Noah’s Pudding

Turkish food is great, and most of the desserts are delicious. “Noah’s pudding”, however, is a dessert which I probably won’t make again. It’s traditional at this time of year, and many housewives cook enough for their neighbors as long as they are making a big pot of this favorite dessert. Tradition has it that when Noah’s ark landed on Mt. Ararat in Eastern Turkey (shown in the picture below), they took the remaining dried foods and made them into a pudding to celebrate their arrival on dry ground. The pudding contains oatmeal, beans (both red and white), barley, dried fruits of many varieties, and nuts. It is boiled into a sort of glutinous consistency, then chilled. Afiyet olsun! (Bon appétit!)

We finally saw a “Van kitty” on the streets of Ankara. These cats come from Eastern Turkey, around Lake Van. They are very large and fluffy, and they have one amber eye and one blue eye (hard to see it in the picture). Most interesting of all, they are very friendly—and they love water. They seek out water and will play in it. They are highly prized, and consequently are protected; they can’t be taken out of Turkey.

Happy New Year! Mutlu Yıllar!