Turkish Mercimek Corbasi and Lavash

Turkish cuisine is known to be one of the greatest in the World, comparable to Italian, French and Chinese food. It becomes easy to understand why this is once the food of Turkey is sampled and explored. A diverse cuisine that offers something to every taste. It has its roots based in the Ottoman empire, which spread for more than three centuries over three very different continents. All the bounty that these continents afforded went to create the unique and delicious cuisine that Turkey is known for today. The food of Turkey is always fresh, made and eaten on the day from ingredients picked or caught as quickly as possible. When I imagine Turkish food I imagine piles of warm flatbreads, bunches of bright green herbs, spicy pulses with sweet tomatoes, the tenderest grilled, over hot coals, meat and gently grilled, fresh, crackling skinned fish, mingled with spices and all garnished with lemons, pickles and garlic, fresh yoghurt and cheese and of course the ubiquitous sweet tea, this is what Turkish cuisine is all about to me. Incredibly healthy, visually exciting and balancing food for the soul. 


The start of the day in many Turkish households traditionally begins with soup. This lentil soup is a real fast breaker and is called Mercimek Corbasi. Here a few simple ingredients are brought together with astounding results. This is ancient food, flavours that have been used in kitchens for centuries and the combinations remain unaltered. It is magnificent, silky, satisfying, and above all, simple to create.


As the weather turns here from Summer to Autumn and the sun glows low in the sky, it is the thought of making this soup that my mind turns. It is a perfect breakfast on an Autumn morning. It can be prepared the night before alongside the dough for the Lavash bread. Then upon rising a little rolling and seasoning of fresh bread and heating up of the soup is all that is required to fix a really great breakfast. The benefits to health and one's pocket are many with this soup, from the few ingredients required to create it and also the lack of oils used in the soup which makes this one of the healthiest breakfasts you could choose. I would like to point out that once you have tried this soup you will not just be eating it for breakfast, it is also great at lunchtime and dinnertime too.

Lavash
makes 2 flatbreads
64 gms wholemeal flour
140 gms strong white bread flour
1/2 tspn salt
1 generous tbspn runny honey
1/2 tspn dried yeast
1 tbspn olive oil
8 tbsps room temperature water


Grease a bowl with olive oil and set aside. In another bowl put honey, yeast and water and oil together and dissolve together. Sift in the flour and salt and stir together into a fairly light dough. Onto a floured surface knead the dough for a good ten minutes until glossy. Place in the oiled bowl, cover with a clean tea towel and leave in a warmish place for about an hour or so. During this time it will double in size. When this has happened punch it back down and knead for a further five minutes and divide into two balls. Prepare two baking sheets with baking parchment and heat your oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3. On a floured surface roll out your dough balls to about the thickness of pitta bread, it can be a little thinner in parts, this is what makes Lavash so delicious, the crunchy and the soft of it, the rip quality of this bread is something really great. Stretch it onto your baking tray, brush with a little olive oil and season with a little sprinkle of sesame seeds, a twist of sea salt and black pepper. Place in the middle of your oven for about twenty minutes or until golden brown, but not burnt.

Mercimek Corbasi
Makes 4 bowls
90 gms red lentil
1 medium white onion chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 clove garlic
1 tspn cumin
1 tspn paprika
sprinkle of chilli flakes if you wish
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tomatoes chopped
fresh mint chopped
1 litre fresh water
Sumac, fresh mint and lemon for garnishing




In a large saucepan place all the ingredients together. The tomatoes in my recipe were a handful of late comers on my tomato plants in the garden. You could use tomato puree if you have no tomatoes to hand.



Add the water to the pan and slowly bring to the boil on the heat, then simmer for  forty minutes. When it is soft and smells cooked, taste and check seasoning and then blend with a hand blender until silky smooth in texture. Sprinkle with a little tangy sumac and a squeeze of fresh lemon and some extra mint leaves.

'The lion is most handsome when looking for food.'
Jalal ad-din Rumi 1207-1273 Persian Sufi Poet