Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred.
Proverbs 15: 17
Food and its dependence on water and sunshine is something easy to see while travelling. Most countries seem to devote vast areas to growing food for the world. Some of the very best of this food is not for the locals but either for export or the tourists in their midst. 2023 has had its challenges with floods and droughts, but from what we have seen, places growing food have had their dams and green houses, rivers and carefully chosen fields.
Our Earth is getting warmer, but people are working very hard to provide food. My photographs have shown small gardens as well as large where insects find refuge and food.
It is now that I look at this food:
“The Dolma is a family of stuffed dishes associated with Ottoman cuisine, typically made with a filling of rice, minced meat, offal, sea fruit, or any combination of these inside a vegetable or a leaf wrapping.”
This is my plate of three. I don’t usually eat red meat, but all served meat in Turkiye doesn’t contain pork, so as I have taken it, I will eat it. It has a layer of melted cheese, and the meat and rice are succulent inside a tender green pepper. The aubergine/eggplant is vegetarian stuffed with rice, herbs, and seasoning. Recipes for stuffed eggplant have been found in Medieval Arabic cookbooks and, in Ancient Greek Cuisine, however the word dolma is of Turkish origin meaning something stuffed. ( I remember on a visit to Turkiye when my husband and I needed ‘time out‘ we often travelled in Turkish share taxis called dolmus so called for a similar reason.) The third dolma is a stuffed zucchini. Melt in the mouth moment the vegetable clearly only held with a very thin skin.
That was a plate to experience.
I have also read that finely chopped vegetables can be very tasty while taking a lot of energy and time to prepare. Here are some I saw and enjoyed.
Tomatoes, cucumber, cabbage ,
flat leafed parsley,
and white mild onion.
A dressing of olive oil and lemon juice.
Yoghurt is an important element in Turkish cuisine. The word we use in English is taken directly from Turkish. It serves as a delicious savoury drink and many textures from sweet to salty.
It is not without inspiration that I have left this country of Turkiye.
Back home, the garden held a surprise. Our fig tree has had a difficult time with the weather. The fruit was quite small and hard. However, in the week we were away, it had been sunnier. I picked these figs.
The one in the front split in my hands, and its stalk was hardly holding it. The two in the middle gently opened while those at the back were still closed with cracks. They were so beautiful. I sent it to a friend who said: ” Why not paint it?” So here it is.
A great fig should look like it is just about to burst its skin. When squeezed lightly it should give a little and not spring back. It must be almost unctiously sweet, soft, and wet.
Yotam Ottolenghi ( Born 1969 . He is an Israeli- born British chef, restaurateur, and food writer and the co-owner of seven delis and restaurants in London.)
Have a safe weekend and take care.
Sandy 🙂
Love the proverb! And Turkish food 😘
Ps and your painted figs.
Thank you Morag. I know you are a real artist so that is kind. I am having fun.
Oh wow thank you for the compliment. I am just a ‘creative’ hopefully also having fun, developing techniques. Keep having fun, you are an artist too, also developing. 😍
Both developing ! Great. There is so much to enjoy. 😍
Exactly 👏
Those figs😇yum! And just beautiful 👏Interesting about the Turkish dolma foods. Thanks for sharing Sandy
They were sweet. Yes, the history of food is really interesting. Thanks for your kind comment.
Delicious looking foods, Sandy. I love your fig painting! Now I’m hungry.
Ah, those figs were few but sweet. They prepare their food so well it was a treat. Thank you for liking what I did with the paint. It was fun.