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Recently I was lucky enough to spend a full week in Istanbul. Seven days of culture, eating and hard work.

But even the most stressful day can be heaven if a Doner Kebab awaits you for lunch, or Köfte, or Shish Kebab. Yes, I discovered my meat-loving side on this trip.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been eating meat for about a year now (after 8 years of vegetarianism), but never in these proportions! In Turkey, I had meat for lunch and dinner! Thank gawd Turkish breakfast is not like a German one with sausage and cold meat – that would have just transformed me into a sausage!

The Blue Mosque

The Bridge that connects Europe to Asia

Turkish Coffee

On this trip I also learned to love the graininess of Turkish coffee and found out that wherever you go, you first sit down and have a cup of tea before you do business.

Even in the most rushed interview situations, these Turks always find a quiet moment to enjoy their çai.

Not a big tea drinker myself, I certainly had had more tea in this one week than in the entire year so far.

Like Turkish coffee, Turkish tea is quite an acquired taste: imagine a typical British cuppa, but without the milk and (in our terms) totally overbrewed, so that it tastes quite bitter – a bitterness that is countered by lots of sugar.

But it wasn’t all only about food. Overall, Turkish culture won me over and didn’t stop mesmerizing me.

From the busy bazaars to the quiet little backstreets, from the breathtaking Blue Mosque and awe-inspiring Hagia Sofia to steamy Hamams and tiny jewellers’ workshops behind the Grand Bazaar – everything was so interesting and  I am still digesting all these colourful impressions.

But back to my favourite subject: food.

In Istanbul food is everywhere! Cross any main square and you’ll see people selling corn on the cob, warm chestnuts or Turkish bagels.

On every corner you can order freshly-squeezed pomegranate juice.

And the stereotype is true: Doner Kebab is a very common sight.

What fascinated me most in Istanbul was the sweet stuff. Baklava on every corner, really, everywhere!

The same goes for the divine Turkish delight, or lokum. For those of you who have never had the pleasure of eating one of these delightful little sweet cubes, imagine it like a chewy candy made from starch and sugar and infused with flavours like rose, pistachio or lemon. I had the honour to be invited into a Turkish delight factory and was shown how they make that stuff. Really impressive.

But over to this post’s recipe, dedicated to my trip to Turkey. It’s a take on the traditional Baklava.

Normally Baklava doesn’t have any cinnamon in it, and mostly they just use one type of nuts – walnuts or pistachios. I decided to stir things up a little and make a “European version”, with cinnamon. Unfortunately the pistachios kind of lost their impact when competing with the cinnamon, so I’d suggest using only walnuts if you can’t find any pistachios since it won’t make a huge difference. Also, the orange blossom water and rose water lose their strong taste in combination with the cinnamon, which I actually enjoyed, since it’s more subtle.

I made a whole tray of these for Lawrence’s BBQ (which ended up more of a house-party due to the typical British rain!). Not sure if people actually like Baklava, I was most pleasantly surprised when my friends were throwing themselves on them. A couple of people even turned around and paid me the most flattering compliment: that these were the best Baklavas they’ve ever had. Thanks, that made my day, hell, even my week!

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Carrot Cake. What is more heavenly than the moist seductiveness of a creamy carrot cake?! Cinnamon, cream cheese and an unbeatable texture just make this cake the king of all baking creations for me. Yes, I love carrot cake. Badly.

I remember the first time I had carrot cake. I was pretty little, maybe around 10, and our American neighbour Rita handed us some home-baked cake over the fence that separated our gardens. I had a bite and was immediately transported into a totally new universe. I had never, ever tasted something like that before. Cinnamon, moist, juicy, creamy, and extremely sweet. Hell, I was instantly hooked.

