Sauteed Brussels Sprouts (Sotelenmis Bruksel Lahanasi)

To be honest, I have never thought about cooking Brussels Sprouts before until I read about their health benefits. With the intake of this healthy veggie, you can prevent some types of cancers such as bladder cancer, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, lung and prostate cancer since this veggie supports the body's detox system, its antioxidant system and its inflammatory system. In addition to these benefits, Brussels Sprouts are low in calories and have a lot of fiber. Because of that, they play an important role to lose or watch your weight. Also, they are a very good source of protein, minerals and vitamins for a healthy heart and body. Surprisingly, they are very tasty if you know how to cook them. When I decided to cook them, my husband told me that he did not like them at all even though he never tried before:-) However, I knew he would love them with the way I would cook. Then, I started to search about the recipes and I found a sautéed Brussels Sprouts recipe and played with it to customize it according to our taste. The result was wonderful and my husband and I really LOVED it. He was very surprised when he tasted my dish. Because of this veggie's health benefits and nice taste, I would like to share this recipe with you.
This recipe makes 2 servings if you eat alone. However, it makes 4 servings if you eat it with a bowl of rice or pasta.

Ingredients:

10-15 Brussels Sprouts
1 medium onion, chopped as shown in the picture
1 big rep pepper, chopped as shown in the picture
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 brown sugar
1 cup boiled water
Freshly squeezed lemon juice from a half lemon

Black pepper

Salt
Fresh dill (optional)


Instructions:

1- After washing and discarding the bad leaves of Brussels Sprouts, cut them into two pieces from their middle as shown in the picture above.

2- Put the oil in a pan on the stove in a medium heat, then add the chopped onion and pepper to the oil. Stir constantly for 1-2 minutes.

3- Add the Brussels Sprouts to the mixture and stir for 1 minute, then put sugar, salt, black pepper, lemon juice, and water. Sautee it for 5-8 minutes stirring often. Do not let Brussels Sprouts over cook and fall apart. They should look very fresh.

4- After they cook, let them sit for a few minutes and garnish with chopped fresh dill if you like. You can eat both hot or cold as a side dish or as a light main dish if you are in a diet. Since it is a  low calorie dish, you can eat it alone as much as you want.


 Please try this recipe and benefit from this wonderful veggie!

Enjoy it!

Baked Flank Steak Fajita (Firinda Et Kavurmasi)

Baked Flank Stake Fajita

Baked Flank Steak Fajita is one of my favorite dishes. It is very easy to make and very tasty to eat with especially homemade tortilla and guacamole. Even though my son is not a good meat eater, he eats my fajita with tortilla since it gets very tender and tasty making it in the oven. In addition, it goes with a bowl of rice and bulgur. My recipe is a mix of Mexican and Turkish fajitas. I do not marinate my stake and add only black pepper and some red pepper flakes, not cumin or the other mexican spices. Basically its appearance looks like Mexican and its tastes Turkish fajita.
This recipe makes 2-4 servings.

Ingredients:

2 pounds Flank Stake

1 big green, red and pepper (you can also add 1 yellow pepper)

3 tbsp olive oil
Black pepper

Salt
Red pepper flakes
Turmeric (optional)

Picture 1

Instructions:

1- Preheat oven for 400 F.

2- Cut the stake lengthwise into two pieces first, then, cut these pieces as shown in the picture 1.

3- Put the meat in a 9"x13" glass pan and add olive oil, enough black pepper, pepper flakes, turmeric, and salt. Mix them together and put in the hot oven.

4- While the meat is cooking, chop your onion and peppers as shown in the picture 2.

Picture 2

5- Put aside your veggie until your meat cooks for 20-25 minutes.

6- Then, season your veggie with a little salt and pepper and add them to your meat and let them cook together until meat comes to the level you like. Do not cook the meat too much not to get it very dry, so taste it very often while it cooks.

7- After it cooks throughly, let it sit for a few minutes and wrap with a tortilla or serve with rice or bulgur.

Enjoy it!

Wheat with Chicken (Tavuklu Keskek)

Wheat with chicken, arugula, radish and yogurt

If you do not know what to cook tonight, here is a very delicious and healthy recipe for you. It is called Keskek in Turkish, a combination of wheat and chicken. You would be addicted to this dish after the first trial. I learned this recipe from my lovely sister-in-law when she visited us last year. I had heard about this dish before but I never tried it until she made it for us during her visit. When she first made wheat with chicken, my husband had a strange look on his face since he did not know what it was. After I told him it was a wheat dish, he admitted that he would never imagine a dish made with wheat and chicken would be very delicious and he LOVED it. Then, he wanted me to get the recipe from my sister-in-law. Now, I make it almost once in every other week and he eats more than I do. I also wanted to share this recipe with you since wheat is a very healthy and valuable grain with a huge amount of dietary fiber and folate which make it very valuable in our kitchens. You should definitely eat wheat often if you have a constipation problem. It is a very good remedy for it. Also, it can help to lose weight if you eat right amount it with a bowl of green salad seasoned with a little salt, lemon juice and olive oil, and a small bowl of homemade yogurt. It is worth trying. 

