Cihangir'de saklanıvermiş: KAHVE6

 Cihangir'in ara sokaklarına adeta saklanmıs bir cafe daha! Sokagın icine girip de aczık ilerlemeden bu mekanı görmek neredeyse imkansız! Böyle saklı köşede kalması iyi olmuş ama, gelen gecen görmüyor burayı, sadece bileni gidiyor ;) icerideki müsteri kalitesi de bir baska güzel oluyor tabii. Mekan kücük bir oda misali, birkac masa dısında bir de soyle iyicene yayılalım diye genis koltuklar var. İster masa basında lezzetli yemeklerinden tadın, ister yayılın söyle koltuga saatlerce, cayınızı kahvenizi yudumlayın. Her iki secenek icin de mükemmel burası. Ve arkada meger bizi yine bir süpriz bekliyormus: minik şirin bir bahce, ortasındaki süs havuzu ile de adeta büyüleyici! Yemeklere gelince, bir kere dısarıda kahvaltı etmek isterseniz direk buraya yönelebilirsiniz! Kocaman kahvaltı tabagından tut, daha mütevazi kahvaltılıklara kadar bir sürü secenek var. Bir de böyle "can simidi" gibi tatlı tatlı adları var! Ay su bazlama ekmeginde yaptıkları tostun tadı da hala damagımda! Gel gelelim önemli olan kahvaltı tabagının zenginliginden cok malzemelerin kalitesinde! İste tam bu noktada bu mekan on numara bes yıldız! Gidip gidip duruyorum ama hala cözemedim, mekanın bir yerlerle bir baglantısı var, otantik secenekler menude cok, kahvaltıda verdikleri acukadan diyorum ki bir cerkezlik var, sonra menude bazlama ekmekleriyle, falafel köfteleriyle karsılasıyorum. Ardından ana yemeklerde hünkar begendi bir yandan, tabule salatası öbür yandan. Vallahi kafam iyicene karıstı! Ama tek anladıgım o ki, bu malzemeler özel bir yerlerden geliyor, e ziyadesiyle saydıgım tüm bu lezzetlerin tadı sahane! Gerisi bahane! Haydi arkadaslar Kahve6ya , ister öglen bir salataya, ister nefis bir kahvaltıya.

Kitchen Discovery: PASTA with CARAMELIZED ONIONS

It is time to share some kitchen discoveries again!
Here comes an easy pasta recipe which I actually took from a film called 'Chef' . By the way I definitely recommend this film which is totally amusing BUT BE CAREFUL: YOU WILL GET CRAZY HUNGRY while you watch the film as you constantly see crazy delicious looking dishes!
And this recipe I am gonna share is a dish I saw in one of the scenes , where the man cooked a yummy pasta dish: Actually the only thing I saw was that he caramelized onions! And then he added these on the pasta and added some fresh parsley on top. That was it! But this totally took my mind , cause I adore CARAMELIZED ONIONS. And I just said to myself : Caramelized onions with pasta?? Why haven't I never thought of it?! I should try to do this as soon as possible!
So yesterday I gave it a try and as I did not have any recipe I just followed what I saw in the film and added a little bit my own creativity.
So here is the Pasta Dish I created by getting inspired from the scene:
PASTA WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS AND FRESH PARSLEY

Actually all you need to do is to slice TWO LARGE ONIONS and start to cook them on high heat with some OLIVE OIL. After a few minutes , as they become soft , (just before they start to get burned) take the pan and put it on the lowest heat and let the onions get slowly cooked on low heat. This should take at least 20-25 minutes. The more the onions rest on low heat , the more delicious they get: They get perfectly caramelized!
BUT at this point I prefered to add some seasonings: I put some pepper, salt, just a little bit sugar, garlic powder and finally two tablespoons of BALSAMIC VINEGAR which gives a perfect taste to the onions. And then I put the onions on low heat.
While your onions get caramelized all you have to do is to chop the fresh parsley and cook the pasta, drain, set aside. Besides, save a half cup of the water in which you cooked the pasta.
When both the pasta and onions seem ready just combine them, BUT DO NOT FORGET TO ADD SOME BUTTER AND PARMESAN CHEESE. (If you want you can also add some cream and turn it into a cream-sauce but I just wanted that the onions become the star of the dish- so did not add extra cream) Finally add a little bit of the the pasta water ( I did this so that the pasta does not taste too dry) and the fresh parsley. Stir the pasta for a last time until everthing gets combined well.
BON APPETIT!

