Culinary Discovery: Istanbul Culinary Institute

This spot is definitely one of our favorite spots for a yummy dinner. It is not only a restaurant but actually an institute, a culinary institute where they have professional certificate programs. The young people who graduate from a culinary bachelor program in a university in Istanbul make their second stop here and take a course because this institute offers them fantastic experiences. They have these amazing big kitchens where the young chefs gain great skills. Besides the professional programs they have these workshops for people like us who love to cook as a hobby and look for some new Technic and recipes!

And of course the best thing about this institute is the fact that the young chef students share their experiences with us ! ! ! The institute has its own restaurant where only the students cook. As they gain more and more skills the menu gets better and better! Yeah the menu actually changes monthly according to the new discoveries and recipes of the young chefs.

We love the fact that the menu gets refreshed every month and as the chefs are seriously good the food is of course seriously tasty! We loved everything we tasted. Furthermore, the prices are totally fair enough for a place like this. You cannot find this quality of ingredients and cooking skills in a standard restaurant but the prices of the dishes are just the same like every other standard restaurant outside.

http://www.istanbulculinary.com.tr/

Best Breakfast Spot: CAFE PRIVATO

Today I want to share a discovery not in the Kitchen but in the city !
I love breakfasts... especially Turkish breakfasts are amazingly rich and delicious!
BUT having a good breakfast in İstanbul is actually not that easy because most of the cafes UNFORTUNATELY serve bad quality of breakfast ingredients and charge you a lot !
I tried so many cafes but I was never satisfied with their breakfast plates :( seriously!

BUT I FOUND IT ! After searching for a loong loong time I finally found a SUPER BREAKFAST SPOT in İstanbul. Here it comes : CAFE PRIVATO

This cafe is located in Galata , a tiny cozy place. It is decorated like an authentic home! When you go inside you actually do not feel like you are in a cafe! It is a super sweet cafe with super tasty authentic specialties. I am looking forward to try the food there too cause the menu really got my attention but it is so funny that ı exactly know that the second time I will go I will AGAIN order the BREAKFAST cause it was FANTASTIC !

They have this GELENEKSEL KOY KAHVALTISI which means 'traditional village breakfast' on their menu which costs something like 30 turkish Lira. I know, it is definitely not cheap! But honestly, it worths it ! You can understand that it is worth it even from the picture!

So many varieties that even the table is not big enough! They have great quality of cheese, olives, tomatoes but the most fantastic thing about the breakfast is what they cook: Scrambled eggs with Turkish salami (sucuk), homemade pancakes and some more Turkish pastry stuff which we generally call 'Börek'.Oh and lets not forget the homemade jams they make with fresh fruits. AND AND AND they serve a glass of fresh orange juice. The tea is unlimited ! ! !

Despite the price I definitely recommend this place if you are looking for the best Turkish breakfast in this town!
MORE INFO: http://privatocafe.com/
ON GOOGLE MAP: http://privatocafe.com/iletisim-2/

Here is the most EASY but also the MOST DELICIOUS DESSERT:

THE CLASSIC ITALIAN TIRAMISU with original italian MASCARPONE CHEESE

If you check some tiramisu recipes you will see that there are recipes which include not just mascarpone cheese,also some more ingredients such as heavy cream or some other cream cheese or milk. They probably taste nice too. BUT to make the very ORIGINAL TIRAMISU you should use ONLY BUT ONLY the mascarpone cheese! And here comes my tiramisu recipe which ı made with 500 gr of Italian Mascarpone:

To make this delicious dessert the ingredients are just a few things:

500 gr Mascarpone cheese
6 eggs
150 gr sugar
300 gr italian ladyfingers(savoiardi)
2-3 cups of black coffee (I used filter coffee-way better then these ready nescafes!)
cocoa powder

It is actually really surprising that you can create a fascinating dessert with just a few ingredients. And PLUS WHAT TO DO is soooo SIMPLE:JUST SIX STEPS AND ITS READY:

1.Whisk the egg yolks with sugarin a large bowl
2.Add the Mascarpone cheese and whisk until smooth(You'd better use an electric mixer)
3.Beat the egg whites(a lot!-be patient!-until they look like a kind of foam) Add this into the other egg-sugar mixture
4.Make the coffee: Wait until its not too hot! Soak the lady fingers and line them on the bottom of a baking dish
5. Spread the half of the mascarpone mixture on the lady fingers
6.Begin with the second layer! Do the same: Dip ladyfinders in coffee,line and spread with other half of mascarpone

Cover the tiramisu with plastic wrap and refrigrate for at least 2 hours to 12 hours
BEFORE SERVING: SPRINKLE WITH COCOA POWDER

Kitchen Discovery: Baked Eggplant Sticks!

