After dinner during the month of Ramadan, I look forward to drinking my tea and feasting on dessert.  As much as I say my husband loves desserts, I must admit I equally do as well. He prefers milk desserts like pudding and ice creams, my preferences are mostly of cakes, cookies, chocolates and several different traditional Middle Eastern & Turkish desserts.

Revani or Basbousa as known as in Arabic, amongst many other Turkish desserts, happens to be one of my absolute favorite dessert.  Over the summer, I started looking for a good recipe and to my surprise stumbled upon a recipe on Epicurious.com.  This recipe was a bit different from the traditional Turkish recipes as it called for semolina then flour creating a dense sponge cake soaked in syrup.

Even though both Eids have past, this is a great recipe to have and make for anytime of the year. Especially when you are expecting company and want to creat a special dessert.

REVANI
adapted from Epicurious | July 2009
by Carol Robertson  – Turkish Cooking: A Culinary Journey through Turkey

Ingredients:

Syrup:

• 3 cups of sugar
• 4 cups of water
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (1/2 lemon)

Cake:

• 9 eggs, separated
• 3/4 cup sugar
• grated rind from 1 lemon
• 2 cups semolina or farina (cream of wheat)
• 1/3 cup flour
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup heavy cream, whipped with 1 tablespoon sugar (I did not serve with whipped cream)
• 1/4 cup ground nuts or 1/4 cup of dry coconut

To make the syrup:
Bring sugar, water, and lemon juice to a boil, simmer 15 minutes. Cool.

To make the cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Beat the egg yolks, sugar and lemon rind with an electric beater for 5 minutes or until pale yellow.
3. Wash and dry the beater.
4. Fold the semolina and flour into the beaten yolks until well blended. Set aside.
5. Beat the egg whites with the clean beater until stiff.
6. Alternate gently folding the egg whites and the melted butter into the yolk and flour mix.
7. Pour batter into a well greased and floured 9×12 inch or 10×12 inch baking pan.
8. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 40 minutes, or until a pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
9. Pour the syrup over the hot cake. Let it stand for several hours until the syrup is absorbed and the cake is cool.
10. Cut the cake into squares.
11. Serve with whipped cream and sprinkle nuts or dry coconut on tops.

It is quite interesting that I never posted a pancake recipe before.  Especially since pancakes are a big part of our weekend breakfasts aside from our traditional Turkish breakfasts.  Weekend breakfasts and breakfasts in general are traditionally very big in Turkish kitchens, a traditional Turkish breakfast provides a very balanced meal, from a variety cheeses to cucumber and tomato salads and eggs of various kinds.  I should know, because I’m big on breakfasts and brunches.

Pancakes are known to be the number one American breakfast food and we certainly can not agree more.  With this said, there are large variety of pancakes recipes, from simple recipes of milk, eggs and flour to buttermilk recipes (with turn out so moist and yummy) and to this Ina Garten recipe of sour cream pancakes, with hints of lemon zest – it is incredibly addictive.

Pancakes are a great comfort food (believe me I know), I’ve made several batches in the middle of the night.  What is about these flour filled goodness that satisfy and hit that soft spot perfectly?  Well no matter what and how pancakes curve your craving, make  and eat as much as you want, go a head and make a stack for you mom too.

Stack a layer of two, three or even four, pour a good (large) amount of good quality maple syrup and dig in.  I often stack the first batch then I grab the top pancake and take a huge bite, just like Julia Roberts does in Pretty Woman. Vivian sits down (wells sits on the edge of the table) for breakfast and Edward has ordered everything on the menu because he is not sure of what she likes.  I love that scene in the movie.

1 year ago: a mother’s day breakfast

BANANA SOUR CREAM PANCAKES
adapted from Ina Garten Barefoot Contessa Family Style

makes about 10 – 12 depending on the size

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups  all purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda (I added – not in the original recipe)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
• 2 extra-large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (I added close to a tablespoon)
• 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil or butter
• 2 ripe bananas, diced, plus extra for serving (I didn’t add the banana into the pancakes – served along with the pancakes)
• Pure maple syrup

Preparation:

Cheesecakes have become staples in our household, not a week goes by and my husband begins to ask when I’m making cheesecake again.  The funny thing is I haven’t made one single pan of cheesecake since this past summer. Rather I have been making desserts that either use cream cheese in the fillings and or frosting. (He has been wanting tiny cupcakes! I’ve not gotten around to it.)

I took advantage of Christmas weekend to make his wish come true.  I also made him wait a  day and half to sink his teeth into the cheesecake.  I sort of over baked mine by about 10 minutes and this caused the cheese cake to crack.  Towards the end of the cooking time watch the cheese cake carefully to avoid this, if it happens that is okay it is still all good.  I can assure you mine was.  

I was to post this recipe before we left for vacation to Brazil, I put everything together unable to post due work load towards year end.  We are still in Brazil as I type this recipe and I can not wait to get back to NY to make another batch. I hope that you all had a wonderful New Year and I hope that 2011 will be even better one.  I myself have big hopes and dreams about this blog in this New Year, I hope that you will come back and visit me often.

LOW & LUSH CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE
                   Adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours, by Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients:

FOR THE CRUST
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

FOR THE FILLING
1 1/2 pounds (three 8-ounce packages) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and slightly cooled

GETTING READY:Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 1/2- or 9-inch springform pan and put the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

TO MAKE THE CRUST: Stir the crumbs, sugar and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist. (I do this with my fingers.) Turn the crumbs into the pan and, with your fingers, press the crumbs evenly over the bottom of the pan and as far up the sides as they’ll go. Freeze the crust for about 10 minutes.

