Cafe Fernando

Semolina Halva with Turkish Ice Cream

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 (you’ll see in the photo below). 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?

Read more >>

Karniyarik, Bulgur Pilaf and Cigarette Borek

Just like the Mung Bean Salad, Karniyarik wasn’t included in the initial menu for the SF Chronicle article. Instead, I wanted to do a Turkish version of a dish that could have easily filled two full pages of my taste journal if I had ever kept one.

It is the Chicken Claypot I ate at The Slanted Door. I thought adding chickpeas and peppers and tomatoes from my father’s garden will definitely make the dish Turkish, but without the sugar and caramel flavor, the dish would have never shown the influence of the original. So, in short, I ditched the idea and decided to go with my most favorite Turkish dish: Karniyarik. Literally translated, karniyarik means split belly, named after the process of splitting the eggplants and stuffing them with the minced meat mixture.

At the end of the post, you’ll find recipes for the rest of the menu. These recipes are, again, based on ingredients found in Turkey. Especially cooking times may differ, so if you’re living in the US, I recommend that you follow Janet’s instructions instead. You know where to find them.

Read more >>

Mung Bean Salad

The above mung bean salad wasn’t actually included in the original “San Francisco on The Bosphorus” menu. Instead, I planned to prepare another traditional salad called Gavurdagi, which is usually served at kebab restaurants. A small Mexican restaurant on Columbus Street (crossing Chestnut) that we used to visit with colleagues for lunch on a regular basis was the inspiration.

They would always bring a complimentary bowl of tortilla chips accompanied by three different salsas while we anxiously waited for our burritos. Gavurdagi salad is very similar to a Mexican salsa. Finely chopped cucumbers, tomatoes and onions suddenly transform into a delightful spicy salad with the addition of red pepper flakes, sumac, olive oil and pomegranate molasses. I always order it along with a lahmacun before my main course at a kebab restaurant.

But later on, when mom mentioned that mung bean salad would be much more interesting to readers, I happily agreed. I also have to admit that her choice is much more in sync with the menu.

Read more >>