Fava Bean and Pea Salad (İç Bakla ve Bezelye Salatası)

1 lb fresh fava beans in pod1/2 lb fresh peas in pod3 green onions, finely chopped~1/4 cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves~1/4 cup finely chopped fresh dill~1/4 cup finely chopped parsley~1/3 cup crumbled feta (optional)dressingjuice of one lemon4-5 tbsp olive oil1 clove of garlic, minced (optional)-Pod and boil fava beans in salted water for 2-5 minutes. The cooking time depends on the freshness of the beans. Blanch and poke the skin to squeeze...

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Dandelion with Olive Oil (Hindiba)

If cooking every dish (sweet and savory) in olive oil is one of the most important characteristics of the incredibly healthy  Cretan cuisine, boiling all greens including weeds is the other one. The Cretan diet, widely accepted to be one of the healthiest diets, became an indispensable part of Turkish Aegean cuisine through Cretan-Turks who were compulsorily exchanged for the Turkish Greeks of Anatolia starting from May 1st, 1923 based...

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Priest's Beef Stew (Papaz Yahnisi)

Since I haven't posted a new recipe in a while, I wanted to break the silence with a heavily delicious or deliciously heavy one: priest's beef stew or ragout. This succulent ragout recipe comes from the Aegean part of Turkey, and judging by the name, priest--not "yahni" since it is of Persian origin for meat and onion dishes--the dish must be originally Greek. Another clue about its Greek roots is the use of cinnamon. Although it is an indispensable...

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