Since the blog was written postmortem, it'll read backwards. Don't ask!

Ula - Third of Three Turkey Micro Vacations


Ula is where we landed for cooking class. "Class" is really a misnomer. It was a four-day culinary immersion.

When approaching the property we drove through what seemed like a small bus depot. Where we heading?! Then we turned left and the gates opened. OMG, it was heavenly! The property was in our hosts' family for generations.

This is where the kitchen resides. That's right, this entire building was erected to house the kitchen.

One view, taken from the perspective of the sitting area and dining table, of the kitchen.

The patio just outside the kitchen where some of our meals were eaten.

On the day we arrived, we learned that up north in Istanbul they experienced the worst flooding in more than 80 years: 32 dead and 2 inches of rain for 10 straight hours. We later learned that our airport hotel, newly built three months ago, was virtually destroyed by the floods.

Following are some of the 20+ dishes that we prepared over the four days we spent in Ula. To say that everything revolved around food during our stay (uh, cooking classes, after all) is irrefutable.

The quality and abundance of ingredients was unbelievable. Most abundant:

• eggplant
• garlic
• olives
• olive oil
• bread
• butter
• wine
• salt
• nuts
• helva
• lamb
• Turkish coffee (eh!)
• Turkish Delight (eh!!!)

Of utmost quality:

• tomatoes
• cheese
• fresh figs
• cucumbers
• honey
• sour cherry preserves

And whenever we askeded Engin, our culinary queen, about some dish that we knew about, she ended up buying the ingredients and moments later we learning how to prepare it outright (fava mezze, eggplant puree).

In America, dinner is generally regarded as the biggest meal of the day. All three of our daily meals were rather like dinner -- equally large. Generally, our meals were comprised of 5-10 dishes each. And wine (and/or tea).

The moment we arrived, one of the kitchen helpers was kneading, rolling and baking fresh borek in the fireplace. The process was fabulous! The final dish we made was also borek -- this time the dough was store bought (from a little shop in Ula) but the filling contained about 15 delicious ingredients!

Engin Akin is considered the foremost Turkish food maven. She's written three native cookbooks and is frequently sought after to represent authentic Turkish cooking.

Cooking with Engin is always engaging. She doesn't simply give instructions like you might hear from Food Network chefs. Rather, she talks about what she learned from her mother, refers to foods in connection with long-held cultural tradition and how Turks take indigenous pride in their heritage more than egotistical Greeks, for instance.

She also conveyed countless techniques and philosophies: don't stir unless it's necessary (more often than not it's unnecessary), you just add a bit of water (as a solution to practically everthing), solids are frequently topped-off by a knuckles-worth of water before covered, flames are seemingly always on "high", olive oil is usually combined with butter, except some served-warm dishes (lesser amounts than Ina Garten but more than Ellie Krieger), and mezze is never referred to as salads -- even if it is a salad).

Cooking was NEVER terribly intense or serious. It was, however, quite intentional. Having said that, ingredients were sometimes spontaneous ("let's add some nuts"); their portions were virtually always by instinct; and the response to "is that enough?" was usually followed by "just a little more ... why not?!"

It never felt like we cooked exhaustively despite having learned about 20 dishes. It was fun-filled, spirited and pleasant. It wasn't a marathon.

Certain conventions, however, were intriguingly iconoclastic: small dull knives, pots withouts handles, and at least three different dishes constantly prepared simultaneously -- each at a different stage ("are the tomatoes for ... this, or that, or that?!)

Despite a burgeoning reputation for being the dependable garlic preparer (LOTS of garlic!), I did participate in other preparation too!

We were a great group! Engin, Robynne and Shirley were lovable and fun. And Cybil was a hoot too, when she wasn't on her mobile (she was rarely photographed; that's why she's not pictured)!

BTW, beware of Turks playing Scrabble!! Words you've never heard of are nonchalantly accepted as a national rite! And who ever heard of international Scrabble -- where every euphemism
from every language was accepted?!

Engin exuding charisma and living life! And, her favorite expression, sey (pronounced "shay") -- meaning "you know"/"whatyamacallit."

The small village of Ula ... about 2,000 people and sadly shrinking. Old men on old bicycles. Dilapidated abandoned houses. 10kph speed limits. Yet its people and the surroundings are as charming as it gets!

The dogs!!! Mother and son. "Should I immerse myself in cooking some more or play with the dogs?"

The choice was often obvious. Tina was manic (except when sleeping) but three month old Duffy was irresistable!

Told ya!