Here is a super quick and tasty appetizer recipe:

BAKED EGGPLANT STICKS served with a quick MARINARA SAUCE

All you need is:

1-2 eggplants
a little bit olive oil
salt and pepper for seasoning
2-3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 large egg white

For the marinara sauce:
2 cups crushed tomatoes (you can use 2-3 fresh tomatoes and blend them in a food processor)
2-3 cloves garlic (smashed)
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt,pepper to season
1 tablespoon tomato paste (gives a great taste and color)
chopped fresh basil or dried basil
It is not necessary but you can also add one onion

All you need to do:

Preheat the oven. Line baking sheets on a baking tray-so that the eggplants don't stick on the tray!
Cut ends off the eggplant. Slice eggplant in half, then into 1/4 inch thick slices. Cut each slice into 1/4 inch strips. Now you have your finger shaped eggplants. Don't forget to put the eggplant sticks into a bowl full with cold water and some salt and let them wait about 7-8 minutes. Drain them with paper towel and put them this time in another bowl, season with olive oil, salt and pepper. Set aside.
In another bowl combine breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese.
Dip the eggplant sticks into egg whites, then into the breadcrumbs. Place the sticks on the baking sheets. Sprinkle a little bit more olive oil on the sticks and bake for about 10 minutes. Turn over and bake an additional 10 minutes.

That is how easy it is ! A great appetizer which is delicious and totally healthy as you don't fry them but bake.

BUT you definitely need your marinara sauce to dip these yummy sticks. And this is how you make your marinara sauce:
In a medium pot heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until golden, being careful not to burn. I also added one cup of chopped onions. Add crushed tomatoes, salt and pepper,tomato paste. Stir and reduce heat to low. Cover and let simmer about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add fresh basil. I did not have fresh basil so I added 3 tablespoons of dried basil in the very last minute and then removed from heat.

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LET'S GET STARTED AGAIN !

I know , it has been AGAIN ages since I wrote my last post :(( BUT it was such a difficult year for both me and Lara , as we were trying to graduate from our high schools and struggling with our last finals ! All that exams, stress, university applications... After all we still made some discoveries but could not find time to share them .

BUT NOW IT IS TIME AGAIN ! It is time to discover, to drink, to cook, to eat, to enjoy and to APPRECIATE all these. And of course TO SHARE.
This time we will be writing even more than before. I will be here in Istanbul studying in the state conservatory of Istanbul University but my dear friend LARA LEFT ME AGAIN => This time she left me for EUROPE ! She will be studying in Toulouse in France.
But you already know that the distance does not play any role in our friendship ;) The fact that Lara was going to USA two years ago as an AFS student was the reason we started all this blog thing.

Soo, I would like to start with a discovery I made the last day ALL BY MYSELF because Lara is already gone.....

I went to this wonderful roof bar in Beyoglu and enjoyed a glass of Italian white wine together with the amazing sunset view of the Bosphorus :  NUTERAS

This place is in Pera which is a district right behind Asmalımescid. When you start walking in İstiklal Street , starting from Tünel towards Taksim, after about 3-4 minutes you will see this arcade called ODAKULE on your left side. There is this clothes shop called 'Collezione' right in front of it. So pass through this arcade and you are directly in Pera.

Go to Nuteras right after 6.30 and you will immediately find a nice seat at the roof bar. My pick was whine but of course you can also have a beer or you can try one of their great cocktails.

GREAT MUSIC+AN UNFORGETTABLE SUNSET VIEW+A GLASS OF WINE=Only about 15 to 25 Lira.  To enjoy all these costed me only 23 Turkish lira. I think it was a PERFECT DEAL for a peaceful evening.

Meşrutiyet Caddesi No.67, Tepebaşı, Beyoğlu

Here is the link : http://nupera.com.tr/restoran/nuteras

For more info+photos: https://tr.foursquare.com/v/nuteras/4c00234237850f479fcc973f