Recipes for Cook

Here is something we ate a lot of in Turkey. Soup was almost always lentil, or tomato, or lentil with tomato, which this kind of is. You can add your pepper or tomato element as you see fit, using canned tomatoes or peppers if you have them. I used dried because I have a lot we saved from the garden last year. Everyones soup recipe varied a little, so you should feel free to tweak it to your liking as well.

One of the reasons we ate so much soup in Turkey was the Unfortunate Chicken Incident. We had left one town very early in the morning, skipping breakfast. When we were set up at a hotel in the next town, we went out and wandered around. When we saw a restaurant with chickens cooking on a rotisserie, we decided to have an early lunch. I ignored the little voice in the back of my head saying, "Who has cooked chickens by 11:30 in the morning? I hope they arent left from yesterday."

You guessed it. They almost certainly were, and had not been handled properly in any case.  After that we spent most of the next week on the çorba diet. The çorba diet, as you may suppose, consists of çorba; çorba for lunch; çorba for dinner, and yes, çorba for breakfast. You can nibble on a little of the bread that comes with it if you want, but you mostly wont want.

We noticed, in one bus terminal we had breakfast in, that we werent the only ones having it for breakfast. In fact everyone in that cafe ignored the sad little breakfast plates in the glass display case, and ordered soup and tea. Its a perfectly civilized way to start the morning, and we may start doing it regularly even though our tummies are now fine.

6 to 8 servings
1 hour prep time, better served next day



1 large onion
1 large carrot
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup red lentils
1/3 cup dried tomatoes
2 tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika
OR 1/3 cup dried sweet red peppers
1/2 teaspoon cumin seed
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
6 cups water
1/4 cup fresh mint
OR 1 tablespoon dried mint

lemon wedges to serve

Peel and chop the onion and carrot. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat, and cook them gently in it until they are soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. If you are using the paprika, add it about halfway through this process.

Meanwhile, put the lentils, dried tomatoes, dried peppers if using, dried mint if using, cumin and salt in a large soup pot. Add the water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes, until the lentils are very soft. Add more water if the level drops noticeably.

When the onions and carrots are ready, add them to the soup as it cooks.

Let the soup cool, and purée it in a food processor or blender with the fresh mint, if using. It will take 2 patches, Im sure. To serve, reheat the soup and pass a wedge of lemon with each bowl to be squeezed in. As ever with legume-based soups, it gets better after sitting in the fridge for at least a day.




Last year at this time I made Vietnamese Beef and Carrot Stew (Bo Kho) and Smoked Salmon or Trout Loaf.

Mint Puri

Ingredients
Whole wheat flour / Atta - 1 and 1/2 cups
Mint leaves chopped - 1/4 bunch
Green chilli - 2 nos
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Cooking soda - few pinch
Salt to taste
Oil to deep fry puris

Pudina Poori

Method
1. Grind green chilli and cumin seeds to paste.
2. In a bowl combine Atta, chopped mint, green chilli paste, cooking soda and salt. Add required water and knead to tight dough, apply oil on the dough and set aside for 10 minutes.
3. Heat oil in a pan to deep fry puris. Meanwhile divide dough into equal portions, roll out each dough into slightly thick and even discs.
4. Deep fry each disc in hot oil until puffed and golden in color.
Serve hot Pudina puris with raita.

I made these last night to take to some people today. You see that thin layer of green? Yeah, thats the mint - I thought it was fitting for St. Patricks day. Next time I make these Ill double the amount of mint frosting (I will include the doubled amount in the recipe). I thought it needed more. Also, the recipe says you can add nuts if you want. I love nuts in brownies, but since I was taking these to other people I didnt include the nuts. Some people are very against them; you never know. So if I make them again, Ill definitely add nuts. Other than that, these were very delicious! If you have a brownie recipe you absolutely love, you can go ahead and use that. Otherwise, try this one! Theyre kind of cake-like so if you like that, youll like these. I thought they were quite tasty.


Oh, and this recipe also comes from my sister Amy. She forgot about giving the recipe for the peanut butter bars, so well see if she remembers this one. :) She gave it to me almost 6 years ago, and this is the first time Ive made them (shame on me). They also reminded me of my mom because she loves mint brownies! Every time she goes to BYU she gets a delicious mint brownie from the Creamery. Mmm.

Mint Brownies

Brownies:
2 c. sugar
1 c. butter
4 eggs
4 (1 oz.) squares unsweetened chocolate, melted and slightly cooled
2 1/2 c. sifted flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. broken walnuts or pecans (optional)
Mint frosting:
1/2 c. butter, softened
4 T. evaporated milk (I used regular milk)2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. peppermint extract
a few drops green food coloring

Chocolate Glaze:
6 T. butter
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter until fluffy. Beat in eggs until well blended, then add melted chocolate. Sift flour, measure and sift again with dry ingredients. Add to creamed mixture along with vanilla and nuts. Spread in a greased and floured 9x13 pan for 30-35 minutes or until no imprint is left when touched with finger. Do not overbake. Remove and let sit for about 10 minutes.

Mix all frosting ingredients until creamy and spread over warm brownies. Refrigerate for 1 hour. (I left it on the counter for about 1/2 hour and refrigerated it for 1/2 hour). Combine butter and chocolate chips in top of double boiler, add vanilla and blend thoroughly. Pour gently over green frosting and spread by tipping the pan. Refrigerate until served.

Source: Adapted from Amy Weaver