Döner, İskender nereye kadar? Biraz da yurdumun sebzelerinden söz edelim: HELVETIA

Türk Yemeği dendi mi illa da Döner, Kebap, İskender demiyoruz ki kardeşim!
Tencerelerde pişen güzelim sebze yemeklerimiz, zeytinyaglılarımız, bakliyatlarımızı unutmak olur mu hiç? Alın benden size bu yemekleri bulabileceginiz muhtesem bir mekan:

HELVETIA

 

Sıcacık leziz mi leziz ev yemeklerinin mükemmel adresi burası ! Bir de fiyatlar acayip uygun olunca müdavimi oluyor tabi insan. Minnacık mutfaklarında hepsi birbirinden lezzetli türk yemekleri yapıyorlar bir de güzel vitrine diziyorlar ki sormayın! Hepsinde gözüm kalıyor, her gittigimde hangisini sececegime karar veremiyorum. Bir yandan tadı damagımda kalmıs olan yemekler bir defa daha beni cagırıyor, bir yandan yeni lezzetler sec beni diyor! Ay karar vermek cok zor! Burada klasik şu: Vitrinden sec begen al, ister bir tanesiyle doldur tabagını ister beş.

Çeşit sayısını ne sen sor ne ben anlatayım! İçeride piştikçe pişiyor. Hepsi de bir ayrı güzel gözüküyor,kokuyor ve aynı gözüktükleri gibi de güzel tadıyor. Sen seciyorsun, onlar tabagını dolduruyor, ısıtıyor ve masana sıcacık getiriyor. Sen de afiyetle yiyorsun , alnına kadar doyuyorsun, bir de komik bir para ödüyorsun: 13-15 lira civarı. Bu kadar saglıklı, taze yemegi yemek, bu kadar secenek, bu paraya İstanbul'da vallahi saka gibi. Ben tabii ki her defasında beş çeşit secip dolduruyorum tabagımı. Bir cok sebzesini denemis bulunmaktayım ve bir tane bile begenmedigim olmadı. Burada ne yediysem acayip lezzetliydi. Hem karnımın nefis doydugundan hem de oh ne saglıklı yedim diyebildigimden dolayı her defasında yüzümde kocaman bir gülümsemeyle ayrıldıgım mekan burası. Ne sececeginiz tamamen o anki keyfinize, zevkinize baglı, hicbiri sizi hayal kırıklıgına ugratmaz ama ben yine de tabagınızdan TAVUK GRATEN ve FIRINDA MAKARNA yı eksik etmeyin derim!



Mekan nerede?
Cok kolay! İstiklalin bir ucu olan Tünelde: Alın arkanıza Tüneli, yani nostaljik finiküleri, direk Asmalımescid'in girişini göreceksiniz zaten. Asmalımescid'in icine daldıktan sonra dümdüz yürüyor, House Cafeyi geciyorsunuz: Helvetia hemen karsınızda. Kösede kalan minik sevimli restoran!

Turkish Food is not only about ISKENDER !!!

If you ever come to Istanbul , of course you should not be leaving this city without trying our authentic traditional cuisine! But I should tell you this: Turkish cuisine is not only about KEBAP and ISKENDER ! It is much more ! People always think about heavy food when it comes to Turkish Food . But actually we have lots and lots of traditional dishes which are totally HEALTHY such as our crock pot dishes we make with lots of vegetables and legumes.
And here is a great spot where you can find an enormous selection of these kind of fresh, healthy and EXTREMELY DELICIOUS turkish dishes: HELVETIA

 In this tiny restaurant the tradition sounds like this: They cook in their tiny kitchen, put the dishes on a big table, you go inside , check out these yummy dishes on the table which all look and smell and taste yummy and pick whatever you like. You can either full your plate with just one dish or you can pick five different dishes ( which I always prefer ) . There are lots of different dishes , some are vegetarian some include meat or chicken. Just pick what you would like to try: You won't get dissappointed about any of them! I have been to these place dozens of times and I loved every dish I tried. Because they cook with love , they cook with fresh ingredients. And the best thing about this place: It is so CHEAP !
You get a full plate with so healthy and delicious dishes and they charge you only about 13-15 Turkish Lira for this big plate !

