Eager to shake off the cold of an early spring evening, we literally fell through the doorway of Asmalı Cavit, a treasured wooden-fronted traditional meyhane (tavern) in the centre of Pera in Istanbul. Here, the raki flows like the waters of the glittering Bosphorus; never ending and always a sight to behold. Our friends are known to the…
Tag: Plant-based
Kasbah Spiced Sweet Potato Hummus
As the sun dipped down above the High Atlas mountains, the pink plaster walls of the kasbah shone like bronze. The call to prayer from the Medieval Kasbah Mosque fell softly from its glorious minaret, the flickering lights from the Moroccan lantern threw jewels onto our table and, in the streets below, dozens of men and women…
Leyla’s Lyutenitsa (Spicy Red Pepper and Tomato Spread)
Leyla is a beauty and one of the most nurturing and interesting women I have ever met. She lives in a huge Bohemian apartment on the top of a quietly crumbling building with views of the Bosphorus and the Dolmabahçe mosque beneath. Books – and there are hundreds of them – are piled high upon ornate…
Jaffa Orange Blossom-infused Labneh
In his book, 88 Short Stories, the writer Guy de Maupassant wrote, ‘Did you ever sleep in a field of orange trees in bloom? The air which one inhales deliciously is a quintessence of perfumes. This powerful and sweet smell, as savoury as a sweetmeat, seems to penetrate one, to impregnate, to intoxicate, to induce languor, to bring…
Provençal Endive and Walnut Salad with an Orange and Oregano dressing
Weirdly, I am beginning to think about Autumn. I blame the jet stream which is currently acting as a shield preventing the warm air of the south from entering our northern climes. But the nights are drawing in too; gone already are the gorgeous long days of endless light and, come sundown, the candles are…
Turkish Biber Salçası and Yoghurt Dip
Whenever we are in Istanbul, I make a point of buying several hundred grams of biber salçası, a beautiful red pepper paste available in both hot (aci) and sweet (tatli) versions which is sold in giant wooden barrels in traditional spice shops. When we get home, I transfer it to a sealed container and keep…
Italian Spinach & Ricotta Malfatti with Sage and Lemon Butter
The word ‘malfatti’ in Italian literally translates to ‘badly made’ which is crazy really because these gorgeous little dumplings from Brescia in Lombardia are a thing of beauty being much more colourful and lighter than the traditional gnocchi you may be more familiar with. I like to eat these throughout the year but they’re especially…
Sicilian Tomato & Caper Salad
Sicilian capers are highly prized and widely considered as being amongst the finest in the world. This is because they are cultivated in the highly nutritious volcanic soil in perfect conditions – hot and windy – which gives them a higher acidity and a sharper bite than, say capers from gentler Mediterranean climates such as…
Greek Wild Thyme & Fragrant Herb Honey Polenta Cake
Authentic Greek honey is widely recognised as being a natural product of world-class quality; this is because it’s made by bees that feed upon the abundant, rich and aromatic Greek flora which includes over 850 species found nowhere else in the world. In actual fact, Greece is a country with the richest flora in the Mediterranean basin with…
Warm Tarnais Le Puy Lentil Salad
The term Le Puy green lentil can only be used to describe lentils that come from Le Puy in the Auvergne region of France where they have been grown in the nutrient-rich volcanic soil for over 2,000 years. Highly revered for their refined peppery flavor and ability to retain their shape after cooking, they stand head and shoulders…
Cardamom and Dill 