Oklava

With influences from the Mediterranean, Southern Europe and the Middle East, Turkish-Cypriot food offers incredible flavor combinations unique to its region. Oklava: Recipes from a Turkish-Cypriot Kitchen by Selin Kiazim celebrates the culinary delights of this area in a way no cookbook has done before. This chef pushes traditional boundaries to bring her cuisine to the contemporary London restuarant scene. 

Selin Kiazim developed her love of cooking at an early age. She completed her Professional Chef’s Diploma at Westminster Kingsway College in 2008 before starting work with acclaimed chefs and top restaurants. In 2015, Selin set up her restaurant OKLAVA in Shoreditch, London, and her food and menu takes inspiration from her Turkish Cypriot heritage. The restaurant is focused around communal eating and encouraging conversations about food by sharing dishes between diners. She is inspired by flavours from travels, from friends and from fellow chefs.

Oklava translates simply as ‘rolling pin’. This word conjures up memories of the author’s Turkish-Cypriot grandmother: a rolling pin was never far from her hands, which meant a delicious meal was imminent. The same can be said for this book. These sensational recipes will take you on a journey from home-cooked meals and summers spent in North Cyprus to an exciting interpretation of modern Turkish-Cypriot cooking in London.

Bring the Oklava experience into your home with Turkish delights such as Pistachio crusted banana & tahini French toast with orange blossom syrup & smoked streaky bacon; Crispy pomegranate glazed lamb breast with yoghurt; Chilli-roast cauliflower; and Chocolate, prune & cardamom delice. The photography is beautiful and brings the vibrant and fresh flavors of Turkish cuisine to life. 

Special thanks to Interlink for providing us with a recipe to share with our members and for providing two copies of this book in our giveaway below. For your information, the Kindle version of this title is currently on sale at Amazon

Cyprus potato salad with romaine lettuce, herbs, scallions, lemon & olive oil
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Serves 6-8

  • 8 Cyprus potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled
  • 4 leaves Romaine lettuce, shredded
  • 5 scallions, thinly sliced
  • Small bunch of flat lead parsley, chopped (a little stalk is good)
  • Small bunch of cilantro, chopped, with stalks
  • Small bunch of mint, leaves only, shredded
  • Freshly squeezed juice of 2 lemons
  • Scant ½ cup (100 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
  • Flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Put the whole potatoes into a large pan of cold salted water. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Cook until just tender-about 30 minutes, depending on size. Once cooked, drain and leave to cool. Peel the potatoes and cut them into ¾ in (2 cm) cubes. Mix all the ingredients together and season with salt and pepper.

Recipe from Oklava© 2017 Selin Kiazim

 

The publisher is offering two copies of this book to EYB Members in the US. One of the entry options is to answer the following question in the comments section of this blog post.

Which recipe in the index would you try first?

Please note that you must be logged into the Rafflecopter contest before posting or your entry won’t be counted. For more information on this process, please see our step-by-step help post. Be sure to check your spam filters to receive our email notifications. Prizes can take up to 6 weeks to arrive from the publishers. If you are not already a Member, you can join at no cost. The contest ends at midnight on January 1st, 2019.

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60 Comments

  • sarahawker  on  October 31, 2018

    Chicken & garlic köfte pide with chili yogurt, smoked salsa, walnuts & feta

  • tennyogirl  on  October 31, 2018

    Romaine lettuce salad with candied walnuts & feta dressing

  • ravensfan  on  October 31, 2018

    Circassian chicken

  • lauriesk  on  October 31, 2018

    Zucchini, feta & mint fritters

  • riley  on  October 31, 2018

    Feta, garlic and poppyseed crisps

  • lkgrover  on  October 31, 2018

    Pistachio-crusted cod with preserved lemon butter sauce.

  • inflytur  on  October 31, 2018

    Vegetable dolmas. I fell in love with these at the Cypriot restaurant in Philadelphia, Kanella.

  • verorenee  on  October 31, 2018

    Feta, garlic & poppyseed crisps sound delish

  • jmay42066  on  October 31, 2018

    Chili-roasted cauliflower

  • mpdeb98  on  October 31, 2018

    Trilece cake

  • amandabeck  on  October 31, 2018

    Pilavuna!

    I lived in Cyprus for three years– so many wonderful memories, and a great food culture reflected in many of these recipes!

  • kmn4  on  November 1, 2018

    At-home ayran – I was in Turkey for almost a month back in 2010 and fell in love with it! So refreshing in the heat…

  • Ledlund  on  November 1, 2018

    Turkish Bloody Mary!

