Crispy Zucchini Flowers

With some fallen caramelized leaves on the floor and slightly chilly summer evenings, September is finally here. Although summer is not actually my favorite season like everyone else's, I won't complain. This has been a great summer for me. 

To sum up I have travelled a lot. First we went to Izmir to organize a summer camp for economically disadvantaged children, then I went to Italy and fell in love with two incredible cities: Rome and Florence. I came back to Turkey and went to our tiny summer house in Canakkale, where I spent 6 weeks relaxing, swimming, reading and cooking with my grandmother. I later came back to Istanbul to get started on my university preparation program. Just before the bayram, I was lucky enough to visit Bodrum and now I am finally here, at my desk, in my cozy room ready to share some of my favorite recipes with you. 

This Crispy Zucchini Flowers is actually a copy-cat version of the one I tried back in Italy. We first stayed at Rome for 4 days but then took the train and went up to Florence. My parents and I chose to rent a tiny apartment near the center of the city. There was a tiny market at the corner and we cooked most of our lunches and dinners there. However one night, whilst I was Instagramming some of my favorite food bloggers I bumped into a post that recommended a fantastic restaurant where both locals and foodies from all around the world cannot leave Florence without having a bite here. Plus the restaurant was around the corner of the apartment that we stayed. So we couldn't miss this opportunity and decided to go there. 

The fantastic restaurant I mentioned earlier is called "Trattoria Za Za". It is almost always very crowded so I highly recommend you reserve a table in advance. We had the Florentine steak and it was perfect. However what really stunned us was the fried and extremely crispy zucchini flowers. From the moment I bit into the crispy fritters, I knew that I was going to try them back at home. 

(The restaurant also offers great pastas and I was quiet excited to try the gnocchi with truffles (actual real truffles instead of truffle oil) however when I realized that I haven't ever tried a 1 kg steak before I decided to share that with my parents. But if you have the chance please do try that one as well :)

So, when I was at the farmers market in Canakkale, I spotted an old lady selling a bouquet of zucchini flowers for 2 liras. What a bargain! I got a bunch and headed back to our tiny kitchen to bring Florence to our table. The zucchinis turned out to be AMAZING. The crispy outside of the zucchini flowers with the perfect spicy yoghurt dipping sauce will definitely be your next game day favorite. You can also serve this as an appetizer or a snack, either way you are guaranteed to have a fantastic dish. So here is the recipe for Crispy Zucchini Flowers, I hope you'll enjoy:

Baked Crispy Chicken with Cornflakes

It has been a very long time since my last post. May and June is always an exhausting time for us at the school but this year just topped its game. I don't remember getting this much tired ever in my life. However this year was probably the best considering the classes I have taken and the things that I have learned throughout the year. 

This summer is very special for me because I finally got to visit Italy in late June. It was AMAZING. Everything was just perfect. I still feel as if it was a dream. There is so much to say about Italy but I can summarize the trip with pasta, museums, fantastic architecture, more pasta, some pizza, lots and lots of pistachio gelato and even more delicious pasta. People were so kind and the food was just incredible, not to mention the spectacular museums and the outstanding works of art. I sure will visit again. Ciao, for now. 

If we get back to the recipe, this is a super quick and a super yummy one. It only takes 15 minutes to prepare but you will have to be patient with cooking if you want to avoid raw chicken. The crispy coating on top and the most creamy and moist chicken will definitely be one of your favourite dishes. So go ahead and try this for your next meal, you won't regret it. Hope you'll like this one too: 

Super Easy 15 Minute Zoodles (Vegan)

Spring is finally here! Birds singing and the sun pouring down through our shades do not only mean that the trees will blossom and the tulips will color the streets. But it also informs that summer is on the way and if you are a foodie like me, the following two months will be the hardest for us. Summer and bikini season on the way signals you to start cutting off those high-calorie carbs and to include more veggies, more exercise and more water through out the day, which is definitely not easy. However, this is also the best time of the year with the freshest produce and vegetables. Thus no excuses for not being able to work with healthy ingredients. 

So, if you are like me and you want to cut down some of those cookies, pastas, chocolate etc, this  zucchini noodle (zoodle) recipe will be your to go meal. It does not only take 4 ingredients to prepare but also results in a very easy and an even more healthier dish. Plus, this recipe is perfect for my vegan friends out there :)

Spiralizers are very popular nowadays and if you are planning on investing on one, you can buy this from Crate and Barrell. But today I am going to use a different slicer, a mandarin to be more specific by a brand called Gefu. I bought it to make chips etc. but with attachable plates, you can cut fries and very thin strips. So I am going to use the strip plate to make my zoodles. There are of course other ways to prepare zoodles, such as a vegetable peeler for fettuchini shaped zoodles or a julienne peeler for spaghetti zoodles. I have also seen a blogger (Top with Cinnamon) use a box grater placed sideways to cut the zucchini into spaghetti. 

As you might have noticed, there are multiple ways to make zucchini noodles. You can also try other vegetables like carrots or eggplants with the same recipe. So, here is the recipe for Super Easy and Super Healthy Vegan 15 Minute Zoodles: 

The Softest Carrot Cake

Bundt cake is one of the easiest things to bake in the world and carrot cake is my favourite flavour. The first time I tried a carrot cake was when I watched "Issız Adam" and did not know that cakes could have carrot in them. So, I asked my grandmother to bake me one and the taste just amazed me. Back at the time I didn't think that a cake could consist of vegetables and be this delicious. Plus, it is very easy to prepare. If you pay attention to only two key points, you will end up with the perfect cake with a cotton soft interior and a nice crunch on the edges.  

