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SIMIT BREAD



    Turkish breakfast was served to the family on the weekend as I was so tempted to try making this Simit bread which was always at the back of my mind since I visited Istanbul few years back. You will see those street vendors standing or rolling up their carts through the streets or bazaars to sell this amazing looking bread which is their livelihood.


    Simit is a twisted circular bread, typically dunked in molasses and encrusted with sesame seeds or, less commonly, poppy, flax or sunflower seeds. This is found across the cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire, and the Middle East. Its also known as Gevrek, Bokeh, or Koulouri. The size of the bread, its crunch, chewiness, and other characteristics vary slightly by region. They are typically served in the breakfast with lebnah, salad, fresh fruit jams, honey, olives etc.


    I made the classical version of this bread, encrusted with toasted sesame seeds. Served the Simit with the Turkish lebnah which was dabbed with chilli infused burnt butter. Alongside that was the shakshuka made by my daughter. Man the whole combo was delicious!


    Saffron, rose petal and camomile infused tea was also served in the Turkish tea glasses. Bought these beautiful hour glass shaped tea cups(very typical to Turkey) back in Sydney from a Turkish grocery cum crockery shop. Had them with me over 2 decades, still pretty intact after number of transits and so many years of traveling to different continents and countries, but as soon as I finished shooting for the spread, one of the saucers broke. It was heart breaking! 😔


    Follow the step by step recipe below and try making these interesting looking delicious breads at home which is pretty simple and easy to make. Bake your own bread at home during these interesting times. Stay home, stay safe!



    YIELDS: 10

    PREP TIME: 20 minutes

    BAKE TIME: 25 minutes

    PASSIVE TIME: 1 hour


    INGREDIENTS


    • 2 cups warm water

    • 1 tbsp sugar

    • 1 tbsp instant yeast

    • 5 cups all purpose flour plus 2 tbsp extra for dusting and kneading

    • 2 tsp salt

    • 1/4 cup olive oil

    • 250g/ 1 cup sesame seeds, lightly toasted

    • 3 tbsp pomegranate molasses

    • 2/3 cup water, extra



    METHOD


    1. In a stand mixer bowl, fitted with the hook attachment, pour 1 cup of warm water, add sugar and yeast, let it rest for 10 minutes until the yeast becomes foamy.

    2. Add olive oil and the second cup of warm water to the foamy yeast water and add 2 cups of flour. On a medium low speed, mix the dough until no dry bits of flour are visible. Let it stand for 20 minutes.

    3. Now gradually add rest of the flour in increments along with salt until a dough ball is formed wrapped around the hook. If required, add bit more flour to the dough if your dough is bit loose and sticky.

    4. Remove it on a lightly floured surface, knead it for 5 minutes to smoothen it. Tucking the seam side down, place the dough in a lightly oiled large bowl. Cover with damp kitchen towel or lightly oiled cling film. Leave it for an hour at a warm place in kitchen and let it rise double in size.

    5. Once the dough is fermented, transfer it to the lightly floured surface, divide the dough in 10 equal parts. Cover them with a kitchen towel to prevent them from drying.

    6. Take a piece of dough, drop it on a non-floured surface. Now roll it back and forth with your hands and make a long thin rope, about 2 feet long. Bend it in half from the center and hold the two loose ends together in one hand and twist the rope with your other hand to make the twisted rope. Now join the two ends together, slightly overlapping each other and make a circle/ring. To secure the loose ends, hold the dough ring from the top with one hand and with the other hand roll it back and forth to make it tight and secured.

    7. Repeat step 6 with rest of the dough pieces. Cover with kitchen towel and while working on the other pieces of dough.

    8. In a large bowl, mix pomegranate molasses and water to prepare the bath for the bread.

    9. Now dunk the bread in molasses water bath and dip them in toasted sesame seeds on both sides. Place it on the baking tray. Repeat the step for the other breads and let it prove for 30 minutes.

    10. Bake the bread in preheated oven at 180° C for 25-30 minutes.



    COOK'S NOTES:


    • Serve these with chilli infused burnt butter lebnah, olives, jams, honey and shakshuka for a scrumptious Turkish breakfast.

    • Make the healthier version of the same bread by replacing the all purpose flour with the wholemeal flour.


    AVOCADO, COTTAGE CHEESE AND CHERRY TOMATO TOAST


      Waking up to a healthy breakfast is all you need to start your day to boost that energy for the whole day. Wholemeal brown bread layered with cottage cheese and topped with sliced avocado, grilled cherry tomatoes and arugula. This is one of my favorite breakfasts which I eat like 2 to 3 times a week.