Bake for 10 minutes, only until the crust is lightly set and just tinged with color. Cool on a rack or refrigerate while you make the filling. Keep the oven at 350 degrees F.

TO MAKE THE FILLING: Cut each bar of cream cheese into quarters and toss the pieces into a food processor**, along with the sugar. Process, scraping down the bowl 2 or 3 times, for a full 2 minutes. You’ll see how dramatically the cream cheese changes; it will look like white velvet at the end of its beating. Add the eggs, vanilla and salt and give the batter 4 longish pulses, the scrape down the bowl and pulse 2 more times. Pour in the chocolate and pulse and scrape a few times to blend the batter well.

Remove the bowl from the processor and rap it hard on the counter a couple of times to de-bubble the batter. Scrape the batter into the cooled crust.

Bake the cheesecake for 35 to 40 minutes if you are using a 9-inch pan or 45 to 50 minutes if you are using an 8 1/2-inch pan. The top should be puffed and set, but if you tap the pan gently, the center of the cake will still be a little shaky–that’s just fine. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and allow the cheesecake to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 8 hours or for up to 3 days.

Run a blunt knife between the crust and sides of the pan, then open and remove the sides of the spring form.

STORING: Wrapped well, the cheesecake will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. It can be frozen for up to 2 months; defrost, still wrapped, overnight in the refrigerator.
**Instead of a food processor I worked with a handle hald mixer and this worked just as well.

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Asure known as ”Noah Pudding” is one of the oldest and most traditional desserts of the Turkish & Middle Eastern cuisine. Plenty of Asure is cooked in every household during it which is both served to the guests and distributed to the neighbors and relatives.  Growing up I would beg my mom to make this sweet nut filled pudding, regardless of what day of the year it was.  As the sweet cooks the whole house smells of cooking barley, currants with scents of sweet rose water mixed with citrus flavor.  Simply irresistible to resist! 

Asure signifies many events for Muslims, amongst the most significant being the day Noah’s Ark set on dry land.When the Flood finally subsided and the Noah’s Arc settled on Mount Ararat in Agri, those on the vessel wanted to hold a celebration as an expression of the gratitude they felt towards the God. But alas, the food storage’s of the ship were practically empty and so they made a soup with all the remaining ingredients they could find and thus ended up with the asure. Following the legend, asure is today prepared by cooking together 15 or more ingredients. In some regions a piece of the sacrificial meat is saved and added to the pot while asure is being cooked. Rice can also be substituted for wheat or it can be used in combination with it. The pudding can be enriched with almonds, hazelnuts and currants. In addition to dried white beans and chickpeas, dried broad beans and dried black-eyed beans can also be added. In some regions molasses replaces sugar.

The most important ingredient in making Asure is to have the ‘Intention’ and the ‘Will’ to make this sweet pudding, in Turkish we say ‘Niyet Etmek.’  With this on my mind I set out to make my “Asure.” I a sure you, it is simple and quick.

Asure – Noah’s Pudding

Ingredients
~ Items can be found at any Whole Food Markets or Middle Eastern Store -

• 1  cup of barley whole wheat
• 6 cloves
• 1 can of chick peas
• 1 can of white kidney beans (or red kidney beans)
• 3/4 cup of black dried currants
• 3/4 cup of yellow raisins
• 3/4 cup of almonds (slivered, sliced or whole)
• 1/2 cup of pignoli nuts - aka pine nuts
• 1/2 cup of cranberries
• 1/2 cup of dry coconut
• 6 dried Turkish Apricots - cut in quarter
• 1 tablespoon of rose water
• 2 1/2 cups of sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1 lemon zest 
• the juice of 1 lemon
• 9 – 12 cups of cold water
• 4 tablespoons of corn starch
• Cinnamon for topping
• Save some pignoli, currants & coconut for topping.

Preparation:

One day Before: Soak 1 cup of barley whole wheat in 3 cups of water the night before. This will allow the barley to soften.

Day of:

1. Drain the soaked barley, pour into a deep cooking pot fill with 8-10 cups of cold water leaving about 2-3 inches of the top.
2. Over a medium to high bring the pot to broil – will take about 15-20 minutes and continue to broil an additional 20 – 25 minutes.  The barley will have cracked open and have become white and soft to touch and taste.
3. In a small sauce pan with a cup of water - add in the cloves  and bring to boil. The water will turn a light brown color this means the cloves have released their flavor into the water. Discard the cloves & set the water a side to add into the pot later.
4. Drain and wash the can of chick peas and kidney beans, add both into the broiling pot.  Stir well.
5. In a small sauce pan, bring the water to broil  add in the black currants, drain the dark water and add the current into barley, kidney beans and chick pea mixture. Stir well.
6. Add in the rest of the dry ingredients - raisins, cranberries, quartered apricots, dry coconut, almonds and pine nuts. Stirring again.
7. Add in the 2 cups of sugar and giving the mixture a nice stir, continuing to cook over medium heat.  Let the sugar dissolve, if not sweet enough for your taste add in the addition 1/2 cup.
8. In a small mixing bowl with a cup of water mix the corn starch well, leaving no lumps.  Then add the corn starch mixture into your boiling pot of asure. Stir well.  (The corn starch is thickening agent for the asure.)
9. Finally add in the zest of the lemon, juice of the lemon, clove water and rose water and pinch of salt.
10. Stir everything well continue to cook for another 5-8 minutes.
11. Let cool for about 15 minutes, ladle into serving bowls.  Top with cinnamon, nuts and dry fruit. 
12. Asure can be served warm, at room temperature or cold.

Note: Asure  covered with plastic warp will last for a both a week in the refrigerator.