Eishta Or Kaymak Recipes

QUICKIE KAJMAK

Steps:

• Press feta cheese through a sieve until most of liquid has drained. Beat drained feta cheese, sour cream, and cream cheese in a bowl until smooth. Refrigerate until flavors blend, at least 30 minutes. Bring to room temperature before serving.

ASH RESHTEH (PERSIAN GREENS, BEAN AND NOODLE SOUP)

Steps:

• The night before you plan to cook, place chickpeas and white beans in a medium bowl. Add a generous pinch of salt and 2 cups water. Refrigerate overnight.
• The night before or just before cooking, prepare the herbs and greens: Wash spinach, cilantro and parsley, then use a salad spinner to dry very well. Run a knife through the spinach to cut leaves into large pieces. Trim the woody ends from cilantro, parsley and dill so that only leaves and tender stems remain. Roughly chop cilantro, parsley, dill, chives and mint leaves into pieces no larger than a quarter. If preparing ahead of time, wrap chopped greens and herbs in plastic bags and refrigerate overnight.
• To cook, set a large (at least 10-quart) Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat and add 4 tablespoons oil. When the oil shimmers, add the chopped onion and a generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring regularly, until the onion is tender and golden brown, 16 to 18 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
• Drain the beans and add to onion along with the lentils, turmeric and 1 teaspoon pepper. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring to coat the beans with oil and spices. Add the chopped spinach and herbs, along with stock or water, and stir to combine. Partly cover the pot with a lid and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer the soup for 1 hour, stirring regularly to prevent the greens from sticking and burning. If the soup remains very thick even after the greens have wilted, add another 1 to 2 cups water, as needed to thin it.
• Place 1 1/2 cups kashk in a medium bowl. Add a ladle or two of hot soup and whisk to dissolve, then add the mixture to the pot. The kashk will change the color of the soup from bright to milky green. Increase the heat and bring the soup to a boil, then break the noodles in half and add to the pot. Stir gently to mix in the noodles and keep them from sticking together, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until noodles are soft and chewy and the beans are completely tender, about 30 minutes.
• In the meantime, prepare the garnishes: Set a medium frying pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add 2 tablespoons oil. When the oil shimmers, add sliced onion and a generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring regularly, until golden brown and caramelized, 16 to 18 minutes. Spread cooked onion onto a paper towel-lined plate to absorb excess oil; let cool. Wipe out pan and return to medium heat. Add remaining 1/3 cup oil and warm gently over low heat, then stir in dried mint and remove from heat. Set mint oil aside and allow to steep for at least 5 minutes.
• Place remaining 1/2 cup kashk in a small bowl and thin out with a few tablespoons of water until it's the texture of thin yogurt. Set aside.
• The soup should be as thick as a hearty chili. If it's any thicker, thin it with water, 1/2 cup at a time. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt as needed, accounting for the fact that both the noodles and the kashk are well salted.
• To serve, ladle soup into individual bowls. Drizzle with reserved kashk and mint oil, then top with a sprinkling of golden onions.

EISH ES SERAY OR EKMEK KADAIF

Steps:

• Make a thick syrup. Bring to the boil the sugar and water with the lemon juice. Simmer 10 minutes, until it thickens. Stir in honey and rose water and simmer for 2 minutes longer. You can darken the syrup to a rich deep brown (the traditional color for this sweet) by melting 2 tablespoons sugar in another pan until it is a dark-brown caramel and stirring it into the hot syrup.
• Cut a slice about 3/4 inch thick horizontally right across the loaf of bread, and cut away the crust around it, so as to obtain one large soft crustless disk of bread. Dry out in a very low oven until slightly colored. Then moisten with water.
• Pour the syrup into a wide, shallow round pan which will hold the whole crustless disk of bread. Bring the syrup to the boil. Place the bread in it and simmer very gently, squashing and pressing it down with a wooden spoon to help it absorb the syrup better. Cook for about 3/4 hour, adding water if it becomes too sticky, until the bread is entirely soaked through and is soft, rich, and heavy.
• Turn out onto a round serving platter and allow to cool.
• Spread with a thick layer of cream or mascarpone and sprinkle, if you like, with chopped pistachios.
• Serve very small portions, as eish es seray is extremely rich and nobody can eat too much of it.
• Variations
• Individual slices of bread can be used in the same way as the single large disk of bread and simmered until soaked through and very soft.
• In the Lebanon the syrup is scented with the grated zest of an orange.

EISHTA OR KAYMAK

Steps:

• Stir 4 1/2 cups milk with 1 1/2 cups heavy cream. Pour into a wide, shallow dish. Use the widest available, to give the cream the greatest possible surface. Bring to the boil slowly and simmer gently over very low heat, so that it barely trembles, for about 1 1/2 hours. Turn off the heat and let stand for 7 hours before putting in the refrigerator. Chill overnight before using.A thick layer of cream will have formed on the surface of the milk. Using a sharp-pointed knife, detach the edges of the cream from the pan and transfer to a flat surface or a large plate. Cut into squares.
• Lay the cream flat on pastries or curl it into little rolls.
• Ordinary thick clotted cream, mascarpone, and whipped double cream are good enough substitutes.