      If you love your eggs in breakfast like I do, top it with poached eggs or sunny side up. I made this a vegetarian version, and for those who are vegan, skip the cottage cheese and layer it with hummus or just some mashed avocado...top it with sautéed garlic mushrooms or grilled asparagus...there’s loads of toppings you can use to make it more delicious and interesting to have a variety in your everyday breakfast toast.

      SERVES: 2

      PREP TIME: 10 minutes

      COOKING TIME: 5 minutes



      INGREDIENTS

      • 1 large hass avocado, ripe but firm

      • 8 tbsp low fat cottage cheese

      • 10-12 cherry tomatoes

      • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

      • 1/2 cup baby arugula leaves, loosely packed, washed and dried

      • 4 wholemeal bread slices

      • Salt and pepper for seasoning



      METHOD

      1. In a small pan, warm extra virgin olive oil, drop cherry tomatoes, and grill for 5 minutes on a low heat until soft and slightly pulpy. Season them with salt and pepper.

      2. Lightly brush the bread slices with olive oil and toast them in a griddle pan on both sides. Spread 2 tbsp cottage cheese on top of each toast and season a little with salt and pepper.

      3. Cut the avocado in half, deseed and remove flesh from the skin with the help of a large table spoon. Be careful not to bruise the flesh. Slice it thinly with a sharp knife.

      4. Place a quarter of an avocado on each of the cottage cheese toasts, and top it with few cherry tomatoes and arugula leaves.

      5. If need be, season the avocado with a dash of salt and pepper.



      COOK'S NOTES:

      • Sprinkle a dash of lime or lemon zest on the cottage cheese will totally accentuate the flavours of the toast.

      • You can also serve with poached or sunny side egg on top.



      MILAGAI PODI (GUNPOWDER MASALA)



        Gunpowder (podi), as the name suggests is a fiery dry powder which is basically a blend of spices and lentils. It’s a popular southern Indian food condiment typically served as side dish with idli as a dipping condiment along with ghee or sesame oil.


        This Milagai podi is a traditional recipe especially from the state of Tamilnadu. Each state of south India has their own variations of podi recipe. Podi is used as a substitute for the traditional chutneys served for breakfast with idli, dosa, appam or even uttapam.


        Every household in the south of India has their own podi recipe, but I’m sharing the one which I learnt from a friend from Tamilnadu. This particular recipe which I'm sharing is a traditional one, but sometimes I make different variations by adding flax seeds or peanuts.


        To see one of the ways I use the Gunpowder masala in a dish, click here!

        YIELDS: 200g approx.

        PREP TIME: 5 minutes

        COOKING TIME: 12 minutes

        KEEP TIME: 1 month



        INGREDIENTS

        • 1/2 cup urad dal

        • 1/4cup chana dal

        • 10-12 dried red chillies

        • 3 stalks curry leaves

        • 1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)

        • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

        • 1 1/2 tbsp sesame seeds

        • 3 tsp oil (vegetable oil, sesame oil or coconut oil)

        • 1/2 tsp salt or to taste



        METHOD

        1. In a pan, dry roast the sesame seeds on medium low heat until lightly golden. Put it aside.

        2. In the same pan, warm 1 tsp of oil, add chillies and curry leaves, roast them on medium low heat for about 3 minutes, until the curry leaves are crispy. Put them aside to cool.

        3. In the same pan again, add rest of the oil, warm up slightly and add chana dal and urad dal, toast them for 3 minutes on medium low heat.

        4. Now add asafoetida, turmeric and salt and roast them for 3 more minutes on medium low heat until its toasted and turns golden brown.

        5. Transfer all the prepared ingredients in a blender and blitz to a coarse powder.



        COOK'S NOTES:

        • If you don't like too much heat in the podi powder, substitute the normal red chilies with Kashmiri red chillies which are mild in taste.

        • You can make days in advance and preserve it in an airtight jar for up to a month.

        • It’s bit dry on the throat on its own so it must be eaten with ghee (clarified butter) or sesame oil.

        • Serve these with steamed idlis, uttapam or appams. I even sprinkle on my toast with cottage cheese and avocado, it tastes delightfully delicious! Or learn the recipe of my Cocktail Idli Skewers that I made with this Podi by clicking here!


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