  • lean1  on  November 1, 2018

    Menemen

  • lgroom  on  November 1, 2018

    Vegetable dolmas

  • Dannausc  on  November 2, 2018

    Pilavuna

  • t.t  on  November 2, 2018

    Spiced beef & bulgur köftes

  • elsid22  on  November 3, 2018

    Chili-garlic glazed chicken with za'atar crumbs

  • MiMi60  on  November 4, 2018

    Barbecued corn with sumac, garlic, lemon butter & za'atar

  • Siegal  on  November 4, 2018

    I want to make spinach and feta Burek

  • sgrant101185  on  November 4, 2018

    I want to make the Zucchini, feta & mint fritters, it sounds so delish!

  • eatysmith  on  November 4, 2018

    Cyprus potato salad with romaine lettuce, herbs, scallions, lemon & olive oil!

  • EmilyR  on  November 4, 2018

    Pistachio-crusted cod with preserved lemon butter sauce

  • thecharlah  on  November 5, 2018

    Black olive, hellim, onion & mint loaf

  • ccav  on  November 6, 2018

    Spiced chickpeas, buttered cabbage, poached duck egg & tulum cheese

  • LaurenE  on  November 8, 2018

    Chili-roasted cauliflower

  • Laura1  on  November 9, 2018

    vegetable dolmas

  • rchesser  on  November 9, 2018

    The Chili-garlic glazed chicken with za'atar crumbs.

  • Lkitchings  on  November 9, 2018

    Menemen (page 40)

  • dbielick  on  November 13, 2018

    Salad of baharat-roast duck with feta, sumac onions, poached figs & salted walnuts

  • choppergirl  on  November 13, 2018

    Tomato-pomegranate salad with parsley

  • michalow  on  November 18, 2018

    chili-roasted cauliflower

  • Uhmandanicole  on  November 20, 2018

    Brown shrimp kaygana with preserved lemon Hollandaise, çemen crumbs, chives & sheep's cheese

  • Jenamarie  on  November 23, 2018

    They all sound delicious! But Pistachio-crusted cod with preserved lemon butter sauce would be my first.

  • Lizzybee  on  December 1, 2018

    Pistachio-crusted cod with preserved lemon butter sauce

  • Puguppy  on  December 1, 2018

    Pistachio crusted cod

  • marsmomma  on  December 3, 2018

    I would love to try the Baharat-spiced bread.

  • fbrunetti  on  December 5, 2018

    Baharat & chili-spiced fish böreks

  • RickPearson54  on  December 7, 2018

    Menemen

  • kitchen_chick  on  December 8, 2018

    Artichoke & beef dolma. I love artichokes!

  • Joy001  on  December 8, 2018

    Romaine lettuce salad with candied walnuts & feta dressing sounds delicious!!

  • gpolkes  on  December 8, 2018

    Cheese, scallion, baharat & garlic böreks! Familiar flavors but with a twist, sounds great

  • Jbird  on  December 8, 2018

    Want to try the smoked bacon and medjool date butter…sounds really cool and different.

  • PeavineBlues  on  December 9, 2018

    Blood orange caramel

  • Shana.  on  December 9, 2018

    Spinach and feta burek

  • mrscahughes  on  December 9, 2018

    romaine, feta and walnut salad and just about everything else!

  • orchidlady01  on  December 11, 2018

    Seafood vermicelli with mussels, hake & shrimp

  • Karla123  on  December 11, 2018

    Romaine lettuce salad with candied walnuts and feta dressing…lovely combination of ingredients.

  • parnassus  on  December 12, 2018

    pistachio crusted banananana and tahini French toast with that orange bacon what what

  • dtremit  on  December 15, 2018

    Beef meatballs in sour cherry sauce!

  • rosalee  on  December 16, 2018

    I'd love to try the Cypriot pastirma, broken eggs, spicy tomato & bread sauce with tomato-pomegranate salsa & yogurt!

  • Sfgordon  on  December 17, 2018

    I'd try the salad of baharat-roast duck with feta, sumac onions, poached figs & salted walnuts

  • jason0389  on  December 18, 2018

    Circassian chicken

  • starzine  on  December 22, 2018

    Feta, garlic & poppyseed crisps.

  • kitchenclimbers  on  December 26, 2018

    blood orange caramel

  • percussion03  on  December 28, 2018

    Chili-roasted cauliflower

  • amyz218  on  January 1, 2019

    Pistachio-crusted cod with preserved lemon butter sauce

  • TrishaCP  on  January 1, 2019

    The barbecued corn

  • banba1  on  January 1, 2019

    Circassian chicken

  • hillsboroks  on  January 1, 2019

    Turkish apple tea sounds intriguing.

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