Beyhan’s childhood Seders involved a long table with the elders at the head and the children at the end. Moving up to the head of the table means remembering those whose seats she now fills.
A Long Table of Memories
About the Author
Beyhan is the third daughter of a Jewish mother (Beti) and Muslim father (Zeki) who immigrated with the family to the US in 1958. Her book, The Ottoman Turk and the Pretty Jewish Girl, is an outstanding Turkish/Sephardic cookbook as well as a fascinating memoir that captures a precious legacy—the “old world” family recipes which have been passed down from one generation of cooks to the next in an unbroken chain.
Albondigas de Pirasa
For Turkish Jews, the Passover Seder meal always includes a variety of succulent vegetable and beef patties, which are prepared days ahead and are then warmed up in the oven during the Seder. My favorite of these Sephardic dishes is a seasoned ground beef and leek mixture formed into patties and fried—hence the name Albondigas…
Turkish Tarama a Treat Anytime
Growing up, Beyhan’s breakfasts of salty caviar spread on toast weren’t like the other kids, but with a recipe from a favorite aunt, this dish tastes like family and good memories.
Tarama (Salty Carp Roe Spread)
Being immigrants from Turkey, it was common in my family to have fish or salty meats with toast and tea in the morning. Perhaps our caviar wasn’t the expensive Russian kind, but we often spread salty tarama, or “carp roe,” on our toast instead of jelly. In the 1970’s ready-made taramosalata became available in markets. It tastes okay.…
Turkish Dessert Ends Holiday Meal Sweetly
[THANKSGIVUKKAH] Butternut squash is more than a gourd that shows up on produce stands every autumn. Beyhan was a teenager before she discovered that her mother made a favorite dessert from this surprise ingredient.
Turkish Butternut Squash Dessert
I always thought that the beautiful delight my mother served every Thanksgiving was some exotic pumpkin or sweet potato drenched in syrup and topped with chopped nuts. Who knew this glorious deep-orange delicacy, with the tender texture and hint of lemon was actually a weirdly-shaped winter vegetable!?! Butternut Squash Dessert is served room temperature and…
