Happy Returns!

So after Andrea's visit to the US, we decided that I should make my return to the Blog after a two year hiatus. Since my last posts, many things have changed for me: I returned to the US from Iraq/Egypt/England, married, started my family (not all in that order!) and settled into a much less exciting life, though still full of food, and adventures of a different sort. 

Going forward, my posts will probably be brief, likely written during the course of nap time, when I have peace and quiet to gather my thoughts (and cook!). However, expect to read about yummy food discoveries, restaurants, and family adventures with a toddler in tow. You can find regular updates on Instagram with the hashtag #MimiAkidi 

So now, shall we get to it then, eh?

Yesterday was Hallowe'en, and we were invited to a party with some neighbor-friends who have a son the same age as our Mimi. As any good party-goer, I came with food in tow, and prepared my go-to Asian-style slaw with Ginger peanut dressing. I use a few cheats, but this one is mostly adapted from Serious Eats. http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2013/01/asian-slaw-ginger-peanut-dressing-recipe.html

My shortcuts typically include pre-minced ginger and garlic, and pre-chopped cabbage from the grocery store. It'll save you at least 10 minutes!!! This time, I used ginger and garlic from our local farmers market, and pre chopped cabbage, and one extra pepper. The rest of the ingredients, I already had on hand. 

Here's the dressing ready to be whisked together. 

This is how I put the salad together. I think it makes a beautifully colorful presentation. I keep the salad and the dressing separated until it's ready to serve, and then pour over the top and let the flavors come together while at the party. 

This one is a winner, and I think you'll enjoy it too. What are your favorite party recipes?

Turkish Wine of the Week - Yanık Ülke 2013 Strabon

During my buying spree at Sensus they gifted me with a half bottle of Yanık Ülke 2013 Strabon which is a Boğazkere, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Merlot blend. It's like a personal bottle of wine! Well, who am I trying to kid? All bottles of wine, regardless of size, are personal sized for me!

The dark, dark, dense red color matched the hot, spicy, smokey nose to perfection. And wow it's got some legs.

What are "legs" anyway? When I first started drinking wine I always looked for them during the swirl stage thinking, erroneously, that they were an indication of quality. Legs are actually an indication of the amount of alcohol in a wine (lots and lots of legs) or with sweeter wines legs that flow more slowly and stickily down the inside of the glass. Considering the hotness in the nose it wasn't really a surprise that this wine had so many legs it could likely run faster than I can.

Although to be fair, just about anytime can run fast than I can.

On the palate the Strabon has some nice tannins, less acid than I expected given the hotness, and lingers well. Flavors of clove and tobacco possibly with some red fruits, however the fruit flavors didn't come through a whole lot for me so I'm not too confident on that note.

Since this was a gift on my way out of the shop I did not get a look at the price, but I'd probably drink it again. I can't say it was fantastic or outstanding but neither did I want to spit it out. 2.8 stars.

Turkish Wine of the Week - Gordias 2012 Boğazkere

I fell a little in love with Gordias wines previously after trying the Kalecik Karası and Narınce. Then one afternoon in Sensus Galata I found MORE. More Gordias wines! Including a Boğazkere (55TL) and the "throat burner" Turkish grape has long been a favorite.

I really let the anticipation on this one build and took some time to enjoy the deep, purply red color. Then on to the nose; what is that? Seriously it took me about 10 minutes to figure out what I was smelling. It was so familiar but at the same time utterly elusive-until it hit me; pine forests and leather.

The nose is replete with pine forest and leather with berry undertones. It was fascinating. Not in a, I couldn't stop inhaling long enough to drink way, but in a I said "This is fascinating" and smiled every time I inhaled.

There is a lot of leather in the mouth, nice medium tannins, and a long finish. At first it was a little acidy for me but it opened beautifully to bring up more leather, dark cherries, and chocolate.

Drinking this wine was a true shpadoinkel moment. It is beautiful. In a way every sip weirded me out a little because of the pine and sometimes overwhelming leather (frankly it was a little bit like being back at my dad's farm sitting in the tack barn which is surrounded by Christmas trees). I still really liked it though. I will definitely buy this again.

Especially since it pairs so beautifully with foods I like: tomatoes, salt, strong cheese, and the magical truffled almonds from Trader Joe's that my bestest friend and co-blogger Lauren sent me from the US. She sent me a 6 ounce bag last Christmas and I have managed to conserve them by eating only a few at a time. There are still a few left! However I no longer have to be so parsimonious because she bought me two more bags!

Turkish Wine of the Week - Chamlija 2014 Albarino

You wouldn't really know it based on the weather here in Istanbul but summer is over. I'd sad face if it weren't for the fact that Autumn is my favorite season. Unfortunately that leaves me with a few bottles of white still in the fridge! While I'll get around to those at some point, this makes the last wine of the Summer White Wines Chamlija's 2014 Albarino.

I was in La Cave a little white ago hoping to find another bottle of the Chamlija Viognier (I really liked that one!). I did not find the Viognier but I did find a treasure trove of other Chamlija wines, both white and red. I deeply love Spanish wines, almost without exception, so finding out that Chamlija makes an Albarino (traditionally a Spanish and Portuguese grape) was pretty exciting.

Dark golden color, the nose is very fragrant. For a dry wine, the nose is quite sweet and full of apricot and apples.

It's a bit on the edgy side with noticeable acid. I'm pretty sure this was oaked but, unlike the Mirkwood Suvla, I did not find the resultant flavors of the Chamlija to be so overwhelming. In fact it added a nuttiness that I thought was a nit touch. It has a pretty big body for a white wine with a palate filled with citrus, maybe a hint of orange blossom?, apricot, apple, and white flowers.

I really think I might like this one. I don't think there is yet a Spanish grape I've met and haven't liked and considering Albarino is similar to Gewurztraminer, Muscat and Riesling (all grapes I generally enjoy) I think I was set up to like this from Go!

The 95TL sticker price is a little dear but with the current exchange rate I'm more than willing to shore up the local economy by putting money into expanding my wine collection with some higher quality wines!

Turkish Wine of the Week - Yanık Ülke 2014 Muscat

I've been shopping a lot recently at Senus which is home to the largest collection of Yanık Ülke wines I've soon. In fact for a while it was the only place I saw any wines by this maker (they've been popping up now at La Cave as well).

Yanık Ülke, which hasn't been winning any awards from me yet, has the dubious honor of producing a Muscat that is both the most expensive (50TL) Muscat I've had here...and the worst.

If the wine were just the nose then it would have been a fair (although still not particularly good) wine. The aromas of apple, honey, and flowers were promising. Unfortunately the nose lied. Lied, lied, lied. While the aromas came through on the palate, if faintly, so too did its thinness and astringency. There was none of the beautiful orange blossom that made me fall in love with Turkish Muscats. It was also a great deal drier than I like a Muscat.

I like discovering new wines but this one was so not worth the price of admission. From now on when I want a Muscat I will stick to the Ancyra or Leonas.

On the good new side, I decided it was time to finally get a wine rack. In the past I only ever had one or two wines on hand at any one time. However with the support of a regular paycheck and the plummeting Lira I have built a fair collection. A collection which has been hanging out in boxes and bags on my floor. Not cool.

So following our aquarium trip, M and I went to Ikea where I got two of their nine-bottle racks. And then proceeded to swear and yell a lot when assembling them. You know, like you do with everything from Ikea that requires assembly. It was worth it though! Look how much better this is!

Now I just have to figure out an organizational structure for the eight-nine bottles in the refrigerator.