VEGETARIAN LASAGNA

Last few weeks, we have been on a high protein diet.  Now we are starting to get pretty sick of meat.  So, for dinner tonight, we switched to a vegetarian lasagna.   This is an excellent recipe.  Lower in calories because of the cottage cheese.  Very easy to make because both the noodles and vegetables are used from raw.  Even if you are using the kind of noodles that normally require to be cooked first.  We used a spicy spaghetti sauce.  It was delicious!

3 cups pasta sauce

(I used Classico spicy tomato red pepper sauce.  I also used the whole jar of 650 ml rather than stick to 3 cups like the original recipe)

2 cups cottage cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup mozzarella cheese
9 whole wheat lasagna noodles

4 cups mixed vegetables (I used spinach, mushrooms, and broccoli)
1/2 cup water (if required)

• Mix all the cheeses together.
• Spray 11 X 8 glass pan.
• Place 3 noodles side by side in the pan (no need to cook them)
• Cover them with 1 cup pasta sauce
• Add 1/3 cheese mixture first then 1/3 vegetables
•  Repeat 2 more times.
• Add a bit of water (1/2 cup)
•  Cover tightly with aluminum foil
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Bake one hour.
• Makes 8 servings

SWEET COCONUT COOKIES (SEKERPARE WITH COCONUTS)

I don't know if calling this desert "Serkerpare" is a good idea because it is quite different than the autehentic Sekerpare.  I called it that because it has the same main ingredients except this one has much less calories and the coconut gives it a nice texture which is not used in Sekerpare.  There are a couple of important things to remember when making this recipe.  First, it must be made 1 day ahead to rest for 24 hours but not in the fridge.  Second, when syrup and cookies are combined syrup must be warm and cookies must be hot.  It works really well if you make the syrup and set it aside before you start the cookies.  Once the cookies are out of the oven, let them rest for 5 minutes and pour a couple of tablespoons of syrup over them and cover the cookies with another cookie sheet.  I use a deep glass pan for the first batch.  This way the syrup can be poured and it can be covered easily with another cookie sheet.

Cookies:

1 small tub of margarin (250 gr), room temperature
1 cup icing sugar

4 tablespoons semolina

2 tablespoons coconut (sweetened, small cut is fine)
2 eggs

3 cups flour
1 package vanilin sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

Syrup:

2 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Dekorations:

Ground natural pistachios and coconuts. 

Makes 25 - 30 cookies

• First make the syrup by combining sugar and water.  Bring to boil.  Add lemon juice.  Reduce heat to medium and cook for 20 minutes.  Set aside
• Make the cookies.  Mix egg and powdered sugar together.  Add all of the ingredients of the cookies except the flour and mix well.
• Add flour a little at a time and make a soft doug
• Spray the pan and make small round cookies in your hands and put on a pan
• Cook at 350 degree preheated oven until the cookies are golden brown on the top
• Once ready, take out of the oven.  Let it rest for 5 minutes.  Pour a couple of tablespoons of syrup over the cookies with a tablespoon.  Cover the pan with another pan.
• Once all the cookies are done pour remaining syrup over all of them evenly and cover with a pan and let it sit overnight at room temperature
• Decorate when ready to serve

CHILI

Did you know Chili is an American dish?  Lots of people think of it as a Mexican because of the beans and use of Chili powder but it is actually from Texas.  Best part of this dish is that it is easy, fast and delicious.  Unless of course if you are making it in a crockpot.  Today, we were painting our kitchen when my daughter's university friends showed up unexpectedly.  I quickly made chili and served with garlic bread.  I added watermelon, some chicken wings and french fries from frozen.  For the vegetarian friend, we added a mixed salad and spanich and feta pastries from the day before.  We had dinner in a jiffy.

Seasoning Mix

4 tablespoons chili powder

2.5 teaspoons ground coriander

2.5 teaspoons ground cumin

1.5 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Other ingredients

2 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 kg. lean ground beef

1 onion
1 (800 ml) can diced tomatoes

1 (450 ml) can tomato sauce

2 (450 ml) cans kidney beans

salt

Topping:

Grated cheese

• Mix together seasoning mix.  This mix will give you more seasoning than you will need for this recipe but you can store it in a container for convinence for next time.
• Put 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet and cook ground beef until no longer pink.
• Drain.
• Chop onion
• Drain and rinse the beans
• Pure 1 can of beans
• In a big pot add all the beans, ground beef, onions, tomatoes and tomato sauce, 5 teaspoons of the seasoning, salt
• Cook until it thickens to your liking in low or medium heat
• If you are using a crockpot, cook on low for 6 to 8 hours
• Serve with a hot sauce on the side for those who prefer it really spicy
• Top with grated cheddar cheese. 