This makes 4-5 servings.

Ingredients: 

4 chicken thighs (remove the skin and cut into two pieces lengthwise)

Peeled wheat

2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/4 cups peeled wheat
2-3 tbsp tomato paste (I use organic)
Black pepper
Salt
Boiled water (there is no exact amount for water. I add the water constantly until the wheat cooks) 
A few branch of fresh cilantro or parsley for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

1- Put oil in a large and deep pan on the stove in a medium heat and add chicken pieces to it. Cook a few minutes each side, then, mix onion and cook until onion gets soft.
2- In the meantime, boil approximately 1.5 liter water in a kettle and set aside.
3- Add tomato paste, black pepper and salt to the mixture and stir it for 1-2 minutes. 
4- Then, put the wheat into it and stir 1-2 more minutes. 
5- Add the water to the mixture little by little until the wheat gets soft enough, stirring often not to burn it. It should not be watery. It should soak all the water, so you should add water as needed.
6- After cooking, let it sit for 5 minutes covering the top of pan with a piece of paper towel and close the lit.
7- Chop the fresh cilantro and garnish with it after putting the dish in the serving bowl.

Enjoy it with a bowl of yogurt and arugula or salad!

Baked Zucchini with Egg and Cheese (Firinda Mucver)

Baked Zucchini goes well with any kind of meat and poultry for lunch or dinner with  a green salad. Also, it is one of favorite dishes of Turkish breakfast tables along with a cup of tea. It can also be a nice dish for your parties such as birthdays and baby showers. I tried it when my lovely Turkish friends came over for breakfast. They totally enjoyed it and asked for me the recipe. In addition, it is a very healthy and tasty choice for your kids and they will really like it. Please try it!

Baked Zucchini (Firinda Mucver)

Since it is my close friend Aylin's favorite dish, this recipe goes to her. I hope she can try that for her cute daughter's coming birthday party:-) Aylin, I look forward to eat it:-)

This recipe makes around 20 small squares. 


Ingredients:

2 big zucchini, shredded
1 onion, shredded (optional)
1/2 cup of all purpose flour
3 large or 4 medium size eggs (you can add 5 eggs if you like)
1 cup crumbled feta cheese or shredded mozzarella (I like feta with it)
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill, parsley or cilantro (it is your choice. Dill goes well with zucchini)
3-4 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp baking powder
Dried red pepper flakes (optional)
Black pepper
Salt

Instructions:

1- Preheat oven for 350 F.
2- Grease a 9" x 13" glass pan with vegetable or olive oil and put aside.
3- In a deep and big bowl, combine shredded zucchini, onion, flour and baking powder.
4- Add olive oil, salt, black pepper, pepper flakes and dill to the mixture and mix well. 
5- Then, put feta cheese and lightly beaten eggs to the mixture.
6- Put the mixture into the glass pan and bake it for 40-50 minutes or until its surface gets light brown.
You can also check it with a tooth pick as checking cake. It will be done when your tooth pick comes out clean.
7- After it is done, let it cool down, then cut into small squares and serve. It is better when it is fresh, but it can be eaten next day as well if you warm it up in the oven.

Cemen (Tomato and Red Pepper Pastes with Walnuts)

Cemen is a very tasty Turkish appetizer and breakfast dish made of tomato paste, red pepper paste, olive oil, walnuts, and spices. It is very nice spreading on a bread or cracker. You can make it hot or mild depending on the red pepper paste you use. I made it hot for my Turkish friends when I invited them to my house for breakfast. 

Cemen

Since they loved it, they wanted me to share my recipe with them. I also wanted to share the picture of my breakfast table to give you some ideas about what goes with Cemen. I am very sure that Americans will also love this dish as a  snack or appetizer for their gatherings.

This makes 5-10 servings.

Ingredients:
3 tbsp tomato paste (I use organic one)
3 tbsp red pepper paste (thick is better)
4-5 cloves garlic, crushed
2-3 tbsp good quality olive oil
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (but you can add more if you want)
1 1/2 tsp cumin

black pepper to taste

dried mint leaves to taste

salt (if needed)

My Breakfast Table

Instructions:
1- Put tomato and red pepper pastes together in a medium size bowl and stir well.

2- Then, combine garlic, olive oil, walnuts, and spices to the mixture and stir well. You can also add a little salt if it tastes sweet because of the organic pastes.

3- Also, add bread crumbs if your mixture is not thick enough. I do not add it to mine since my tomato and pepper pastes are thick.

4- Put your mixture in a jar and keep it in the refrigerator for 1-2 days before eating. It will be tastier like that.

Enjoy it!