turkish poached eggs in yogurt (cilbir)

Turkish poached eggs in yogurt (cilbir)

I have a feeling that when I meet new people I have barely got the social niceties out of the way before I am grilling them on their favourite foods. Omer was no exception, as he told me about cilbir, a Turkish egg and yogurt dish, his favourite comfort food from childhood. Sadly, something got a bit lost in translation as Omer's passionate defence of gloopy eggs in a sour yogurt sauce sounded, frankly, revolting. But then Omer isn't much of a cook and hadn't actually cooked it himself. And in trying to get firmer details, I struggled as my Turkish is non-existent too.

celebrate national hotdog day with a chicago dog with the works

a chicago dog with the works

Much as I love and am curious about history, it seems that as far as family history goes that for the first twenty years of my life I wasn't asking the right questions. I only found out a few months before my Irish grandmother's death that she had actually been brought up in New York, only returning to Ireland at 15 just before the outbreak of World War 1, before running away to England to seek her fortune. "Why didn't you tell me?" I wailed. "I didn't think you'd be interested," she said somewhat bemused. Argh! I am so disappointed that I lost the opportunity to perhaps get a little closer to my grandmother and to learn what living in one of the most exciting cities at the beginning of the 20th century was like.

buffalo wings with blue cheese dip

buffalo wings

About 20 years ago I was seconded to the New York office of the UK company I worked for. I wish I could tell you that I spent my free time enjoying the art galleries and museums, and going to poetry readings. Sadly, I educated myself in low culture, exploring New York's nightlife with considerable enthusiasm. Some of my favourite watering holes sold bar snacks (all the better to make you drink more, not that I needed much encouragement), and one of my favourites was buffalo wings, named for the northern city they are supposed to have originated from.