Food Product Introduction: Höşmerim

HÖŞMERİM

    Today, we will introduce you a Turkish dessert called Höşmerim which is famous in Balıkesir. The reason why we want to introduce you this dessert is that it has a deep-rooted history in Turkish cuisine. Also, it is much lighter than a lot of high-calorie dessert. It can be offered to other countries as a different and delicious choice of taste. If you pass by Balıkesir, you can taste it. One kilo of Höşmerim costs approximately 15 Turkish liras.

HISTORY OF HÖŞMERİM

Höşmerim is a yellowish dessert which is prepared with a different method in the county Havran of Balıkesir for over five hundred years. Evliya Çelebi tells that this dessert was first made by the first Turkish migrants coming from Middle Asia, and it was transmitted to Havran people from them in his “Seyahatname”. Höşmerim is also known as “Cheese Dessert” in many cities. The name of this dessert has an interesting story which occurred during the Ottoman age. In the Ottoman families, wives used to call their husbands  “Er” or “Erim”. A woman living those days cannot find anything to cook for her husband because of poverty when he comes back from army. Therefore, she makes up a dessert including cheese, semolina (irmik) and sugar which they produce on their own. She offers this dessert which she prepares first time to her husband. She hesitantly asks whether he likes it or not by saying “Hoş mu erim?”. This sentence undergoes a change in time and becomes “Höşmerim”.

INGREDIENTS

1 water glass of semolina

50 grams of butter

1,5 water glass of sugar

1 water glass of milk

1 water glass of water

0,5 water glass of grated salt-free cheese

Almond in order to garnish

RECIPE

Firstly, melt the butter in a pot. Then, add the semolina and roast it until it acquires a yellowish color. In another pot, boil the mixture of milk, sugar and water. Pour this sherbet on the semolina which has become golden yellow. Add the grated cheese in the dessert. Cook it until cheese melts totally. Then take the pot off the burner and put it in a platter properly. After that, serve Höşmerim by embellishing with almonds. Bon appetite ! J (You can also find different recipes on the Internet.)

ÖZGE ÇOMAK
ELİF AKSOY

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