Narnian Turkish Delights

Who doesn't remember reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and not being intrigued by Turkish Delight? I always imagined it as this life changing sweet, something that when you ate it you had no control over yourself. Edmund betrayed his whole family for just one bite of it, so I mean, it HAD to be delicious right?

Years ago I was working on an undergraduate degree in archaeology, and had the opportunity to go to Turkey to do some hands on archaeological work at a real site. You know what my first thought was when I was offered the trip? I will finally get to taste some Turkish Delight!
Unfortunately, my first taste of it was not so great; I had brought some cheap stuff in a box at a bazaar and it was hard and a little stale. I have to admit I was heartbroken. Why would my dear Clive Staples write about this stuff when really it just tasted like bad jelly beans? I ended up waiting until the last week of my trip to taste the famed sweet just once more, to just check, to be absolutely certain. I had an acquaintance who'd lived in Istanbul most of his life show me what to buy. He took me to genuine candy shop, a place where they make it in house. When we got there I saw that there were no boxes at all, it was all available to purchase by the pound. He told me to try the rose one, and the one with pistachios as those were traditional. I was hesitant, but this Turkish Delight was much better. Very soft with fluffy powdered sugar and a floral sweet flavor. It was in fact quite delicious.

A small antidote about my quest in Turkey. I had the good fortune to go with my very close friend Sarah at the time. She too is a fan of Narnia, and like me she had very much wanted to taste Turkish Delight. During our first outing into Istanbul we noticed that many stores and signs said Aslan on them. We went into a small store emblazoned with a big yellow lion, called Aslan's mart. We walked through the shop, and like two silly girls transported into another world, we touched all the merchandise as though it would tell us something deeper about the books we loved. We wondered what Aslan meant to the citizens of Turkey, did the name have a deep and important meaning, we wondered. I must have, right, otherwise why would Lewis use it? I asked the cashier, "What does Aslan mean in your country?" He looked at me with a cocked head and said with a small laugh, "Lion. Aslan means lion."

I wanted to relive that moment with Turkish Delight this weekend. I wanted to see if what I remembered tasting so long ago was still as good. I took a while to hunt down a recipe that I felt comfortable making. I am certainly no candy maker. Also many of the recipes asked for rosewater (as it is traditional) however in my hunt for ingredients I could not find any. So finally I found this recipe that calls for orange juice and orange zest.

It really was quite easy to prepare, and I added some food coloring to give it just a richer color.
I also cut out the pistachios as I wanted to simplify my first attempt as much as possible.

It will look like this both when you pour it into the pan and after it has set. To check if it's ready just tap your finger in the surface, it will wiggle a little like thick Jell-o

It took a full four hours for it to set, but once it did it was easy to remove from the pan, cut into squares and dredge in confectioners sugar.
The final product was very sweet with a heavy orange flavor, not unlike those jelly fruity slice candies.

"The big important question," my friend Julie asked me when I told her what I was making this week, "is would you betray your brothers for it?"

I can honestly say that though I enjoyed it I don't think I would hand my brothers over for it, though if the White Witch does have some good chocolate, I might just be persuaded. 

Roast Chicken and Potatoes in The Secret Garden

It seems appropriate to start with The Secret Garden here. It’s the first book I remember being read aloud from as a child, an act that I think solidified me as the reader I am today. I had a lovely copy of the book, hardbound and packed with illustrations by Graham Rust. A copy I still have today.

Funny fact about me: I’m a seasonal reader. There are books on my shelves reversed specifically for certain times of the year. Something about their tone or setting begs to be read at only very specific times. For instance I read Wuthering Heights every January and Jane Eyre every February. I can’t imagine spending time on those grey moors unless there is a blanket of clouds over the sun and empty trees outside my door. It’s a bit like the way we experience food honestly. You wouldn’t eat an Heirloom tomato in January, and beets are so much better enjoyed in the darkest hours of winter.

So spring is here and this is about the time, usually when I see the first snowdrop or crocus opening, that I pull my copy of The Secret Garden out and retrace my steps in the hallowed halls of Misselthwaite Manor to Mary’s blooming garden.

I always remember hearing about all the food they eat in this book, it always sounded so delicious. Whether it was coming from the well-stocked kitchens prepared by Mrs. Loomis the cook, or the nourishing food that Susan Sowerby, Dikon’s mother put together, food seemed to be everywhere in the book. I often felt a small grumble in my stomach as I was read to about pails of fresh milk, homemade cottage bread slathered with raspberry jam and marmalade, buttered crumpets, currant buns, hot oatcakes, muffins, dough-cakes, and the all-important bowl of warm porridge, sweetened with treacle or brown sugar. As I’ve gotten older and a little wiser in my reading I’ve begun to understand that Hodgson Burnett was creating an underlying theme of good food nourishing the mind, body and spirit, showing us that as the flowers and plants grew, so do Mary's and Colin's appetites.

I thought it would be nice to bring both the worlds of the book together with this meal, the lavish rich foods of Misselthwaite and the simple delicious foods of Dikon’s home. Roasted chicken and potatoes. The chicken, plump and dressed simply with butter and salt, coming from Mrs. Loomis’ kitchen. The roasted potatoes, the simplest and most filling of comfort foods. This meal is hands down one of my favorite. It’s simple to prepare, and perfect for a Sunday meal in together.

I pulled the recipe for the roast chicken from Michael Ruhlman’s book Ruhlman’s Twenty, it’s a simple recipe, and one I use time and again. 

Ingredients:

One 3 to 4 pound chicken

1 medium onion quartered

4 whole cloves of garlic peeled

Kosher salt.

Directions:

About 1 hour before cooking the chicken, remove it from the refrigerator, and rinse it. Preheat your oven to 450 F. Toss your quartered onion and garlic cloves in the cavity. Salt the skin and place in a cast iron skillet. 

Toss in the oven. After 1 hour, check the color of the juices. If they run red, return the chicken to the oven and check again in 5 minutes.

While your chicken is roasting in the oven you can start on your potatoes. 

Potatoes:

Dice an Idaho potatoes (I used one big one and it was enough for two people). Toss in olive oil until your pieces are lightly coated. Toss again with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Place on baking sheet lined with aluminum foil (makes cleaning up way easier!)

 Cook with your chicken for about 40 minutes, until they are fork tender.

Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for 15 minutes before carving it.

Plate together and serve.

Cheers!