Cheese pie and stuffed figs at the Bodrum market

Saturday, June 30, 2012 in Bodrum, Turkey | 5 comments

Red carrots, covered with fresh dill, at the Bodrum farmers' market. Even Sidar said he had never seen carrots like this. Photos by David Lansing.

More about the farmers’ market in Bodrum yesterday: It was kind of like a moveable feast for me. I’d stop at one stall and buy a little bag of cherries, eating them while I walked around some more, and then maybe buy a few cashews, some plump dried apricots, a few olives, and even a peynirli börek (cheese pie).

About those dried apricots: I don’t know what they do to them, but Turkish dried apricots are the best in the world. I fell in love with them in Istanbul and now buy them wherever I see them (and you see them a lot).

Nuts, olives, and stuffed dried figs for sale at the Bodrum farmers' market. Photo by David Lansing.

One of the other wonderful things I found at the market were dried figs stuffed with sesame seeds and almonds. They were being sold by this little old lady named Elif. As I got near her stand, she practically grabbed me by the arm to drag me over to taste her figs. To be honest with you, I took one just to be polite. But Elif knows her figs. These were incredible. And so I ended up buying a dozen of them. I think the trick is going to be making sure I don’t scarf them all down at one time back in my hotel room. They’re that good.

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5 comments

  1. Angeline’s avatar

    Angeline on Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 3:44 pm

    I’m loving your photos of the Bodrum market.

  2. Angeline’s avatar

    Angeline on Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 3:47 pm

    Darn iPhone cut me off…was going to also say my mom used to stuff dates with a pecan and roll in sugar as part of Christmas treats. Delicious!

  3. david’s avatar

    david on Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 4:36 pm

    Thanks Angeline! I’ve missed not hearing from you for awhile.

  4. Roving Jay’s avatar

    Roving Jay on Wednesday, July 11, 2012 at 3:44 pm

    I love wandering around the Peninsula markets. My favourite is the Thursday Yalikavak Market. Last time I visited, a gnarled hand of a stall holder, forced a split fresh fig at me, that has goat cheese and walnut stuffed in it. Melt in your mouth delicious! And, like, we ended up buying a pound of figs!

  5. Dina’s avatar

    Dina on Saturday, July 14, 2012 at 5:29 am

    I hope Turkey never joins the EU, so that we can continue to have real eggs with fecal matter on the shell, cheese thrown into a plastic bag with grimey fingers, and olive oil in recycled coke bottles.

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