Kas'im Restaurant-Geralynn takes a cooking class

One day we were in Kas town and so we stopped again for a meal at Kasim, the best restaurant in Kas. We all ordered the special, which turned out to be fire-roasted meat in a sauce. Yum, yum, yum. They always bring us mezes (appetizers) when we sit down, and those are good too. When we were finished I took off to do some grocery shopping and left Don and Cheryl to get the bill. Well, stupid me! The owner brought complimentary warm bakalva with ice cream, so Don an Cheryl ATE ALL THREE dishes!!!! And then when we met up again they bragged about it!!! How cruel.

But also while they were greedily eating my portion of baklava they mentioned to Murat that I had gone off in search of some ingredients to make a Turkish meal. They told him that I like to cook and that I was going to attempt a Turkish recipe. Murat then mentioned that his restaurant sponsors cooking classes for the British women of the town. The classes are held every Saturday. So, even though I didn't get my baklava, I did get to go to the cooking class.
Chef Murat Usta and daughter

I arrived a bit early for the class and as Don and I waited on a nearby park bench I began to see women arrive and sit at one of the tables in the restarant. I went to join them and the ladies all welcomed me to their table. Our teacher at the class, Figen, soon arrived and set up her cooking area, passed out recipes and welcomed me too. She explained that there had been many previous classes that set the stage for this one and she tried to bring me up to speed with a quick recap. Many of the women in the class know little about cooking, so I felt that I could keep up without a problem.

Figen Kanik cooking class

Today we were doing salads, so Figen began with humus, then prepared a red cabbage and pasta salad, a curried potato salad and she finished up with an interesting fried sausage filled pastry. I copied down all of the recipes and took notes on the techniques she used. After the cooking we got to sit down and eat. Everything was delicious.

In the meanwhile Don and Cheryl went to explore the local Kas ruins. While sitting at the theater Don met a Canadian couple who were of Norwegian descent, and had a nice chat with them. Later, while Don and Cheryl were eating lunch and waiting for me to finish my class, the Canadians came by and Don encouraged them to have lunch at Kasim too. After the class I joined Don and Cheryl and they very graciously ordered another round of warm baklava with ice cream so I could enjoy the experience too. It was delicious.

Don's Pictures