TURKISH BANANA PUDDING

This is a nice light and low fat desert.  Good in any season but best in the hot summer days.  You can top with cool whip or ice cream or chocolate sauce instead of grated chocolate.  This is a great way to use the bananas that are starting to go brown as well as a good source of calcium for those who don't like to drink milk (like me).

4 cups cold milk (1 lt)

4 tablespoons cornstarch (I use a soup spoon steepingly full) 

2/3 cups sugar

1 teaspoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon (9 gr) vanilla

3-4 mashed bananas

Top: Grated chocolate or cool whip or icecream or chocolate sauce

• Mix cold milk, corn starch and sugar in a pot
• Cook in low heat stirring constantly until it thickens
• Add in vanilla and butter.  Stir until butter is melted
• Add bananas
• Put in serving dishes and let it cool in the fridge for a couple of hours (covered with saran wrap)
• Top with your choice of chocolate pieces, cool whip or ice cream.

TURKISH SHORTBREAD COOKIES (UN KURABIYESI)

Translation of Un Kurabiyesi is: Flour Cookies.  I've been meaning make these cookies for a very long time simply because I missed them so much.  I don't make them often because of the calories but I have to tell you, they are absolutely worth it.

 250 gr unsalted butter (1 cup)

1/2 cup oil

1/3 cup corn starch

2/3 cup icing sugar

1 package vanilla (2 teaspoons)

3.5 cups flour

• Cream butter and oil together.  I left the butter at room temperature overnight.  It was so soft that I did not need a mixer.  I used a fork.
• Add corn starch, icin sugar and vanilla
• Add flour a little at a time to get a soft tough.  Dough does crumble a bit.  You need to make sure it sticks together by hand.  Set aside to rest for 10 minutes
• Split the dough into 6 equal parts
• Make a roll with each piece of dough using your hands.  Be careful with the crumbs just stick them together by hand
• Cut each piece into 5 cookies
• Put on a lined cookie sheet
• Pierce with a fork
• Preheat oven to 325
• Cook until the edges turn pink.  In my oven it took 20 minutes
• Cool and sprinkle with icing sugar

TURKISH CHICKEN WRAPS (TAVUKLU DURUM)

Turkish Chicken wraps have a very different look and taste.  Although I haven't tried it with soft tortillas, I am thinking they would likely work well as well.  In authentic recipe, there is not ketchup or mayonnaise but my family felt they go well with this and use it so I added them to my recipe.

3-4 Chicken breasts

1/3 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

2 - 3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon thyme

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon red pepper

Optional: currie and allspice

Lavash bread or Indian Roti bread

Fillers
Fried potatos, lettuce, tomatoes, sliced onions with sumac, garlic pickles, hot peppers, ketchup, mayonnaise

• Slice chicken legthwise
• Add olive oil, salt, tomato paste, thyme, black pepper and red pepper
• Mix well and marinade for 3-4 hours in the fridge
• Cook at medium heat until all the juice comes out and evaporates.  This takes over an hour of cooking.  You can continue to stir fry in its own juice at the very end.
• While chicken is cooking prepare the potatos.  Peel, wash and cut them in small cubes.  Fry them in small amount of olive oil.  Add salt at the end
• Get all the filling option cut up and ready
• Serve in warmed lavash bread.  I used Indian roti bread.

BROCCOLI IN BECHAMEL SAUCE (BASAMEL SOSLU BROKILI)

Some people love Broccoli while others don't even like them.  Those who don't like Broccoli but try to eat them do it usually because they know how good it is for their health.  My household is no different. My husband likes them plain, my yougest daughter will only eat it if it is made with this recipe.  Me and my older daughter will eat Broccoli in any recipe because we love them.  If you are one of those people who try with Broccoli, you must try this recipe.  I hope you enjoy it.

1/2 kg. Broccoli

2 full tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup milk

salt, blackpepper

1/2 cup permasean cheese

1 cup shreded mozerrella cheese

• Separate Broccoli florets and boil them lightly in salted water making sure they are not too soft
• In a pan, melt butter and  add flour.  Cook until the flour changes colour to light yellow.  I find this to be the most difficult part of this recipe as the flour sticks to the wooden spoon.  Make sure you have a fork handy to scrape off the spoon so you can continue to cook
• Add mik.  Reduce heat and cook until the sauce thickens a bit
• Add Permasean cheese and remove from heat
• Mix the sauce with broccoli
• Spray the bottom of your pan
• Pour Broccoli and the sauce.  Try to make sure broccoli is single layer.  It should not be too thick.
• Sprinkle shreded cheddar cheese
• Cook at 350 degree preheated oven until the top is golden brown (approx 20 minutes)