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Friday, June 24, 2011

Turkish Spinach and Feta Cheese "Shortcut" Gozleme

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For Day2 of Blogging Marathon, I decided to make Gozleme and the cheese I used is "Feta". Gozleme is a Turkish pastry with savory vegetarian or meat filling all made from scratch!I find making the pastry from scratch a bit tedious so I follow this "shortcut method" that was taught to me in a Turkish Cooking Class -- Using Tortilla instead of the pastry. You should check out the YouTube Videos of Turkish women making this the authentic way. Its quite fascinating!

To make the Tortilla as soft as the hand-rolled pastry it will have to be "dipped in milk and oil mixture" and then cooked on the stove-top for a minute or two until the tops are slightly browned. While nothing can beat the taste of food made from scratch, the dipping in the "milk-oil mixture" step ensures that there isn't a remarkable difference in texture between the made-from-scratch and shortcut version.I have eaten both versions and love them both without bias! :) Note: With all the pepper and red pepper flakes this is NOT spicy, at-least not for me.Next time I will think of adding some hot peppers in the filling.

A few of my favorite Turkish Recipes: Muhellebi(Milk And Flour Pudding With Walnuts), Turkish "Spinach and feta cheese" Borek, Kisir(Turkish Tabbouleh)
Ingredients(For 2 Servings, 2 Tortillas per person):
  • 4 Whole Grain Tortilla (I used Santa Fe)
  • 5 Cups Packed Chopped Spinach
  • 8 Tbsp Greek Crumbled Feta Cheese (I used Athinos)
  • 3 Mini Peppers, de-seeded and finely chopped
  • 1 Large Yellow Onion, peeled and finely chopped
  • 2 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 Tsp Cumin Seeds
  • 1/2 Tsp Red Pepper Flakes
  • 4 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • More Oil for cooking the Tortilla
For Dipping the Tortilla(s):
  • 1/2 Cup Skimmed Milk
  • 1 Tsp Olive Oil
Procedure:
  • Wash the spinach in several changes of cold water. Completely dry it of moisture and finely chop it. Set aside.
  • In a saute pan, heat the olive oil and saute the chopped onions along with cumin seeds, red pepper flakes and cracked pepper.
  • Once the onions brown, add the chopped mini peppers and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the chopped spinach to the pan.
  • Wilt the spinach for a couple of minutes. Add salt as needed and more cracked pepper if needed.
  • Pour the milk and oil for dipping in a deep dish. Dip "one side" of the Tortilla in this milk-oil mixture.
  • Add the spinach filling to the other side of the tortilla. Sprinkle 2 tbsp of crumbled Feta Cheese on the top of the spinach mixture and fold it in half.
  • Transfer the tortilla to a non-stick skillet and drizzle a tsp of olive oil to the sides. Cook for a minute per side and transfer to serving plates.
  • Cut the Tortilla into wedges and the "shortcut" Gozleme is ready to be consumed.
Enjoy!
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33 comments:

  1. Delicious and yummy and healthy ,innovative recipe...

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  2. Dear Lassie
    Thats a awesome presentation! Nowadays we get Feta cheese in Noida even, too expensive, but I buy once in a while. WIll try this one in a Khasta paratha .
    Have a nice weekend

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  3. Wow..they are power packed with nutrition..I am grabbing some from sceen.Nice click too dear.

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  4. Woww feel like grabbing that incredible,cheesy and delicious gozleme, soooo tempting!

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  5. awesome..dish .. i would be lucky if i could these tortillas in chennai???

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  6. awesome..dish .. i would be lucky if i could these tortillas in chennai???

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  7. Looks colorful and delicious.. Love the recipe and presentation !!
    Yummy :)
    Indian Cuisine

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  8. Wow it's almost like a turkish quesadilla! How interesting!

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  9. thats awesome for summer snacks for kids Thxs for posting

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  10. wow, yum, just reading the recipe and looking at the pic is making me drool. I am going to bookmark it :)
    US Masala

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  11. I am loving these. I got an idea of quesedilla, will prepare it soon :)

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  12. A healthy one, N. I will definitely give it a try after getting the cheese. :)

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  13. Thanks for the wonderful tip - "To make the Tortilla as soft as the hand-rolled pastry it will have to be "dipped in milk and oil mixture" and then cooked on the stove-top for a minute or two until the tops are slightly browned."
    Nice presentation.

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  14. Mexican and Thai cuisine is so relatable with Indian palette...

    Cheers,
    Reshmi

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  15. Bookmarked and I'm going to make it for myself. My husband is not a big fan of feta, but I am--so this is going to be for ME. Waiting for your cheese creations..
    Enjoy your weekend.

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  16. My goodness, these look delicious and very healthy. A wonderful lunch or dinner. Blessings, Catherine

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  17. thats real easy. we dont get feta cheese here will try with other variety.

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  18. I love this! Love the tortilla method! I'm totally going to check out those Youtube videos! Thanks!

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  19. Goodness it looks wonderful..healthy and delicious,will surely give this a try..
    Thanks dear for the sweet comment and I am so excited and waiting for your post next week:)

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  20. I remember having these at a middle eastern restaurant. Looks similar to our parathas!

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  21. now this is something i would love to gobble up!

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  22. just divine CL !! Although I dont know if Tortillas would be available where I live.. Bookmarked !!

    Cheers
    Kalyani
    Event: One Pot Meals

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Thanks a bunch for your valuable comments and continued support.They are very much appreciated. Yes,like "Rain on Dry Land" and like "Oasis in Desert Sand".
XoXo, Cool Lassi(e)