What do you get when you blend the frozen milk of oregano-eating goats with powder derived from the tubers of a particular Turkish wild orchid? You get Maras Dondurmasi, an ice cream–esque treat with distinctly taffylike properties that is traditionally eaten with a knife and fork.
Saveur blows the lid off of this exotic sweet by sending one of its writers on a 24-hour journey from San Francisco to Maras, where she hangs out in a dondurmasi shop and proclaims the stuff dense, silky, and subtle.
One brief aside: In the pages of Saveur, the word dondurmasi ends in a mystery symbol that Saveur renders as a miniature numeral 1. Most likely Turkish—and undoubtedly helpful to anyone who speaks the language—it is not very useful to English-speakers such as the entire readership of the magazine.
The undotted i is pronounced closer to an “uh,” but you will do fine pretending it’s an i. Think of it as a touch of local flavor, like dotting the capital I in Istanbul (correct) or flipping the R or N in a Russian word (incorrect, and occasionally hilarious).
Dondurma is terrific, and a great source of nostalgia for me. It is a shame the US culinary press doesn’t cover Turkish desserts more often.
Frankly, I think the criticism of Saveur for using the proper diacritics is idiotic. Would you complain if they used tildes in Spanish words? Cedillas in French words?
I have not eaten this dondurma since I was in Turkiye the last time which is almost 8 years and I was craving. I have extensively search the web if I could find a place that sells Maras dondurma and luckly I found one, and the only one. The place is a very beautifully decorated and furnish cafe called Gulluoglu located at
Gulluoglu, Inc.
1985 Coney Island Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11223
Telephone:+1 718 645 1822
FAX:+1 718 645 6723
Web Questions:
info@gulluoglubaklava.com
They have sinfully crafted pastries and hand made decorative chocolates which complemets all occasion.