You pay a little + you get totally full + you are totally happy about the fact that you tasted so delicious food = Isn't it just a dream??
So when you are in Istanbul , PLEASE make a stop in this place and give a chance to our authentic vegetable and crock pot dishes !
And I remind you again : Of course you have to try our famous DÖNER and ISKENDER and whatever but if you like vegetables , you will be once again amazed by our vegetable dishes which are only cooked in a way that is only found in turkish cuisine.

WHERE IS THIS PLACE??
It is located in this famous districh called Asmalımescid which is located on Tünel. Tünel is the second end of the Istiklal Street. ( The fisrt end is the Taksim Square )
Here is the map:

Cute Cafe with its SECRET GARDEN !

Before starting to post my travel guide, 
Here is another tiny spot for a small coffee break while hanging around in the city: CAFE LUMIERE

This place is one of my new discoveries and since I found this place it became one of my favorite spots for a little break- maybe a cup of coffee !

I generally prefer just to order a drink such as tea or coffee in such small cozy cafes but I just let you know: They have some pretty nice dishes too - I can tell this from what I saw. The dishes on the other tables looked pretty nice- especially I liked the salads. And when it comes to price: The dishes and the drinks are definitely cheaper than most of the restaurants and cafes around.

A generous cup of FRESH FILTER COFFEE: 5 Lira
That is fair enough!

What I loved about this place???
Definitely it's tiny sweet garden at the back!
From its front you can never understand that this tiny cafe has a cute garden at it's back which is definitely bigger than the cafe itself!

So I guess I should recommend you this place when the weather is nice :/
But actually I am gonna go and have a look in winter too and FIND OUT what they do with their cute garden in the winter ! Maybee they have already found a solution!

FAST BUT NOT 'FAST FOOD': Cin Bufe

Here I got a super spot for you where you can get your stomach full really quick with some yummyy food. NO WORRIES! IT is definitely not a fast food spot but they serve EXTREMELY FAST !

But I recommend you this place only if you are a fan of Chinese food like I do : CIN BUFE
This spot is a super tiny restaurant in Beyoglu,Taksim. So easy to get there:
Is is at this famous İstiklal Street.
When you walk towards Taksim Square there is this Galatasaray Highschool right at the middle of the street.
Pass the highschool and turn into the second street on your right ! And there it is !

CIN BUFE with their yummy Chinese dishes! Prices are standard, but definitely CHEAPER than any other Chinese restaurant because the Chinese restaurants in İstanbul are usually so luxurious and expensive ( like eating chinese food is something luxurious! )

Service: EXTREMELY FAST
Atmosphere: very little but totally CUTE
Dishes: YUMMMMMYYYYYY

Here are our favorite dishes:
Appetizers: CITIR CIN MANTISI (dumplings) or CIN BOREGI or ORDEK DURUM (wrap with duck)
Main dishes: SEBZELI PILAV or MANTARLI BADEMLI PILAV (rice) or SEBZELI NOODLE (vegetable noodle) or TATLI EKSI SOSLU TAVUK or MANCURYA USULU TAVUK or ZENCEFIL SOSLU CITIR TAVUK (tavuk means chicken)

Here is their internet site for more info: http://www.cinbufe.com/#/home

OUR TIP: DO NOT ORDER ONLY ONE MAIN MEAL PER PERSON. IT IS MUCH BETTER IF YOU ORDER A FEW DISHES AND SHARE THEM. We think it is the best way to eat chinese food and YOU WILL TASTE LOTS OF STUFF+GET FULL+PAY LESS PER PERSON

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

THE 3-Ingredients PASTA SAUCE: GARLIC-PARSLEY-OLIVE OIL/ Üc Malzemeli Nefis Makarna Sosu

I want to invite some friends to home and prepare them a nice cozzy meal?But you dont want to spend hours in the kitchen? Then you should make this Spaghetti which will only take about ten minutes and is even easier than a basic tomato sauce.you will be surprised that a 10 minutes pasta sauce tastes soo delicious !


