Thracian Style Aubergine (Eggplant) Salad

When meze is the topic of a conversation everyone generally agrees on the yumminess of one dish: aubergine (eggplant) salad. Beware its taste can cause addiction. Although a scrumptious dish it is very difficult to assemble the balance ingredients. If you ask around people will say they cook it very often. We have tried many recipes but only one recipe has proven to be the "one", thanks to a little trip to Kirklareli in the Thracian region. This salad was served at a picnic with relatives and it was love at first sight. We immediately  asked for the recipe to share with you. Thank you very much Nurgül...

Tomato Soup Made from Real Tomatoes, not Tomato Paste!

Who doesn’t love tomatoe soup, especially with grated parmesan cheese and crutons? However, when we look around for the recipe we generally see that people generally make this soup from tomatoe paste, which doesn’t necessarily give the real tomato taste.

Here I present you a recipe of tomato soup you can easily make from real natural tomatoes.

Stuffed Peppers in Olive Oil

Who can just stand there and not taste a lovely dish made with olive oil, especially stuffed peppers? Most folk hesitate to make it at home, thinking it's a difficult job to prepare stuffed peppers but of course here I am to "prove them wrong!" If you know the job it only takes 40 minutes to prepare this lovely dish. Here are the secrets, just follow:

Ingredients

• 750 gr small regular shaped green bell peppers
• 1 and a 1/2 cups of rice, washed and strained
• 2 middle size onions, chopped
• 2 middle size tomatoes, sliced
• 1/2 a bunch of parsley, stems removed and chopped
• 5-6 stems of fresh mint, stems removed and chopped or 1 teaspoon of dry mint
• 1 tablespoon of small currants
• 1 tablespoon of pine nuts
• 1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
• 1 lemon
• 1 small cup of olive oil
• 2 cups of hot water
• Salt

Directions

1. The stuffing: pour half of the olive oil in a pot, add the pine nuts, currants and chopped onion and cook for 1 minute. Next, add the strained rice and stir for 2 minutes on low heat. Take it off the heat and add the chopped parsley and mint, ground black pepper and salt. Mix it all together and let it cool.
2. Meanwhile, core the bell peppers by pressing gently into the stem part with your thumb and taking out the core with the help of a knife.
3. Stuff the peppers with the rice mixture, with the help of a teaspoon. Be careful not to stuff too much, leave a gap of 1 cm empty, and keep the stuffing loose.
4. Close the peppers with a slice of tomatoe and place them in a pot open side up. Keep them tight. If the pot is too big, use a smaller one.
5. Slice up the lemon and cut the rinds off. Place the lemons on the stuffed peppers.
6. Add the rest of the olive oil and 2 cups of hot water. Close the lid and cook for 15-20 minutes on low heat.
7. Let it brew and serve cold.

Any Questions?

• I've had a peep of other recipes. Some say you should put a cup of water in the stuffing, some say you should stuff the peppers with cooked rice. Don't believe them it's a lie! If you don't want your stuffings to be mushy follow this recipe.
• Again I've seen some recipes using 6-8 onions. Don't even think about it.
• As I've said before the ratio of rice to water is still the same: 1 cup of rice to 1 and a 1/2 cups of water. No more no less.
• When cooked there should be 2 cm of liquid in the pot beneath the peppers. If you cook too much and the water boils down, then the stuffing will dry out as it waits.

Ezo Gelin Soup With Vegetables (Red Lentil Soup)

When it’s time for Ezo Gelin Soup nothing can stand in the way. It is a warming tasty soup, which has an interesting story. This recipe is of a richened Ezo Gelin soup commonly served on the dinner tables of the East Black Sea region in Turkey.