But what followed were years and years of  disappointment. When, every time I had found a slice of carrot cake, that sad feeling would overcome me… It would normally come after taking the first bite and realizing that this cake was either too dry, too stodgy or simply didn’t taste of cinnamon at all. My search for that perfect carrot cake took me from Starbucks to small bakeries in Switzerland (where they call it Rübli Kuchen) and street markets in London, all in vain. That is until I discovered this recipe.

In fact, it was my friend Gordon who introduced me to the world’s best ever carrot cake. If it weren’t for him, I’d still be desperately eating carrot cake in every London coffee shop, sighing every time another disappointment would come my way. But for my last birthday, Gordon brought along this beauty, which he had made especially for me. A perfect carrot cake. So perfect it put a tear in my eye and instantly transported me back to that moment Rita handed me her slice of carrot cake. Heaven…

Now the funny thing about this cake is that it is no secret over-the-generations-handed-down family recipe. No. It’s in fact adapted from the recipe of a British sandwich franchise called Pret A Manger, which is actually owned by McDonalds!!! Ridiculous, ey?! It sounds like making coffee with a Starbucks recipe – pretty insulting to any proper foodie. But… I have to say… damn, it really is the ultimate carrot cake recipe. Amazing. Fantastic. Mindblowing. Unbeatable. What? I hear you say no! Well, go on and try it and tell me if you have a better one. I dare you! And if you do say you can top this one, I’ll happily try out your recipe. Promised. ★

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As some of you might know I’m not really a chocolate person. Hand me a desert menu and I’ll always pick something vanilla or creamy, like Panna Cotta, Ile Flottante or Crême Brulée.

However, there are those occasions that just call for chocolate. Like coming home after a long day, sitting down and just slipping into comfort mode. This for me involves watching a couple of episodes of Grey’s Anatomy (or Brothers and Sisters, or Private Practice) and eating chocolate. That’s comfort chocolate.

Then, there’s  give-me-some-energy chocolate, for those moments at work, where your attention span is just diminishing by the minute, and you just need something to give you that push to get through the rest of the day. A cup of coffee and a piece of chocolate normally sort that.

And then there are those festive moments of celebration that call for something fabulously decadent, like a chocolate cake. Dana’s birthday fell into that category. When I found out that Dana was having a big birthday party, my first thought was: “who’s making the cake?” As it turned out no one, they hadn’t planned on serving cake. What?! A birthday party without cake?! Now that’s a ridiculous thought. So I jumped in and offered my baking services.

What I didn’t know at that point was that I would end up baking 6 cakes for 60 people! Quite a challenge, but then, I’ve always been up for stretching my baking skills. After some lengthy thoughts on what to make, I decided to make my legendary Coconut Victoria Sponge (which had impressed the judges at the baking competition), the best ever Carrot Cake (recipe and photos soon), and, as piece de résistance, a decadent fudge Chocolate Cake.

This cake is really easy to make, but boy, is it impressive! And don’t be scared of it, it looks far more rich than it actually is… Ok, no, that’s a lie!!! It really is a truly decadent chocolate bomb!

So Dana, this one’s for you! Happy Birthday and all the best to you, you rock girl!

So, do you like Dana’s birthday cake? Do you? Yes? Well then go on and click the “like” button on the top right hand of this article. It’s a brilliant new feature that Lawrence has added to this blog. It will show how many people like any article, and refer back to your Facebook account. So if you “like” the chocolate cake, this will appear on your Facebook profile under recent activity. It’s very exciting. Now anyone who wants to give me the thumbs up can literally do so. Brilliant.

Right oh, it is time to dash off and finish packing my suitcase. Yes, now that the planes are up in the sky again, I’m happy to re-indulge in modern air-travel! I’m off to Istanbul, and I’m so excited! A whole week of Turkish culture, Turkish lifestyle and Turkish food. I’m going to eat my way through Kebab and Pide and Baklava oh and Turkish Delight and all those superb delicacies! So watch this space and expect loads of foodie pictures from my trip! It will be delightful, Turkish delightful, oh oui!!! ★

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