Ingredients:3 cups parsley-finely chopped
Olive oil
5-6 garlic cloves-finely chopped
1 package of pasta (Spaghetti)For seasoning: Salt,pepper
All you need to do is:
Saute your garlic cloves in some olive oil over medium-low heat (so that they dont burn) 
Add the chopped parsley-stir a little bit
After 2-3 minutes add some olive oil more= THATS WHAT GIVES THE TASTE,so dont hesitate to add olive oil
The sauce should be a little liquid(oily): dont let it simmer
Add your pasta which you cooked and drained

And your Pasta with Parsley and Garlic is ready!! Thats how easy it is.Serve it in nice big plates and open a red wine, enjoy your dinner with your friends:)Bikac arkadası eve davet edip ufak ve mütevazi ama aynı zamanda lezzetli bir aksam yemegi mi yapmak istiyosunuz? Ama bir yandan da mutfakta büyük işlere kalkışmak istemiyo musunuz?Bu makarna sosu sizi mutfakta saatler gecirmekten kurtarıcak! Cunku hazırlaması sadece 10 dakika sürüyor! Klasik bir domates sosundan bile daha kolay.Zaten muhtemelen domates sosundan bıkmışınızdır!On dakikalık bir sosun bu kadar lezzetli olmasına sasırıcaksınız!








Gereken Malzemeler sadece: Zeytinyagı1 paket makarna (Spaghetti)3-4 avuc ince kıyılmıs maydanoz4-5 dis ince kıyılmıs sarımsakYapmanız gereken tek şey: geniş bir tavada veya tencerede zeytinyagında sarımsakları soteleyin ama dikkat edin yanmasınlar! Sarımsaklar sadece aromalarını yaga vermeli ancak yanmamalılar. Sonra dogradıgınız bolca maydanozu ekleyip karıstırın, tuz biber ve isterseniz kırmızı pul biber ekleyin. Sosun biraz sıvımsı olması lazım, mutlaka tekrar zeytinyagı ekleyin.zeytinyagı eklemekten cekinmeyin cünkü bu sosu güzel yapan bu! Zaten baska hicbir malzeme eklemeye gerek yok, sosunuz hazır. Haslayıp süzdügünüz makarnanızı ekleyip bir güzel karıştırın ve büyük makarna tabaklarında parmesan peyniri rendesi ile servis edin! Yanına da bir kırmızı sarap actınız mı inanılmaz basit ama orijinal ve leziz bu makarnanın tadını cıkarmaya hazırsınız!

Kitchen Discoveries: Chickpea Salad

  



















We made this yummy chickpea salad as a side dish for our baked salmon.
Its FRESH, HEALTHY AND DELICIOUS! Oh, and very EASY

Somonumuzun yanına yaptığımız nohut salatamızı paylaşalım simdi de:)
TAZE, SAGLIKLI VE NEFİS! He bir de COK KOLAY






CHICKPEA SALAD with some extra red kidney beans:

All you need:
1 can chickpea
1 can red kidney beans
1 or 2 tomatoes: chopped
1 or 2 bell pepper ( red-green-yellow-doesnt matter!)
1 or 2 cucumber: chopped
1 big onion ( red or white-your choice) - finely chopped
a little bit parsley
if you like it, a little bit dill
olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, fresh lemon juice= for the dressing!









Meksika fasulyesi de ekleyiverdigimiz NOHUT SALATASI:
İhtiyacınız olan malzemeler:
1 konserve meksika fasulyesi
1 konserve haslanmıs nohut
1 veya iki domates- küp küp dogranmıs
1 buyuk sogan ( beyaz ya da kırmızı size kalmış)
1 veya 2 salatalık
1 veya 2 dolmalık biber (sarı-yeşil-kırmızı hic farketmez! istediginiz rengi katın:))
iki avuc maydanoz - ince kıyılmıs
severseniz eger, dereotu da yakısır!
sos icin temel malzemelerimiz: limon,zeytinyagı,nar eksisi veya balsamic sirke, tuz ve karabiber










After you chop all these ingredients in to very tiny pieces(you dont have to chop chickpeas and beans of course!), all you need to do is just mix them in a large salad bowl! And add the dressing!

Bütün malzemeleri incecik dogradıktan sonra (nohut ve fasulyeyi dogramaya gerek yok tabiki) yapmanız gereken tek sey hepsini büyük bir salata canagında bir güzel karıstırmak ve sosunu eklemek!

