Lokma: A Honey-Infused Journey from Baltimore to Turkey and Back Again

By Brittany, Marketing Manager at Lorob Bees

Apparently, today is National Donut Day - which might not seem like an obvious topic for a beekeeper’s blog. But for me, the marketing manager behind Lorob Bees, it stirred up a sticky-sweet flood of memories and connections, back to when I lived in a land that flowed with honey and… donuts??

Before I began working with Lorob Bees, I spent five unforgettable years living on the west coast of Turkey, in the beautiful city of İzmir. Here’s a little history of how this all ties together!

The Sweet Heart of Turkish Culture

In Turkey, honey isn’t just a topping. It’s a pillar and a staple. You’d be hard-pressed to find a breakfast table without a small bowl full of honey and thick cream for spreading onto fresh bread and pastries. This coveted combo is called "bal kaymak" (bal = honey, kaymak = cream)

Just like in the picture above, which I took in May of 2022 at a standard (yes, that is standard) Turkish breakfast with friends. Aside from breakfast, there are hundreds of varieties of desserts where honey is the main character, including the one that brings this story full circle: Lokma. Lokma is a centuries-old dessert of golden fried dough circles traditionally soaked in honey.

My first encounter with Lokma was in 2016 on my first visit to Izmir, Turkey. My friends and I visited one of the city’s many historical landmarks: an outdoor elevator, built in 1907 to connect two neighborhoods separated by a steep, rocky cliff (pictured below).

After we rode the elevator up to the clifftop neighborhood, we noticed a small line of people forming down a nearby side street. We let our curiosity guide us and we were not disappointed. As we got closer, we saw that the line led to a very small street cart where a kind-eyed elderly man stood scooping some heavenly smelling ball shapes into little bowls and handing them to each person as they got to the top of the line. We noticed that no payment transactions were taking place and decided to get in line. When it was our turn, the man smiled and chuckled as he realized we were foreigners and understood neither the language or what we were about to eat. Cheerily, he handed us each a generous portion of what we realized were honey-soaked fried dough balls and exclaimed, “afiyet olsun!” (bon appétit), to which we all shyly made our best attempt at a “Teşekkür ederim” (thank you), and savored each of the delightful little morsels with a toothpick.

Lokma: Fried Dough, Sweet Significance

Lokma might look like just another cousin to donuts, beignets, or loukoumades. But in Turkey, it means something more.

Traditionally, forty days after someone passes away, the family of the deceased will set up a spot on the side of a road and cook large quantities of lokma for neighbors and passersby. People form lines and gather around a massive bubbling vat of dough, where friends or family members ladle out golden rounds into hot oil, then into honey, then into small bowls. They stay for hours or until the dough runs out, passing this sweet treat to every person who approaches, in honor of their deceased loved one. We learned all this a few years after our first experience in that clifftop neighborhood, and only wished we could go back to say the proper blessing to the family serving the free treat, “Başınız sağolsun” (may your mind/soul be well).

Today’s Sweet Connection

There’s still one final layer that made me realize the connection to National Donut Day, honey, and my time abroad. The people of Izmir, the city where I lived, have their own unique version of Lokma— in the shape of a doughnut! It is also uniquely served in Izmir not only to commemorate the passing of loved ones, but to celebrate holidays, new businesses, and special occasions.

(Me very happily enjoying Lokma in 2019)

I find it so fitting that within 2 years of returning to America, I find myself working in the beekeeping industry and having such a close connection to honey, a product I grew to love and appreciate in a culture on the other side of the world. And this is my first time being up close and personal to the honey extraction process, making it that much sweeter to reminisce. It goes to show you that the most ancient, natural resources and traditions are still what connect us, across oceans and cultures, to this day. Scroll down to see just a few of the photos I found in my phone of Lokma! You just never when you’d turn a corner and happen upon one of these lokma stations (or trucks often times).

Thanks for reading and taking a journey with us today! Be sure to check out the recipe below.

Make your own Lokma at Home!

Want to celebrate National Donut Day with your own homemade Lokma? Here’s a solid recipe from Zerrin and Yusuf Gunaydin of giverecipe.com!