And so we make a soup every day. Ramadan continues and we cook with the stronger sense of purpose - to feed those who have been fasting during the day. And soups are excellent ways to break the fast and start ftar, the evening meal shared at the sunset, and then we keep leftovers for sahur, pre-dawn meal. Turkish soups are nutritious and nourishing and I love watching happy faces of my eaters as they go through their bowls of piping hot deliciousness. But then 30 soups (one for each day of Ramadan) is quite a challenge. But are we so easily scared?
Silky Smooth Turkish Yogurt Soup
Purslane Yogurt Salad (and Other Things I Have Missed This Istanbul Summer)
September is a good time to get nostalgic about the passed summer. There are certain seasonal imperatives for spending your time in Istanbul. Things to do in Istanbul in summer would be revolving around lingering in one way or another by the Bosphorus or the Marmara Sea. This year I have missed most of this delights having been busy with running food walks and settling our two new houses in Istanbul and its countryside, Sapanca. I can’t say I am sad about it but it’s the purslane recipe that bothers me most.
Cacik: Humble Turkish Yogurt Soup
Here in Sapanca I am learning to appreciate the beauty of humble food cooked to perfection. I am grateful for that opportunity as otherwise I am hungry for complications at the kitchen: recipes that take hours to make, ingredients that are many, tastes that are not so straightforward.
