Our last recipe is great to finish a meal. Making baklava from scratch is kind of an involved process, so if you want a quicker way (using ready made dough) you can skip to the end where I have an easy to follow youtube video (not mine).

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE DOUGH

• 500 g of flour
• 1 egg
• 150 ml of lukewarm milk
• 150 ml of yogurt
• 1 tbsp (15 g) of baking powder
• 150 ml of oil

FOR ROLLING OUT

• 500g corn starch (or flour)

FOR THE FILLING:

• 150 grams of crumbled pistachios (or walnuts)

FOR THE SYRUP

• 1 kg of sugar
• 800 ML water
• 1 spoon of lemon juice

AS TOPPING:

• 150g butter

First the tough: mix all ingredients until you have a consitent, soft texture. Let rest for 20 mins, then make some rolls and divide them into balls, each about the size of a large meatball.

Then roll each ball into a very thin flat disc, add the flour or corn starch on top and stack them on top of each other in an oiled baking tray.  

You need to layer a total of three stacks of dough, with two layers of nuts in between (each with half of the walnuts or pistachios). When complete, cut unto slices using a knife.

Melt butter and pur over it. Bake 190C until golden (about 50 mins), then let it cool. 

Then its time to prepare the syrup:mix sugar and water in a pot and boil 15 mins. Add the lemon juice, boil for 2 more minutes. Let it cool.

Pour the cold syrup over hot baklava and let it absorb the syrup well. Let it rest and enjoy!

If you want to eat baklava but you only have 30 mins, you can buy the ready ohillo dough and follow the video below.

 

Lentil balls (mercimek köftesi) are a simple vegan dish from Turkey which is perfect for many occasions. They can be an appetizer or a snack, they are eaten cold and can be stored in the fridge. 

INGREDIENTS

• 175 g (200 ml) dry red lentils
• 400 ml water 
• 1 to 2 water ratio between lentil and water is important for the final consistency of the dish, since after boiling the lentils there is no extra cooking in which regulate the water content
• 80 g fine bulgur 
• there are many types of bulgur wheat. You want the fine one. If you bu a Turkish brand, you should read köftelik bulgur on the bad
• 3 Tbsp olive oil 
• 50 g tomato paste
• 25 g Turkish red pepper paste (acı biber salçası)
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 3 spring onions, chopped
• parsley to taste, chopped 
• You can use other aromatic herbs to taste if you prefer
• salt and pepper

TO SERVE

1 lemon, lettuce leaves

Here are the basic ingredients. If you want to experiment like we do sometimes, you can substitute quinoa for bulgur wheat (see above). You will end up with a looser consistency though.

Add water to lentils and bring to a simmer over low/medium eat for about 20 mins, until the lentils are fallen apart. Then turn off the heat, add the bulgur, and let it cool (note that if you want to use quinoa it is better to add that together with the lentils). The mixture will absorb all the water.

Meanwhile, sauté the onions on a pan with some olive oil. When everything is cooked, mix the lentil, bulgur, onions, tomato paste, spices and herbs. Basically everything except lemon and lettuce. Also, note the the mixing is done when everything is cool. You don't want to cook the herbs.

The last step is to shape the mix into oblong balls (like the meaty Turkish köfte). This is done by simply squeezing a handful of the mixture in your palm. Once done they are ready to be eaten, or stored in the fridge. When eating, squeeze some lemon juice on top, and wrap them in a lettuce leaf.

 

For my second Sunday I wanted to share a very easy and tasty way to eat Aubergines, or Eggplants if you live in North America or Australia. Very similar to Baba Ganoush, it is a vegan recipe to be served cold, and it is perfect for picnics and potlucks (if those are a thing where you live).

This recipe serves about 6 people as an appetizer. You can adjust based on how many Aubergines you are cooking

• 4 lbs of Italian Aubergines (about 4 medium ones)
• Juice from 1/2 lemon (about 2 tablespoons, can be adjusted to taste)
• 4 tablespoons of olive oil
• 4 minced cloves of garlic (can be adjusted to taste)
• Salt and pepper to taste

To start, wash the aubergines and poke 3-4 holes with a knife (this step is very important). Then line them up on a pan. No oil is needed.

Preheat the over at 180 C (350 F) and bake fot about 60-70 mins. When ready, the aubergines should look soft and deflated, and a knife should be able to go through them with no resistance. Take the aubergines out of the oven and let them cool down

Peel the skins and chop the aubergines with a knife. 

      

Add salt, garlic, oilve oil and lemon juice, and then gently mash with a fork or a potato masher, then refrigetate. Serve alone or with some roasted peppers for colour and taste. If you ever get bored of this, try substituting the lemon for 200 ml of greek yoghurt

 I wanted to start my Veggie Sundays for the Ocean with the the most versatile dish of all, pizza. I also wanted to share what I think is the easiest quickest way to make it from scratch, so you are ready if your kid come hungry from school. 

I found Jeff and Zoe's method to be very practical, so this is kind of a variation on their method. Check out their Books and website with more recipes, themes and better pictures.

The main idea is to quickly make a dough that can refrigerated for weeks, and made into a pizza in a matter of minutes. The original dough recipe calls for

• 1 Kg of all-purpose flour. We like this from Thrive, but any would do.
• 800 ml of lukewarm water (should feel warm but not hot), about 35 to 37 C
• 20 grams of salt (about one tablespoon)
• 10 grams of granulated yeast

Note that sometimes, especially if I am not making dough very frequently, I use single package yeast, and I change the proportion consequently. For example, the very common (in US) packet below is 7 grams, so I just multiply everything by 0.7

You also need a container to make a ferment the dough. I use a stainless steel pot, but anything with a non airtight cover would work. Using the proportions above you will need a 4-5 liter container.

First you need to mix water, salt, and yeast, then add the flour. 

Then, you mix everything with a wooden spoon (first picture below) until all the dough is moist. When there are no dry parts (second picture) you are done, no need to kneading. Cover and waint until the dough stops rising (about 2 hours). When it looks like in the last picture below you can put it in the fridge and use it wheneve you need within two weeks.

When you are ready to cook, preheat the oven and prepare the toppings. Precise settings really depend on the oven, but in general you need 200 C for 11 to 12 minutes. A pizza stone, preheated with the ove, will give better results. As for the toppings, in the example below we have cheese, tomato sauce, and vegetables roasted in the same oven with salt and olive oil (zucchini and onions). 

When all is ready, pick up a piece of the dough from the fridge. An orange to grapefruit size ball (about 200 to 250 g) will make a small one person pizza. Sprinkle with flour or use parchment paper to prevent sticking and work the ball to a flatbread disc for a a minute, then put in the oven.