Turkish Delight

Alright, where the eff did this weekend go? I can’t believe it’s Sunday night already and am already scheming what I still need to go get done that can be added to this weeks errands. One of my friends from college is coming down on Friday afternoon so I’m taking Friday off so a four-day work week will be something to look forward to. But this weekend? Just flew by. I feel like I got alot done but now it’s Sunday night and I’m sitting wishes I could get a few hours back.

 On a never-ending quest to learn about new cultures, I attended the 1st Annual Turkish Festival of Charlotte. I’ll come clean and say I know nothing about Turkey.  The only thing I can think of is in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” when the grandma is raising her fist to the air and yelling about Turkey. One of my friends friends is from Turkey so we thought it would be enlightening to learn a little about where he’s from and their ways. I went to pick her up at her place right outside of the Uptown area and let’s just say the view was gorgeous.

And can I just say how much I love the foliage? I feel like it flew by this fall but I am enjoying it while it is still out there. Just seeing all the warm colors and walking through the crunchy leaves makes me happy.

Oh yes, what was I talking about? Turkish Fest.

We got to the Turkish Festival which was conveniently located in the hood. We passed by a few groups of sketchy looking folks wondering the streets and crossed our fingers that her car wouldn’t break down. When we got there, the event hall was packed…..and without air conditioning. Yay. Our first plan of attack was to get some food which I was stoked about since I’ve never had Turkish food. I imagined it would be similar to Greek or Syrian food since they have influences in both countries.

I got the platter to try a few different things however I have no clue what I ate. The white side was potato salad but the other two things, no clue. If you know what this is, please school me! It was good but unfortunately, nothing was remarkable.  I was expecting a flavor explosion in my mouth but it was bland. Could be due to them making food in bulk for the masses but I’m willing to give it another chance to see how the food is regularly as opposed to at a festival. My friend had the meat wrap which was just meat in a wrap. One would expect sauce, veggies, etc but nope nothing. She said it was bland as well. The Turkish Festival really needs to get on the ball with their food for next year. We watched a number of different dancers and musicians perform and perused the different tables of display with Turkish items, artwork and food.

We found Turkish Delights, a candy popular in Turkey and bought the box immediately. My friends friend from Turkey raves about these sweet treats but it sounded kind of funky to me. It’s a hardened jelly like substance covered in pistachios. Hmm, ok. That doesn’t sound that great but we would soon see.

The Verdict? Delicious! It was sweet but not overly sweet like traditional candy. I would love to learn how to make these but hear it’s a very in-depth process.

Dinner on Saturday night was ghetto-tastic. I had plans to go out for my friends birthday but her significant other wasn’t feeling too hot so they canceled. I walked over to Harris Teeter to get sushi but nothing was calling to me. It was all imitation crab meat and that stuff I will not touch or rolls that were $10. If I am going to pay $10 for a roll, I’m going to a restaurant and not Cafe Teeter. I lucked out with avocado spring rolls

With my entrée being the oh so sophisticated  Bagel Bites

Ghetto and gross. I’ve heard friends talk about Bagel Bites before and may have tried one when I was drunk but never sober. How do people like these? They were straight up nasty.

I attempted to make Peppermint Puffs but it wasn’t in the stars. I had no clue how to heat up chocolate and tried to do so on the stovetop which resulted in a big, white chocolate clump. I looked at it and wanted to cry. But I didn’t let them bring me down. I make the cookies as planned then used my black icing that I got on Monday and topped with candy cane shavings.

I took those to a football get together at my friend’s place this afternoon. She also lives right outside of Uptown and gave me the tour of their building. I felt like I was at some swanky, upscale hotel in Chicago or New York. They had music playing in the lobby along with a coffee maker that makes lattes, mochas and hot chocolate and private screening rooms to watch movies, tv, etc. She booked one of those so we had a huge screen for ourselves! The pool area was absolutely gorgeous.

 

How is this at an apartment complex in Charlotte beats me but if I lived there, I would never leave. I would be on the rooftop in a cabana with a wine bottle in hand every night.

Dinner tonight was Polenta Topped Pork Patties (halved the recipe), Baked Beans (recipe courtesy of Eat, Drink and Be Vegan) and broccoli.

The pork patty recipe was good but it didn’t hold together too well since there were no breadcrumbs or eggs involved so I would use that next time. I didn’t have any parsley on hand like the recipe called for but added thyme along with salt and pepper to the patty mix. The baked beans were absolutely terrific so if you have the cookbook, definitely check it out!

And now I’m watching Lincoln go to town on himself. Oh, the fabulous life of a single girl.