Chicken Nachos

             Ingredients:

2 packs of Doritos Nacho Cheese
1 chicken breast
2 tomatoes
10 slices of cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons of jalapeno
1 can of mexican beans
3 tablespoons of sliced olives
3 tablespoons of milk corn
2 teaspoons of chili powder
2 teaspoons of dried coriander
2 teaspoons of black pepper
Half of a white onion
5 garlic cloves

              Instructions:

Cut the chicken breast into thin slices.

Put some olive oil into a deep pan and heat it. Add the chopped onion and the garlic cloves and stir them until they get golden brown.

Add the sliced chicken breast, then the grated tomatoes and finally the mexican beans.
Continue stirring for 10 minutes.
Then add the chili powder, dried coriander and black pepper.

In a mixing bowl, mix the jalapeno, sliced olives and mixed corn.

Place the chips on a baking tray and pour that mixture on it. Cover them all with your cheddar cheese.

Cook it in a pre-heated (220C) oven for 10 minutes.

                                                                                        Enjoy!

Beef Stew

                     Ingredients:

500 grams of beef, cut into bite size pieces
1 tablespoon of all purpose Flour
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 onion, cut into bite size pieces
2 big potatoes, peeled and cut into bite size pieces
1/2 cup of red wine
1 big carrot, peeled and cut into bite size pieces
1 celery, cut into bite size pieces
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
2,5 cups of beef broth
1 dried bay leaf, dried or fresh
2 teaspoons of oregano
2 teaspoons of dried rosemary, minced
1/2 cup of Frozen but thawed baby peas
Salt and pepper to season

                 Instructions:

Add the oil to a large pot and preheat it over high heat until the oil is so hot that it starts to smoke a little. Add the beef and season with salt and pepper, cook it for about 5 to 7 minutes or until seared well on all sides. Remove from the pan onto a plate and set aside. 

To the same pan with add the onions, carrots, potatoes, garlic, and celery, season with salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes or until the veggies develop some color. Add the flour and stir well, continue to stir wile cooking the flour for about 2 minutes. Add the wine and using a wooden spoon, scrape the pan to lift off all those browned bits. 

Add the tomato paste and stir well, add the beef broth, the bay leaf and the thyme and rosemary and bring the mixture up to a boil. Add the browned meat back in and reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for about 2 ½ hours checking on it periodically. 

After 1,5 hours, remove the lid and turn the heat up to medium high, taste for seasoning and adjust if you feel necessary, add the peas and cook for about 2 more minutes. 

We decided to serve it with plain buttered turkish style noodles and plain yogurt. 

                                         
                                                                                                      Bon appetit!

Green Chicken Kebabs and Baked Potatoes

               Ingredients for the green chicken kebabs:

100 ml (2 table spoons) natural yogurt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 teaspoons of grated fresh ginger, ground cumin and salt
1 green chili, deseeded and finely chopped
Large handful of chopped coriander
Small handful of chopped mint
4 tablespoons of lemon juice
6 pieces of boneless chicken thighs, cubed

               Ingredients for the baked potatoes:

2 medium sized potatoes, peeled and cut into thin rounds
3 teaspoons of red pepper flakes, dried basil, dried mint, dried rosemary, chili pepper powder
2 tablespoons of olive oil

               Instructions for the green chicken kebabs:

Place the yogurt, garlic, ginger, cumin, salt, ground coriander, chili, chopped herbs, and lemon juice in a blender or food processor and blend until fairly smooth.

Place the chicken in a mixing bowl, add the mixture on it.
When the mixture is all around the chicken cubes, thread the chicken pieces on to 8 bamboo skewers and place them on a large pan. Cook them for 15-20 minutes, turning frequently until they are cooked and browned.

             
                Instructions for the baked potatoes:

Place the potatoes onto a greaseproof paper and add the olive oil and the herbs on it
Mix them all until you season all the potato pieces fairly

Cook them in a pre-heated (200°C) oven for 30 minutes.
Enjoy your meal with a green salad.

                                      
                                                                                                 Bon Appetit!

        

Stuffed Peppers*

Ingredients:

        For the mixture to stuff the peppers:

125 grams minced meat (beef and lamb mixed)

3/4 cup of white rice

1 medium tomato (peeled and finely chopped)

1/4 cup vegetable oil

A small onion chopped

1 tea spoon of salt, paprika, black pepper, dried mint, sumac

        For the sauce:

1 table spoon of tomato and pepper paste

1 head of garlic (half of it minced)

Enough water to cover the peppers (around 4 cups)

1 table spoon of pomegranate sauce

2 tea spoons of salt

1 tea spoon of dried spoon and paprica

       And of course:

10/11 big green peppers

            

                                 Our very green peppers.

       

Instructions:

Cut the peppers' heads and take the seeds out but don't throw the heads away. 

For the mixture, add all the ingredients into a bowl and knead dough until you have a homogenous mixture

Stuff 2/3 of each pepper with the mixture, place them vertically into a deep pan and cover them with the heads of the peppers. 

            

                                                      The mixture

    

                

                                                 That's how you stuff the peppers.

For the sauce, place the garlic, tomato and pepper paste and 3-4 cups of hot water into a bowl and mix them.

           

Ready to be cooked with its delicious sauce.

After placing the stuffed peppers, pour the sauce on it and cook it around 50-60 minutes on the stove.

And finally on the table with salad and -of course- flowers.

                                                       Bon appetit!

                                                                      

                     

*Stuffed peppers means Biber Dolması in Turkish.