Bal Kabağı Tatlısı (Turkish Pumpkin Dessert)

Selam everybody.... Merhaba from Turkey...

What's in season now? 

Red-orange color?

Apples?

Thick and colorful sweater?

Pumpkin?

Hard blowing wind?

In my house, it's " flue with cough season".... so sad. Autumn always comes with those seasonal sickness. 

First person who brought it from outside was (like always) my husband. Maybe because he's the only one in our house who interact with many people outside. So he is easily infected (maybe) from somebody outside there then my kid can not far away from her father whenever he's in home... So you can guess who's gonna get next..

  

With two sick people around me I MUST stay healthy... I think every mom MUST stay fit and healthy all the time (^,^) .. if you understand what I mean.. A mom is like everything is her family. Mom is a chef, accounting, laundry and cleaning department, baby sitter... you mention it... a mom is a motor who must work 7/24 ... Imagine if that motor broken....

Autumn follows with seasonal flu I always prepare any herb drink or full of vitamin C to increase my body immune. I made hot lemon drink or last time I prepare ginger herb for ease my husband cough. And here in Turkey we always make ıhlamur çay/ linden tea. Next time I'll write how to make it and benefits of it.

Linden tea/ ıhlamur çay

And now I'll talk about what is really season in farmer market... One of it is pumpkin (^,^)

I like pumpkin but not really fans of it. Maybe because I don't have much idea cooking this vegetable fruit. I'll note it I must search around more to find more recipe using pumpkin.

Last Wednesday I went to local farmer market and bought 1 kilo of it so for simple start I make this Bal Kabağı Tatlısı. Bal kabak means Pumpkin in Turkish, tatlı is dessert/ sweets.

To make this Turkish style dessert is very simple yet quick. You just need to boil pumpkin with sugar until it soft and pumpkin absorb the sugar syrup. It served warm or room temperature with generous sprinkle of pistachio or walnut.

Ingredients:

• 1 kg pumpkin
• 130 ml water
• 250~300 gr sugar
• 2~3 cloves
• ground pistachio/ walnut for serving

How to:

1. Peel pumpkin and discard the seeds. Wash and cut into big chunk (about 3 x 6 cm).
2. Lay pumpkin chunk over wide heavy bottomed pan and give water and cloves. Cover pan with a lid then cook over medium heat about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, sprinkle sugar evenly over the pumpkin and continue to cook another 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat. 
3. Serve with ground pistachio or walnut over the top.