"A gourmand is one who is able to keep eating when no longer hungry..."

(not to toot my own horn, I know many share this passion, just a nice mixture of words).

But back to business! I have hinted at this before but never been explicit: MADO. Some of the greatest ice cream I have ever met...

Mado is over 200 years old, and though it is a chain, it is well-known as the best Ice Cream in Istanbul. Made with goats' milk and salep (a flour made from pulverized dried orchid roots, which contain many nutritious and embody starch-like properties). Salep is a popular drink in winter months, manifesting itself as a thick, creamy, milk-like beverage served warm with cinnamon. It is very rich but not too sweet. So this ice cream is not only thick and creamy but quite viscous. And the turks know how to flavor their i-cream; the sour cherry is actually sour, the chestnut is loaded with roasted nut pieces, the almond is salty, the pistachio is so strong... This place is the real deal folks.

Sour cherry and almond. See how that stuff stands up?

Now some junk.

Not too much needs to be said. Crispy, crunchy, light and spicy.

A pickle cart. Amazing.

Switching gears (pun intended, I know its a stretch).

On campus, there are numerous places to get a bite. We have some sort of snack stand in almost every building. After ceramics, boy was I jonesing for something savory. I stopped into the canteen for my favorite; a 1 lira (70 cents) mini sandwich. Delicious bread topped with anything from cucumber, white cheese, lettuce, tomato, bologny...

Mine was doused in mustard and pesto of course. I got the mini sandwich because this is what I REALLY wanted but needed something to tide me over while I cooked down an entire eggplant.

"Pseudo-Sultan's Delight"

By Lily the aspiring sultan

1. heat oil. add garlic. add a splash of balsamic. add some mulberry molasses. dream of a beautiful, rich, flavorful sauce that you created with NO recipe.

2. go do something, forget about it, remember it when you smell it burning.

3. put it on the window sill, scrape most of it out to the grass below (my compost initiative), but keep some because I generally like burnt food (if done correctly) and maybe it will flavor round two?

4. fingers crossed, add oil, more garlic, onion.

5. add sumak, parsley, tomatoes. salt.

6. add eggplant, more balsamic. then leftover canned green beans that you bought because you thought they were the eggplant dish you were inspired by, they are packed in tomato sauce so its all the same shiite.

7. wait and stir for like... 30 mins

8. add spinach. stir in to wilt

9. victorious! add some red pepper and salt, a dollop of thick yogurt and more pars.

Success. Warm, spicy, content.

As a parting note: A day at the market (this is only a piece of the glory I experienced).

The bread, olives and cheese are so good. They wouldn't sell my friend olives because he supported a certain soccer team. (I hooked him up).