Uncommon Threads

Cooking_3

Sometimes it is the unexpected events in our lives that yield the most treasured memories.  We photographed our Resort 2008 catalogue on the remote island of Kekova, Turkey.  The villagers of Kaleköy may have been initially surprised by our eclectic entourage of photographers, stylists, models and equipment but they quickly adopted us during our stay and made us feel right at home. 

We were especially enamored by the local cuisine.  Mediterranean salads were lovingly prepared for us with a variety of fresh ingredients such as olive oil, mushrooms and eggplant seasoned with newly picked basil.  Staples such as fish and yogurt were complemented by warm crusty bread and fruit.  But it was the enigmatic island pancake that roused our palette every morning.   Our island hosts, noticing our admiration and curiosity about the dish, graciously offered to give us a group cooking lesson.   

Under the stars, we gathered around an open fire and our "teacher", not able to speak English, began simply by mixing flour and water into malleable dough with only her hands.  Then she rolled portions effortlessly into paper thin pancakes that covered the entire floured table and filled each with handfuls of goat cheese and basil. The large half-moon folded pancake was then browned on a concave iron surface over the fire while her mother attended.  Moments later we were all sharing the delicious light pancakes one after another.  She even allowed us to try rolling the dough ourselves.  This was a disaster of course that ended in both our instructor and her mother laughing out loud at our ugly pancakes.  But their generosity and inherent joy fed not only our weary bodies but also our spirits.  This post serves as our heart-felt "thank you" to our generous Kaleköy family.