This might be a really short notice but I thought probably some of you can still take an advantage of this opportunity.
Some awesome handmade shops have gathered together to host a leapyear loop giveaway on Instagram.
It's quite simple, you can start by following my shop @chicnbliss and the giveaway post and then follow everyone in the loop. Instructions are in the description of the picture.
This competition is open only to US and Canadian residents. Ends tonight at 11:59 EST.
I am giving away this cute mini-weaving bunting. It's a new product and soon it will go to my Etsy shop: chicnbliss.etsy.com
Good luck!
P.S: We are eight shops, unfortunately we had no show from two shops in the loop. Eight shops, eight chances to win!
Every time I make it back to the blog is an achievement unlocked. *Gamers talking*
So many views on the first part of this post made me want to do this last part and give it all to you guys.
Just wondering, why readers don't leave comments? Maybe a thank you or maybe that wasn't good enough? anything? Lol
Lets talk more about food in Istanbul. Remember, most of the food comes from Ottoman Empire, fancy, isn't it?
Traditional Breakfast:
This is a traditional turkey breakfast! After I got my plate and apple tea, I was thinking, is there anything more? But this is it! Can you see any carbs? And it was a challenge to eat it all.
Fresh tomatoes, cucumber slices and olives.
Boiled egg
Selection of deli meat
Olive paste.
Butter.
Selection of fresh cheese.
And a nutty spread, I don't remember exactly what that was.
Make sure do order the Ayran - the yogurt drink or apple tea if you are a tea person.
Turkistan Diner is a great family style restaurant and looks like it is being operated as a family business. I loved the ambiance, it was little dark but comfortable. Like you are guests of some Turkish family who is very hospitable and cooks delicious food. We noticed the restaurant because of the miniature buildings silhouette they have on the outside of the restaurant.
I am a die heart fan of Mantu also called as Manti, dim sum or dumplings. This place have some amazing Mantu served with a red spicy sauce and yogurt sauce.
Marriage soup? Lol, not that marriage isn't a soup. But this is an actual soup with a yogurt base, chickpeas, potatoes and some herbs. In the winter it was soup for the soul :D
Hummus
Marriage Soup
Mantu / Manti / Dumplings
Have a look at their website for more information and more pictures!
Too bad I lost my backup and cannot share the picture of the most TRICKIEST ice-cream on the face of earth! If you have seen those videos on YouTube where Turkish Ice-cream vendors are trolling people then you know what I am talking about.
They are really skilled tricksters! But the ice-cream is something to bite into, yes its so chewy with a rich stretchy texture. I over heard on the internet that they use a herb called as Salep which makes it stretchy.
I got trolled at Taksim Square!
Taksim Square
Chicken in your pudding!
If you are like my husband and someone told you there is chicken in your pudding, you might never want to try it. And if you are like me, you would give it a try anyway!
Chicken Pudding
It is believed that this is one of the dessert from Ottoman empire. The chicken breast is cooked and then shredded into very fine pieces and then they use it in the pudding mixture. Honestly, if I didn't know I would have never guessed that the texture in my pudding is the chicken. It was like any other rice pudding.
Hot Drinks:
Turkish Coffee
Sahlep - Creamy hot drink with sprinkled cinnamon powder
A little more.....
There will be a lot of road side small cafeterias, not all of them are good, they have huge variety of food but not so good!
Tempting?
Well, that's pretty much it for the food part. You may enjoy few pictures below
View from Bosphorus Cruise
Hippodrome
Down the street
It was really cold for me!
Tulip festival and rain
Graffiti at Taksim Square
More Graffiti at Taksim Square
Yes, the love grows!
And here we are!
Well, well, we are done. And c'mon be a sport and leave some comments .. lol
Enjoy the video of live music at Taksim Square, there is live music everywhere, literally!
Beautiful People, Beautiful Place and Beautiful Food!
This was the surprise from Mr. Husband as he announced that we are departing for Istanbul, Turkey after 4 hours! Weather check, quick packing and chasing down the toddler was all done in two hours. We traveled on 24th April 2015, six hour flight, no one speaks English at the airport, weather was cold but not chilly. Turkish people are very hospitable but sadly few of them speak English and fortunately some of them speak Arabic so we were good to go! Advantage of living in Middle East, always learn the language , always! We stayed at the Aslan Hotel at Sultanahmet, near Blue Mosque. Most places are accessible by walk from Sultanahmet and there are lots of restaurants but beware there are no straight walk paths, if you are a hiker you are most probably going to enjoy all the ups and downs... like literally! I can write a really long story about this visit but lets jump start to the food. Before travelling to Turkey, we were always crazy about Turkish cuisine and overheard on the internet about their street food and ever since then my eyes were preying ;)
1) Chestnuts and sweet corns:
You will be able to see these vendors almost everywhere, they sell chestnuts cooked on the coals and steamed sweet corns. Chestnuts are really filling hence I ate them only once because we aimed to eat everything :P
2) Swirled sticky candy:
I was looking for this colorful treat but didn' t see any vendors or 2 days but on the third night near gate of the Blue Mosque we found this vendor entertaining kids with his candy making techniques. Apparently natural dyes are used to color this candy. Well, it was really really sticky , my son made a huge mess!!! Too sweet and I am not sure about the natural dyeing thing. Give it a try though and must see how they make it in front of you and all the colors had different tastes. Just keep in mind that some vendors come out after evening I guess its according to the demand or something.
3) Simit - Bread:
Simit is a ring bread encrusted with white or black sesame seeds. Its soft like a bread but little crunchy on the outside. Vendors sell them plain or with cream cheese spread, its up to your choice. Best to eat when served warm else they start to become all hard and not so much fun to eat unless you are fond of crunchy stuff.
4) Balik Ekmek - Grilled Fish Sandwich:
As soon as we anchored back from the Bosphorus cruise we could smell grilled fish! But we sensed that we had to rush to grab these sandwiches as they were all selling out quickly and in 10 minutes they were all gone. These vendors usually come around the Bosphorus when cruises are returning from the trips.
So, the vendors come with fresh fish (fresh from the hook!) they grill it on spot and slam it into this huge bread with lettuce, peppers and lemon. That's it! Yeah and this was the best fish sandwich we ate because it was all about fresh flavors.
5) THE kebab Sandwich:
Who is not crazy about Turkish kababs? We ate from one of the kebab sandwich vendors but to be honest it was too dry! So, here is the tip ;)
Go to Sultanahmet, behind Blue Mosque and near Aslan hotel after 8:00 PM, a small food truck pulls up and park near by. It has no signs and its white in color and an old man probably about 50 years old is the owner.
This man have some magic going on in his truck, we went crazy for his sandwiches, we would just take a stroll at night and grab some sandwiches from him, couldn't get enough of them.
This is the process, yes there is a process! You select what kind of meat you want from his freshly made uncooked kebabs; beef, lamb, kidney and lever ! Once you tell him what meat you want, he will cook it up on the grill while he spreads this red spicy combo on the thin tortilla kind of bread (Chapati maybe) and throw in some tomatoes, onions and parsley in it and then roll that kebab sandwich for you! We always took one with apple tea or Ayran (Yougut drink) ... Saying again, its a must try!
Sorry for the bad picture, it was too dark!
Well, I guess that's pretty much for now, its been a really long post for me to write and for you to read probably. I will do one more post that will hopefully cover the Turkish cuisine in general and maybe few more street foods for which I don't have pictures :(
Hope you enjoyed reading , you can leave comments, questions or any feedback, would love to hear from you <3
