BAKLAVA

Of all Turkey's delicious sweet confections, the most famous is baklava. This exquisite flavoured pastry has been made in Anatolia for long centuries, and its ancestor may be a dish made by the Assyrians consisting of dried fruit sandwiched between two layers of pastry and baked in the oven. The earliest record of baklava as we know it today locates it in Damascus, from which city it spread to Gaziantep and from there to the rest of Turkey. By the 17th century at least the fame of baklava had spread to Istanbul, since towards the end of that century baklava was being made by the palace cooks as a special treat for the janissaries in Ramazan. The janissaries carried the trays of baklava out of the palace in what was known as the Baklava Procession.

During the reign of Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent (1520-1566), the soldiers had been given a large meal of pilaf, lamb stew and saffron flavoured rice pudding (zerde) before setting out on campaign, and in time, this tradition was replaced by the distribution of baklava during Ramazan.In the Istanbul Encyclopaedia, historian Ilber Ortayli gives this description of the Baklava Procession: 'In the middle of Ramazan the sultan, in his capacity as caliph, would pay a ceremonial visit to the Mantle of the Prophet and the other holy relics, which was followed by the Mantle of the Prophet Procession. Following this ceremony trays of baklava prepared in the palace kitchens, one for every ten janissaries, cavalry soldiers, artillery men and armourers, each wrapped in a cloth, were laid ready outside the imperial kitchens. The fit tray was taken by the master armourer and his officers in the name of the sultan, who was himself first janissary. After that the others would be picked up in turn by pairs of soldiers, and each unit with their officers would line up for the parade, followed at the back by the soldiers holding the trays of baklava. They would march out of the palace gate and down the main road known as Divanyolu to their barracks with great pomp and clamour, watched by huge crowds. The following day the empty trays and cloths would be returned to the palace.' In later years the Baklava Procession deteriorated into a noisy and disorganised occasion, and the trays and cloths were no longer returned, with excuses like, 'the baklava was so tasty we ate the trays and cloths as well.' However, despite its unprepossessing end, the procession was one of the interesting customs of Istanbul in the past.

In the first printed Turkish cookery book, Melceü't-Tabbahin (Refuge of Cooks), its author Mehmet Kâmil gives five recipes for baklava: ordinary baklava, baklava with clotted cream, decorative baklava with clotted cream, baklava with melon, and rice baklava. Baklava has spread so far and wide that today it is to be found and eaten with relish in approximately one-fifth of the world's countries. It is surprising, for example, to find that baklava is popular in Texas, where it was introduced in the 19th century by Czech migrants.Less surprising is its prevalence throughout the Arabian peninsula, North Africa, the Turkic republics of Central Asia, Greece, Albania, Macedonia, India, Afghanistan and Armenia. However, there is an important difference between the baklava made in all these countries and that of Turkey - the thickness of the pastry layers.

In Turkey the sheets of pastry for baklava are rolled out so thinly that when held up the person standing behind can be seen as if through a net curtain. Elsewhere a thicker pastry of the type used in Turkey for savoury layered pastries, is used for baklava, which gives a coarser texture and flavour. For the initiated, eating baklava has its own rules. Separating the top and lower layers, or cutting through the lozenge shaped pieces with a knife or fork is frowned upon. Instead you should first leisurely survey the glorious sight of the baklava on your plate, then spear a lozenge with your fork in such a way that one third of the piece is behind the fork and the other two thirds are facing you. This is so that the lozenge does not break in two. The crunch made by the fork as it penetrates the crisp layers is another pleasure which should not be allowed to pass unnoticed. As you lift the piece to your mouth you should halt to savour the fragrance - which should be dominated by the wonderful aroma of cooked butter. Finally you pop it into your mouth and the baklava experience is complete as the flavour pervades your palate.If there is no crunch when your fork and teeth penetrate the baklava, then it is stale. Well made baklava should melt in the mouth, and should not be excessively sweet or syrupy. And if you get heartburn afterwards, then change your supplier, because that means they are not using the finest quality ingredients.

Reference: Nuray Mestçi / SKYLIFE