slow bounce
Recipe: sigara boregi
We saw off our fifth visitor in the past two weeks today. Hey, we planned the visits a while ago – no one figured I’d be having an appendectomy right around the arrival of the first visitor. Well, now that we have the house back to ourselves, we’re relishing it. Actually I’m resting and Jeremy is catching up on work. My healing is slow going and I’m not caring a whole heck of a lot about blogging at the moment as there are other pressing things to worry about. Looks like September will be a slim month on Use Real Butter.
suzanne and kaweah on the deck
I’ve only picked the camera up again in the last couple of days. Our weather was rainy and cool over the weekend. And that meant I had one thing on the brain: snow in the mountains.
start my base, baby
With the cooler weather, I thought a simple dinner of gruyère fondue would be a nice way to welcome Suzanne to our little mountain home in Colorado. I hadn’t really cooked anything since my surgery. While my parents were here I just steered clear of the kitchen as they reigned over it for the duration of their stay. In addition to the fondue (which Jeremy wound up making because I ran out of energy – good on ya, love) I made a lovely little appetizer, Sigara Boregi.
parmesan and feta
dill and parsley
I got this recipe from a girlfriend of mine in graduate school. They are called Turkish Cigars and are awesome appetizers when the weather cools down. If you are comfortable working with phyllo dough, they come together in no time.
mix together
brush butter on half the sheet
I can rarely find phyllo dough in full sheets anymore. Most of the ones I get from grocery stores are half sheets or some oddball shape that comes close to a half sheet. Although the recipe instructions say to fold a half sheet in half lengthwise, if the sheet seems a little “fat” to you, fold it in thirds. The cigars I made this time around were six inches long and I think four inches would have been better (it’s an appetizer, not a baseball bat…).
roll up the filling
ready for baking
Before Suzanne flew out to see us, I asked her if she had any dietary restrictions. She said she is lactose intolerant. Me too. What I love about these appetizers is that they are cheesy, herby, creamy without any dairy that would send my insides into a tizzy. Love that feta. It kicked off a relaxing and fun weekend with Suzanne.
a nice appetizer
Sigara Boregi
[print recipe]
2 cups feta, crumbled
2 tbsps parmesan, grated
1 egg
salt
1 cup parsley, minced
1 cup dill, minced
1 lb. phyllo dough, thawed
1/2 cup butter, melted
Mix the feta, parmesan, egg, salt, parsley, and dill together. If working with full sheets, cut them in half. Place one sheet on a work surface and brush half of the sheet with butter. Fold the sheet over lengthwise so you have a long quarter sheet. Brush the top 4/5 of the folded sheet with butter. Place one tablespoon of filling on the bottom unbuttered fifth. Roll up in a loose cigar and place on baking sheet. Bake at 350ยฐF degrees until golden brown for about 15 minutes. Serve hot.
September 14th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
Those Sigara Boregi looks scrumptious! I love those Feta cigars! Great pics, as usual!
Cheers and all the best,
Rosa
September 14th, 2008 at 11:06 pm
i can’t believe i’m saying this but the heat here in MD is suuuucking and i’m envious of your cooler weather. it’s 1am and still 80 out.
glad you hopped online for a minute, take good care of yourself!
September 14th, 2008 at 11:15 pm
Nice! Like spanakopita rollups!
I’m sorry, but I’m not ready for snow yet. Too many green tomatoes still on the vine.
Hope your recovery speeds up!
September 15th, 2008 at 12:18 am
Hey, anything to ensure a full recovery for you. Rest well, Jen :) Is it okay if I call them Turkish Flautas? Ha ha ha! :)
September 15th, 2008 at 2:02 am
Wow! I haven’t had my hand on phyllo! It sure looks great!! My hubby will love this!
September 15th, 2008 at 6:53 am
Hey girl…what ya doing writing when you SHOULD be resting?…hmmmmm??? (Pardon me, it’s the mama in me that shouts this message).
Really, love the photo’s, love the news and LOVE the new recipe. Go now, rest and DO NOT FRET, your entitled to take a break from this crowd and come again when you are healed. Trust us, we WILL be here when you return.
:)
September 15th, 2008 at 7:44 am
I’d much rather have you healthy than blogging. That being said, these cigars look fun and tasty at the same time.
September 15th, 2008 at 9:47 am
I’m agreeing with the bloggers above – I wasn’t expecting any posts from you for a while as you recovered, and here you are still cooking and photographing!! Not that I mind another chance to drool over your food:) Take care of yourself, dear! Hope your next post title will have progressed from “not dead” to “slow bounce” to “all better!”:)
September 15th, 2008 at 11:12 am
Yum! I’m not afraid of phyllo, because spanikopita is one of my top 5 foods of all time. I made it (once) and the phyllo was the easiest part. Breaking down 10 lbs of spinach – that was a pain in the butt. Why did I buy whole-leaf spinach at the market? Because I’m an idiot.
So…YUM! I’ll maybe make this wednesday night for our guests. They’ll love it and I’ll feel like a rock star. Thank you.
Feel better. Chuck says hi. He also says Fru was a Mole, then a social member of Page and maybe Lloyd. That guy got around.
Fiona
September 15th, 2008 at 1:21 pm
cheese? check. carb? check. I’m in and I’ll even bring the wine….
September 15th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
I know you probably don’t feel like answering questions at the moment, so take your time with this one. Do you know if these cigars can be made the night before and frozen? Would that add a bit to the bake time, or would you defrost before baking? I’ve always wanted to make these, but I don’t like them with meat, so feta and herbs seem like the perfect combination!