You can add some ingredients depending on your taste: Maybe some feta cheese? Or some olives? Finely chopped garlic? If you wanna have a colourful salad you should add all colours of bell peppers like we did! So that how it looks is as good as how it tastes :)

Damak zevkinize göre salatanızı renklendirebilirsiniz: Örnegin biraz ufalanmıs peynir hic fena olmaz: feta,beyaz peynir veya keci mesela... Sonra siyah veya yeşil zeytin de eklenebilir! Cok ince kıyılmıs sarımsak da deneyebilirsiniz, malum sarımsak nereye girse yakısıyo. Ha bir de biberlerin her tür renginden eklemek salataya harika bir görüntü vermenizi saglayabilir :) Böylece salatanızın görüntüsüne de tadı gibi bayılıcaksınız!

A Vegeterian Classic in İstanbul

Mutfak maceralarıma biraz ara verip İstanbul Keşiflerime geri dönüş yapmak istiyorum!Bugün ise sizlerle İstanbul'un harika bir VEJETARYEN restoranını paylaşıcam: ZENCEFİL
Burası doğal ürünlerle yapılan sağlıklı ve bir o kadar da lezzetli yemekleriyle-özellikle sebzeleri ile- ünlü! Vejeteryan beslenme tarzını benimseyenlerin uğrak mekanı. Ancak menüsüne et sevenler de unutulmamış ve menüye leziz tavuklu yemekler de konulmuş. Dolayısıyla sadece vejetaryen arkadaşlarımıza değil, sebze seven herkese son derece öneriyorum!





I want to take a break from my kitchen adventures and come back to my İstanbul Discoveries! And today ı would like to share with you a great VEGETERIAN restaurant in this city: ZENCEFİL ( which actually means ginger in english ) Here is a famous place with its delicious and healthy dishes made with organic products. This restaurant is often visited by almost every vegeterian BUT the place also thought about meat lovers and added some yummy dishes made with chicken to its menu! Thats why ı recommend this restaurant to every one - who especially loves vegetables of course - !



Dışarıda güzel bir ziyafet çekmek ancak aynı zamanda sağlıklı olmasını istiyorsanız Zencefil bence en doğru adres. Üstelik sebze derken bildiğimiz klasik sebze yemeklerinden bahsetmiyorum. Sebzeli lazanya, pırasalı tavuk, ıspanaklı kiş gibi enfes ve son derece orijinal lezzetlere sahip burası. Hele Zencefil'in kendine has karışık salatası dışarıda yiyebileceğiniz salataların en iyilerinden olduğuna eminim.

If you want to have a nice dinner/lunch outside but also stay healthy, Zencefil is the perfect adress ! Besides ı don't mention these classic vegetable dishes which you can easily cook at home! I talk about some really different and original and of course yummyyy recipes such as : Vegetable lasagna, Chicken with leek, Spinach or Vegetable Quiche... But the very best dish they have is their special salad! So if you love salad, the one this restaurant has is probably one of the greatest you can eat outside !


Zencefili neden seviyorum?
1.Leziz yemekleri
2.Sıcak dekorasyonu
3.Çalan harika müzikleri
4. Sakin müşterileri ve
5.Yemekten evvel getirdikleri zencefilli tereyağı ve mısır ekmekleri için !

Why do ı like Zencefil?
Because of
1. Delicious dishes they have
2. Great Decoration
3. Great Music
4. Calm Customers
5. AND their great Ginger Butter with Homemade Bread they serve before your food




Kesinlikle Yemelisiniz :
Pırasalı Tavuk
Fırın Mücver
Karışık Salata
Ispanaklı Kiş
Sebzeli Lazanya

You should definitely try:
Chicken with Leek
Zencefil's Salad
Vegetable Lasagna
Spinach Quiche
Baked Zucchini Patty










Nerede?
Taksim'de İstiklal Caddesinin hemen başında bulunan Fransız Konsolosluğu'nun yanından dönerek kendinizi hemen bir arka sokağa atıyorsunuz:
Kurabiye Sokak No8


Where is this place?

Just in the center Taksim ! At the beginning of the İstiklal Street you will see the French consulate building. Right after you pass the consulate take the street on your right side which will bring you to the back street: Kurabiye Street. Turn left and walk straight , you will see the place on your right