due to the core ingredient of Turkish ice cream: Salep.
Aside from a traditional winter drink, salep also refers to a powder of dried orchid tubers, used in thickening the delicious Turkish ice cream, which is indigenous to Kahramanmaras - a city in southeastern Turkey. The local orchids contain a nutritious starch-like polysaccharide (complex carbohydrate) called bassorin, which accounts for the thick consistency. The resulting ice cream is extremely elastic and chewy and stays solid for quite a long time. The spoon stabbed in the center of the scoop was intended to summarize this magical quality. Unfortunately, since the top part of the photo was cropped, you weren’t able to see that in the published article very clearly. Aren’t I lucky to have a blog with endless space to fill?
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Dulce de Leche and Chocolate Pudding
March 13th, 2008 | Category: Chocolate, Dessert
Last week, we feasted on a selection of delicious cheeses Mahir and Vera brought back from their trip to Amsterdam. These two generous friends not only shared their cheese but also fed me with incredible side dishes and cocktails. While Mahir was busy preparing us Mojitos, Vera was arranging the side dishes on her grand collection of antique plates - handpicked from flea markets around the world.
Brie with chives, cumin Gouda, Camembert, Parmigiano Reggiano and Oude were some of the cheeses we tasted alongside Vera’s roasted vegetables, tapenade, some other cold cuts and finally the dessert I prepared for the occasion: Dulce de Leche and Chocolate Pudding.
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Güllaç with Cardamom and Hazelnuts
October 08th, 2007 | Category: Dessert, Turkish Cuisine
Whenever I hear the word Ramadan, I immediately think of Güllaç. It is a traditional Turkish dessert that dates back to the Ottoman Empire and was even once a part of the circumcision ceremony menu for Sultan Süleyman, The Magnificient’s sons.
This milk based dessert is prepared with Güllaç leaves, which are basically starch wafers that are made of corn starch, flour and water.
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