Turkish Delights, Part 3: Tasty Treats to Make

Growing up, my grandmother's unspoken cooking philosphy seemed to be "Why mess with food's natural flavors?" Between Nanny and Mom, my dining experiences were hearty, healthy, and nearly devoid of spices. Adding oregano to a dish was about as crazy as they would get. As a result, my poor tongue tingles in pain at the mere thought of chili peppers, and my eyes water with only a slight whiff of buffalo chicken.

As I've traveled more throughout my adult life, my palate has gradually become more sophisticated, and my kitchen spice rack's selection has grown.

The Egyptian Spice Bazaar in Istanbul is an amazing place to see, smell, and buy spices as well as local crafts and foods. The building is much smaller and more manageable than the city's more famous Grand Bazaar. It's located in the Eminönü District, so after shopping you can head over to Hamdi Restaurant (mentioned in the previous post) for lunch. During my first trip to Istanbul, I visited the bazaar and was amazed by the beautiful colors and incredibly low prices of the spices from around the world. Shopkeepers invited us in and treated us to tea while we pondered their goods. The photo to the right is framed and hanging in my kitchen to remind me to put a little kick into my cooking.

I've come to love Turkish food for how flavorful the spices are without burning my tastebuds. There aren't many restaurants in Boston with Turkish food on the menu, and my cooking skills are rather limited. However, I am (and you are too!) quite capable of making this yummy recipe for "Turkish Pizza" that I found on The Nest from the book Nibbled: 200 Fabulous Finger Food Ideas by Katy Holder. My friends loved it!

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus extra for brushing

7 ounces ground lamb

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 tablespoons pine nuts

1 small tomato, peeled, seeded, and chopped

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pinch of allspice

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped cilantro leaves

1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

Pizza dough

3 tablespoons plain yogurt

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 450˚F. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the lamb for 3 minutes or until it browns. Add the onions and cook over low heat for 6-8 minutes or until soft. Add the pine nuts, tomato, spices, 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper, and some salt. Cook for 8 minutes or until dry. Stir in the cilantro and lemon juice. Divide the pizza dough into eighteen portions and roll into oval shapes. Spoon some of the filling onto the center of each pizza base. Draw up and pinch together the two short sides to form a boat shape, then brush with oil. Put the pizzas on a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes. Spoon 1/2 teaspoon yogurt on each pizza and serve hot.

For dinner-size pizza, I'd like to make this recipe from Cooking Light:

Enjoy! Please pass along your favorite (and preferably easy) recipes for tasty Turkish cuisine!