Istanbul

Ah, thank goodness for hot elma cay - or apple tea. Just looking at this golden goblet brings back fond memories of my childhood and holidays in Turkey. It's worth noting the Turks don't actually drink the stuff very much and instead opt for a strong black tea - it's more of a hit with the tourists - but that didn't stop me last weekend in Istanbul. I'm a hardened espresso drinker after meals but this made an equally nice digestif and was a good pick-me-up after traipsing round the Aya Sofya and Blue Mosque.

Rachel and I arrived into Sultanahmet, the heart of the Old City, feeling rather weary. We had underestimated the journey from the Sabiha Gokcen airport and the Friday night traffic bottlenecks. So we dumped our bags, briefly admired the view on our roof terrace and headed out for a bite to eat.

My main was rather disappointing so I'll fast forward to firin sutlac, a Turkish rice pudding which was a bit better. This was served chilled which was unexpected but the spiced honeyed flavour was comforting all the same - the ice-cream garnish wasn't necessary and had a hint of caramel which detracted from the rest of the dish.

Day two was spent cramming in the sights and boy, were there a lot of them. Fortunately, Istanbul has plenty of Turkish delights to provide sustenance. I had to take a quick snap of the sesame covered simits (bread rings) which were reminiscent of New York bagels with similar vendors which could be found on pretty much every street corner.

Like Marrakech, Istanbul is famed for its sweet treats - when in Rome...

This impressive airbag was lavas bread which was served with lashings of hayari (yoghurt with roasted aubergine and garlic) at my favourite Anatolian restaurant in the City - Hamdi et Lokantasi. This eatery overlooks Galata and the Golden Horn waters and while perhaps a little institutional (you take a lift up from the baklava shop entrance), the food is too good to argue with. And the hungry locals seemed to agree.

Hamdi's speciality was definitely rustic Meze- or Turkish tapas. This odd looking specimen was so delicious I ordered two - it was icli kofte- meatball rolled in bulgur wheat and deep fried.

The restaurant was a stone's throw from the intoxicating Spice Bazaar - my must see of the trip even for the non-foodies out there.

I headed to no. 14 - Pinar for my lokum (Turkish delight). There, the jewelled jellies come in every shape and size imaginable - sausages of cranberry, squares filled with walnuts, pistachio and rosewater. Be clear about what you want as my 'helper' packed almost 15 quids' worth into a box for my mother - though she hasn't complained - and I'm not surprised, they really are very good.

I'm not a big fan of Turkish delight as it conjures up Cadbury's soapy pink goo but I took in a small box of rose lokum to work for my friend Elinor and ended up scoffing most of it myself!

Another stall well worth checking out is no. 2 - Erzincanlilar. This deli is jam-packed with plump olives, Beyaz peynir (white goat's cheese) and the biggest cabinet of honeycomb I've ever laid eyes on. I bought a slab home to mix in with some Greek yoghurt and I must say it's been a bit disappointing so I'm trying to find a a nice recipe to make it work - answers on a postcard please...

I bought some apple tea leaves to try and replicate the drink at home as well as some of the dissolvable granules for ease at work. Though it's quicker, the instant stuff is verging on hot apple juice so I must boil up a real pot this weekend.

For those who haven't been already, I hope these snapshots will encourage you to visit Istanbul. The mosques are hauntingly beautiful, the atmosphere, electric and the food, refreshingly honest. And if nothing else, they serve up a darn good brew.

Innocent "5-for-5" cafe; Shoreditch

By good fortune my friend Hugh got hold of two tickets for a meal at innocent's 5-for-5 pop-up cafe last week in the heart of Shoreditch.

Diners pay £5 to get their 5-a-day of fruit and veg in one sitting, courtesy of celebrity chef Gizzi Erskine. I'd been invited to the launch but wasn't able to make it so was excited to see whether the food was any good or whether it was just another PR stunt.

I arrived to find a queue winding round the corner of The Tramshed, an old electricity generating station for the Shoreditch Tram system - always a good sign. I waited for Hugh to arrive and made friends with my neigbour in the queue - we'd both heard portion sizes were small - less good- though not surprising really given it was a fiver for two courses so I kept an open mind.

Inside, the venue was spectacular with an almost never-ending ceiling, fairly lights spiralling round runner bean vines and mini herb gardens lining the sides. It was BOYB for a £1.50 corkage paid upfront which was very reasonable and we set about choosing our courses with a glass of pinot noir in hand and the swing band tinkering in the background.


It's no secret I'm a pudding girl through and through but neither the baked rice pudding with spiced fruit compote or poached pear and quince ice cream were being served that day so we went for starters and mains.

I chose well with the beetroot and horseradish pierogi with soured cream, paprika, and pickled red cabbage. No, I had no idea what pierogi were either - despite scoffing some a week or so back at Bermondsey Street market- but they were delicious. They're a traditionally Polish dish - boiled/baked/fried dumplings of dough, almost like tortellini. Hugh's black bean hummus on sourdough toast with avocado, tomato, and seeds was very flavoursome but a little tough.

Mains were more difficult to choose between so we agreed to pick differently. I had root vegetable bhaji with grilled paneer and sag dahl and Hugh had tikka marinated halloumi with sweet potato gobi curry. Paneer is an odd thing, like cottage-cheese, a bit nothingy but it countered the spicy dahl really nicely. The recipe looks pretty straightforward so I may try my hand at it for a winter warmer over the coming months. Halloumi is one of my favourite cheeses, I love the squeak when you chew it but I wasn't expecting Hugh's to be deep fried and the dish looked a little sad.


With its short shelf-life, quirky venue choice and innocent'sbrand success, it's unsuprising this event was a hit. But while the piggyback on the "pop-up" craze may be an effective piece of marketing, with food this good who cares?!