Dishes 3

Coban salatasi - Shepherd's salad - Turkey

3 large tomatoes, peeled, de-seeded and chopped
3 mild green chilies
4 spring onions
4 springs of parsley
2 small cucumbers
8 black olives and 4 chopped radishes to garnish

For the dressing
125 ml (4 fl oz) olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
Pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the tomatoes in a salad bowl. Finely chop the chilies, spring onions and parsley, and add to the bowl.

Peel and chop the cucumbers and mix in with the other ingredients in the bowl.

Prepare the dressing by mixing together the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar and salt and pepper, then pour over the salad. Garnish with the olives and radishes.
Kebbeh maklieh - Fried kibbeh balls - Lebanon
For the stuffing
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, peeled and finely chopped
200 g (7 oz) lean lamb, coarsely minced
1 cinnamon stick
Pinch of salt and white pepper
1 tsp sumac

For the meat shells
500 g (1 lb 2 oz) extra lean lamb from the leg, cubed
250 g (9 oz) brown burghul (cracked wheat)
Pinch of salt
½ tsp paprika
8 Tbsp iced water
Corn oil, for frying

Start by making the stuffing. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onions until golden brown. Add the minced lamb and cinnamon stick. Cook until the juices have evaporated and the meat begins to brown. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and set aside. Discard the cinnamon stick and mix in the sumac.

To prepare the meat shells, divide the lamb into batches and process to a paste-like consistency using a food processor, then transfer to a large bowl. Add in the burghul, salt and paprika. Knead to a paste with moistened hands.

Process the mixture again in four batches, adding two tablespoons of iced water to each batch, until the paste turns smooth. Combine in a bowl and knead again for about 1 minute, with moistened hands.

Divide the meat mixture in 20 egg-sized portions and roll into balls. Make a hold in each ball with your finger, then work around the hole, pressing gently until you have a thin, round shell. Fill each shell with one tablespoon of the stuffing, then gently close up the hole, again with moistened hands, and place on a tray. Larger quantities of kibbeh may be prepared in advance and frozen for later use.

Heat the corn oil in a pan and deep-fry the kibbeh balls in batches until completely browned. Life out with a slotted spoon and drain on absorbent paper. Serve immediately.
Uskumru salatasi - Mackerel salad - Turkey

For the salad
½ head crisp lettuce
Handful of fresh rocket leaves
6 springs of dill, chopped
2 mackerel
350 ml (12 fl oz) sunflower oil
1 Tbsp olive oil for frying
1 tsp pine nuts
1 large tomato, peeled, de-seeded and sliced
1 Tbsp currants, soaked


For the dressing

125 ml (4 fl oz) olive oil
Juice of ½ lemon
½ tsp mustard
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1 Tbsp chicken stock
Pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper

Start by preparing the salad. Rinse the lettuce and rocket and shred. Rinse the dill and remove the stalks.

Gut the mackerel, remove the gills and rinse thoroughly. Pat dry. Fry the mackerel in the sunflower oil and allow to cool before flaking.

Heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the pine nuts until golden brown.

Arrange the lettuce and rocket in a dome in the centre of a serving bowl. Place the slices of fish and tomato around the center. Sprinkle the pine nuts, currants and chopped dill over the fish.

Prepare the dressing by mixing together the olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, vinegar, stock, salt and pepper, then drizzle over the salad.
Lose the Bitter Feelings
"Those who cannot work with their hearts achieve but a hollow, half-hearted success that breeds bitterness all around." ~ Abdul Kalam

You might be surprised to discover that not everything in my life has been successful, or happy, or as I expected. Yes, that's true. I've made bad decisions, said things that hurt another's feelings, lost money in ventures that did not succeed, had relationships that were not always happy. I've even had some bitter feelings.

Everyone has done this. If I had chosen to stay focused on the things in my life that did not work, where would I be today? When you get to the end of an experience that did not work, right there is the pivotal point for your life:

Am I going to pout and feel badly, or will I shake the dust off, learn from
my mistake, and take the next step forward?

It's natural have bitter feelings when things go wrong. We set our hopes and expectations high. We thought we knew just how things were going to work out, but somehow, someway, we took a wrong turn and they turned out just awful. We are embarrassed, angry, or disappointed when our expectations do not pan out. We indulge in feeling less-than. I have learned that it isn't wise to remain in that state of mind for very long or you'll develop a deep-seated habit which will be challenging to release.

There is a perspective that I've learned that may help you when this negative experience happens to you.

Look for the lesson learned.

Each situation comes with a lesson. You can learn from it, or you can develop bitter feelings. I learned from it and I was able to take different turns, make different decisions, and become successful instead of becoming bitter. I like to think of those "mistakes" as lesson learned and stepping stones that turn me in an even better direction. If you can permit those initial negative feelings to pass over the top of you, they will fade into nothingness and you will escape becoming bitter. Bitter people develop victim mentalities who are stuck in their inability to do anything wisely and well except to nurture more bitterness.

Here's what I'd recommend: if bitter feelings show up, allow yourself to feel it, and then discard it and look for the lesson learned. If you keep it and nurture it, nothing good can grow from such bitterness.

Goodness is your natural substance. This is why pain and bitterness feel so awful: they don't belong in there. It is wiser to acknowledge that it's there, and then let go of it so that you don't cut yourself off from all positive good with a hardened heart. When you let go of the bitterness, you open your heart, your life, to more enjoyment, blessing, fulfillment and success; you allow the natural light and love to massage your soul.
Letting go of the bitter feelings can involve forgiveness and forgetting. It's always wise to remember that no one but you is harmed by your sense of bitterness, even if it's directed at another, so why not let yourself heal and again celebrate the phenomenal life you deserve?
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