September 15th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Yum! Beautiful pictures as always, and an appetizer I think I could actually handle (& eat)! Take your time, relax, & feel better!
September 15th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
What a great appetizer. I am such a huge lover of feta and I am always looking for new recipes using it. I can’t wait for cooler weather – it’s 95 degrees today and I am too hot! Enjoy your quiet and peaceful home. Hope you are feeling better soon.
September 15th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
“These are appetizers, not baseball bats”
Too funny.
Whatever they are, they are packed with flavor!
September 15th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
Rest and recover first, worry about blogging later :), we’ll be here waiting. Those cigars look like sth i’d eat right now, if it wasn’t half past midnight and really the time to go to sleep and not bake … :) Enjoy your quiet time with Jeremy and Kaweah!
September 15th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Love the pictures and love the appetizer!
September 15th, 2008 at 6:53 pm
I’m glad to hear you’re feeling slightly better, Jen!! Can you ski on that snow or is it just a very thin cap of ice? I can’t wait till winter to take my snowboard out for a spin : )
delicious choice of appetizers, too!
September 15th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Glad to see you are still alive my dear!
Way to get a post up with all that is going on!
September 16th, 2008 at 12:53 am
those little cigars look delish! i’m glad to hear that you are feeling a little better, but don’t worry we’ll hold down the fort in bloggo-land until you feel a whollatta better!
September 16th, 2008 at 4:30 am
As soon as I saw this it reminded me of spanakopita too. Looks delicious. I may have to add this to the menu for my son’s birthday party.
Hope you are healing and feeling better.
September 16th, 2008 at 5:32 am
You made sigara bรถregi, yey! As a kid it was always my duty to make these, they are so kid friendly. In Turkey (where this comes from) we actually cut triangular shaped pieces out of our round phyllo dough sheets (yufka). Put the filling at the base, fold the sides and then roll (towards the pointed end), so when rolled up they look like a croissant (and you have less dough around the filling, too). You might like to try some tarragon in there, too, we sometimes use it, definitely a unique taste. In Turkey these are shallow fried, but I agree with oven baking, much healthier!
September 16th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Even when you are not feeling that great, your photos and posts are amazing!
I am glad I don t blog, you would make me feel pretty lousy by comparison…. :-)
September 16th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Rosa – thanks!
Lan – ah yes, the heat. I remember sweltering summers in Virginia during September. I don’t miss it one bit. Thanks!
Kitt – yeah, that’s what I thought too, except without the spinach :) Heh heh, I am SOOO ready for the snow. No wait, I don’t want it to snow too much before my incision heals up!!
Mark – hmmm, you’ll have to take it up with Mrs. Ergul and see if her Turkish hubby is offended ;)
Mrs. Ergul – phyllo is easy as long as you thaw it properly and keep it damp.
Margie – Um, I’m blogging because I don’t need to rest 24/7. I’m not all that worried about people being here or not. I just felt like blogging is all.
Bridget – thanks dear. I’m not doing too badly :) These cigars rock for parties.
Anita – not quite all better, but I am definitely feeling more energetic and stronger than before. I actually think cooking (when I am physically capable) is therapeutic – hee hee.
Fiona – I am a huge fan of spanikopita too. This recipe is delish. Hi right back at Chuck. That’s right, Fru was a Mole, but he did indeed socialize with all houses. I remember that he was really hairy too… Fru was a sweetie though.
Mollie – yes please! :)
Irene – Oh hon, I’m fine with answering questions. I have never tried freezing them before, but I’ve seen frozen spanikopita in grocery stores before, so I’m guessing you could do the same with the cigars. I just don’t know how much baking time to add to it. Maybe run into a grocery store’s frozen food section and see what they say to do? Good luck!
Sarah – Thanks! I guarantee you could do this recipe easily.
Pam – ugh, you poor thing. I hate the heat. It makes me not want to cook or eat. I hope you try the recipe and like it!
Nate – absolutely!
Maja – thanks dear. I am doing quite well now. At least well enough to cook. It is nice to have a quiet house again :)
Megan – thanks!
Tony – oh, it’s too scrimpy to ski now. You’d trash your skis rutting them up with rocks and such. No – we want lots of snow so we can enjoy a long-lived base all winter and spring :)
Peabody – are you kidding? I can’t leave you alone in food blogging world! We need more crazy people like us ;)
Mimi – thank you :)
Lisa – oooh, lucky boy. I hope he has a great party!
Hande – I like the idea of the triangular shapes and rolling them. I think they would look more like a cigar too – or something… Tarragon sounds good too. I will keep it in mind. I’m so jealous you grew up eating these. How cool!
Sally – aww, you’re too kind. I’m not here to compare with others, I’m here to share. So if you ever start a blog, don’t be feeling bad about it – it’s a great way to make some awesome friends in the blogging community. xxoo
September 16th, 2008 at 7:47 pm
I am making a list of things I would like us to make together if we ever get to meet and that just went on it :)
You only know your body like nobody else so do what you got to do to be happy and well.
September 17th, 2008 at 9:32 pm
ahh, these look fantastic and i am always looking for little snacky things! will definitely be trying these.
now, rest and take care of yourself, who cares about blogging, we are always there for ya!
September 18th, 2008 at 10:13 am
Tartelette – We will most certainly meet – so you just keep adding to the list! :)
Chez Us – thanks dear.
March 21st, 2009 at 10:59 am
Thank you too much…you’ve saved my bacon so to speak…i’m frantically looking for a turkish cigar recipe for a bunko party tonight! Blessings in JESUS you are an answer to prayer! =)
March 25th, 2009 at 9:17 am
ILJ – great – hope it worked for ya.