Recipe: Turkish Pide Personal Pizzas with Whipped Ricotta Clouds

Turkish Pide Personal Pizzas with Whipped Ricotta Clouds

Happy & Healthy Cooking,

Fun-Da-Mentals Kitchen Skills

• bake :

  to cook food with dry heat, as in an oven.

• blend :

  to stir together two or more ingredients until just combined; blending is a gentler process than mixing.

• chop :

  to cut something into small, rough pieces using a blade.

• knead :

  to work dough by pushing, pulling, and folding it by hand or with a stand mixer.

• measure :

  to calculate the specific amount of an ingredient required using a measuring tool (like measuring cups or spoons).

• mix :

  to thoroughly combine two or more ingredients until uniform in texture.

• shape :

  to form food into a specific shape by hand or with a cutting tool—examples are cutting cookie dough into shapes with cookie cutters, forming bread dough into a roll or crescent shape, and rolling ground meat into a meatball.

What is Pide?

• Turkish pide (PEE-deh) is a yeast-leavened flatbread often used to make a pizza-like dish. You shape the dough into an oval and then top it with any combination of spiced meat, cheese, herbs, tomatoes, spinach, or other veggies. 
• Before baking, fold the edges of the dough over, and pinch the ends together. Your pide will resemble a kayak!

Let's Learn About Turkey!

• Turkey, officially the Republic of Turkey, is transcontinental, which means it is located on two different continents! In this case, part of Turkey is in Asia, and part is in Europe.
• Most of Turkey is on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, and a smaller part is on the Balkan Peninsula in Southeastern Europe.
• The Anatolian people on the peninsula lived thousands of years ago. The oldest religious structure, a temple, was found in the southeast, dating to 10,000 BCE. The oldest known human settlement, from 7500 to 5700 BCE, was in Catalhoyuk in southern Anatolia.
• The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus and the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, both in Turkey, were two of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
• Turkey began as part of the Ottoman or Turkish Empire in 1299. After a war of independence, Turkey became an independent republic in 1923. 
• The country's total area is 302,455 square miles. That is slightly larger than the size of the US states of California and Montana put together. Turkey's population is over 80 million, twice the number of people in the two states. 
• Turkey's government is a unitary presidential constitutional republic with a president, vice-president, and legislature (Grand National Assembly). The official and most widely spoken language is Turkish. 
• Ankara is the capital city, and Istanbul is the largest city. In addition, Istanbul is the only city in the world that extends across two continents.
• Turkey's coast has a temperate climate. Some coastal areas have hot, dry summers, while others have warm, wet summers, and both have cool or cold, wet winters. The Anatolian plateau can have severe winters, with temps as low as minus 40 degrees F in northeastern Anatolia. Ankara is located on the northwest of the plateau. 
• Many mountain peaks in Turkey reach over 9,000 feet. Mount Ararat, a dormant volcano, is the highest point in Turkey at 16,854 feet. 
• Istanbul has one of the world's oldest and biggest shopping malls. The Grand Bazaar's construction began in 1455 and was completed after 1730. Over the centuries, this covered market has grown into an area of 61 streets with 4,000 shops and 250,000 to 400,000 daily visitors!
• Turkeys, the birds, got their name after Turkey, the country! Wild turkeys are native to North America, but the British referred to the domesticated bird imported from Western Asia as "turkeys" with the country in mind.   
• Saint Nicholas, also known as Santa Claus, was born in Patara in what is now modern Turkey.
• Turkish people are very hospitable, and they would invite you to their house and share a meal with you even if they do not know you.
• In Turkey, you might find chicken in your dessert! The signature Ottoman treat is "tavuk göğsü," a milk pudding made with shredded chicken breast. It is a delicious blend of boiled chicken, milk, rice flour, and sugar, with a dusting of cinnamon. 
• A few of Turkey's popular dishes are made with various flatbreads, including "pide" (leavened, stone-baked flatbread, like pizza), "gözleme" (savory stuffed turnover or pancake), and "lahmacun" (topped with minced meat and veggies or wrapped around veggies).  
• Turkish coffee culture and tradition are on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

What's It Like to Be a Kid in Turkey?

• In Turkey, many public school kids attend school in the morning or afternoon. These split sessions allow more students to go to school. One of the core subjects in early elementary school is called "hayat bilgisi" ("life science"), which is a combination of natural and social sciences. 
• Turkish kids may participate in the sports of football (soccer), basketball, volleyball, and handball. 
• For vacations, families might go to the beach in summer and mountain ski resorts in winter. Cappadocia is a popular place for its unique geological features. Besides the natural rock formations, kids can see houses carved out of the rock by early inhabitants. The area is also a favorite place to see hot air balloons. 
• Several fun kid activities can be found in Istanbul, like a Legoland Discovery Center and the Istanbul Toy Museum, with 4,000 toys and miniatures. In addition, kids can walk around Miniatürk, one of the world's largest miniature parks. It has 135 miniatures in 1:25 scale that are models of historic structures found in Turkey and regions of the Ottoman Empire. There are also aquariums and amusement parks in Istanbul. 
• Baklava, made from phyllo dough, chopped nuts, and honey, is a favorite dessert for kids and adults alike in Turkey. They may also enjoy Turkish Delight or "lokum," a famous jellied candy made of sugar, water, and cornstarch.