Make sure oil the pan with butter or margarine and dust with flour

Oiling and dusting the bundt pan guarantees that your cake will come out from the pan clean once baked. The cold oil does not melt easily in the oven therefore, a vegetable oil spray won't work. If you just oil, your cake will end up with a greasy exterior. However, we are looking for a coating that will prevent the cake from sticking to the pan. Therefore, by dusting the pan after you have oiled it makes sure that your cake will come out without sticking. 

Make sure to mix the eggs and the sugars until it gets fluffy*

To be more precise, fluffy means until the egg mixture is airy, pale yellow and orange-ish. This process often takes about 7-8 minutes. By whisking the eggs and the sugars on medium speed and for a long period of time, you incorporate more air into the cake batter. This way, your cake is fluffier and  sponge-like. Therefore, do not underestimate 

this step. 

With these key tips in your mind, you will end up with the softest cake that you can also use as a pillow :) Just kidding.

This carrot cake recipe is adapted my grandmother's ultimate bundt cake recipe that never makes you disappointed. Since her measurement are often estimated with her eyeball and hands, I worked on the exact measurements for you. 

Here is the recipe for The Softest Carrot Cake ...

Apple Hand Pies

Apple hand pie is a must have dish if you are having friends over tea. This recipe does not only yield in delicious hand pies but also very pretty pastries. Often, the apple hand pies are closed like an envelope but with this unique shape, your guests will be impressed and immediately ask for the recipe. Perfecting the dough of and apple hand pie is something to look out for. It needs to be crispy on the outside but soft in the inside. This way, a bite from the hand pie will easily melt in your mouth and you'll suddenly crave for another bite. 

Even though I am not a big fan of fruits, this is probably one of my favorite desserts to bake and eat as well. Whenever I make a cake with raspberries or any other baked good with a fruit component, I just don't eat. However, the smell of a freshly baked cinnamon and vanilla apple hand pie with a generous amount of confectioners sugar dusted on top is something that I could never pass on. 

As many of you know, I visit my grandparents' summer house in Çanakkale every year. Not only my grandparents welcome me with a spectacular table full of yummy food but also our neighbour Servet Teyze bedazzles me with a batch of apple hand pies. She keeps the recipe to herself but because she likes me a lot, she gave me a tip: to use equal amounts of margarine for the crunch and sunflower oil for the softness. So, here is the recipe that I worked on to recreate her amazing apple handpies: 

Super-Easy Lemon Salmon with Fluffy Quinoa and Steamed Broccoli

Salmon is probably one of the easiest fish to work with. I buy mine from IKEA, frozen and filleted. This way I do not need to clean the fish

or debone it. When I was a kid, my grandfather and I used to go to IKEA and we would always order Salmon with its authentic lemon sauce. At the time, salmon was very hard to find in Turkey. We always had hamsi or seabass at home and salmon at IKEA for me was a restaurant quality dish. 

My father is not very fond of salmon therefore whenever we go to a fish market, we always end up buying hamsi. Therefore, when my parents are away, I always pop some salmon out from the freezer and prepare myself a tiny feast. 

I cannot emphasise how easy it is to cook salmon. I know that aluminium foil is not the healthiest equipment however it is very easy to clean afterwards. We always have those lazy days that we don't even want to think about the dishes that we have to clean afterwards. Plus, if you don't use aluminium foil every single day, it is okay to be lazy sometimes. 

So, here is the Super Easy Salmon in Foil Recipe with Fluffy Quinoa recipe: 

Crispy Gingerbread Cookies

Weird. Is what I would use to describe 2015. The past year was full of ups and downs, laughters and cries. As always, I wish this brand new year to be better than the previous and that it brings us nothing but joy. With my finals finally finished and the winter break finally here with a lot of snow, I am pretty sure that this holiday will not only be relaxing but also a refreshing way to welcome new year and the new semester. 

On the other hand, the recipe that I prepared for you, better late than never, the Crispy Gingerbread Cookie recipe is now ready for you as promised before. I do have a Gingerbread Recipe on my blog from previous years, however I can say that this one is the crispiest one ever. Instead of cutting them with "gingerbread men" cookie cutters, I invested in a tiny cookie tree cutter set which comes in various sized star shaped cutters and a hole puncher. So, you can make a tree out of your cookies or tie it with string and hang as decorations. 

I also got these amazing snowflake shaped cookie cutters from Crate and Barrel. I can truly say that these are the most beautiful cookie cutters I have every owned. They look like lace and the cookies come out so pretty that you do not even what to eat the cookies to that they don't lose their shapes. 

Even though Christmas season is over, Gingerbread cookie is still one of my favorites to bake because of its fragrant smell and delicious taste. A nice mug of coffee, a tiny generous piece of Crispy Gingerbread Cookie and a decent book is all you need for during these cold snowy days. With a couple of cookie cutters, this recipe is perfect to share with friends and family. I wish you a fantastic new year and hope you'll like this recipe.