When people ask you what you want for your birthday, what would it be? In my case, it's been always pancakes. But if you ask me to describe my dream pancakes, here's what I would say. I want my pancakes with Burrata. And chocolate. And whipped cream with a hint of vanilla beans. And all the berries I can find at a local farmer's market. And I want them all in my favorite pancake plate, and I want to devour them like there's no tomorrow. Whenever I tell my people this, they always … [Read more...]
Ninjaga (Vegan Nikujaga)
Ninjas are definitely getting fewer nowadays. But just a few hundred years ago in Japan during the Edo period, there were still so many of them. One day, the shogun, -the military leader of Japan, invited a ninja to his castle. I mean, who wouldn't? Shoguns are just like us; we all want to meet ninjas! So when this ninja agreed on the shogun's request, he was so delighted; so very delighted that he invited all his associates and many high-ranking samurais to his castle. When the ninja arrived … [Read more...]
Bon. Festival of the death.
Japanese are restless around this time of year. It's not because of our notorious summer heat, over the volcanic sound of fireworks every weekend by the river. Suffering from a killing dose of insulin intake with the matcha high-fructose corn syrup on our shaved ice, there's still a bigger reason why we are so restless this time of year. It's because this is the "Bon Festival" time, the week of August 15th, where we celebrate the death of our loved ones in Japan. A special time of the year … [Read more...]
I did a Belgian TV show in French (kinda).
Let's talk about my TV debut today. Not only a Belgian TV show "Alors on Change!" was brave enough to contact me, but also they asked me to be on one of their episodes. I was transfixed in front of my MacBook, deciding if this is some kind of Belgian joke that I know nothing about. Turned out they were not joking. And here I am in the finished material, looking like a regular Japanese girl who likes to cook and farm. What I love so much about this amazing … [Read more...]
How to make Sake Raisin
You see, I love Rum Raisin. And one day I wondered if they love me back. According to my google search, here is what I learned: Regular Rum Raisin Recipe 1 cup raisins 1 cup dark rum 3⁄4 cup sugar 6 egg yolks 2 cups milk 2 cups heavy cream 1 tbsp. vanilla extract "6 eggs yolks" and "2 cups heavy cream". It sure doesn't look like Rum Raison and I will have a happily-ever-after. We'll probably end up with a heart attack. I pouted for a while. but quickly decided to make a … [Read more...]
How to make Coffee Amazake
What is "Amazake"? Amazake (甘酒) is a traditional sweet, low or non-alcohol Japanese drink made from fermented rice. We've been drinking this thing for more than 2000 years to date, according to my Wikipedia search. You see, I love amazake. It's my go-to winter drink, ever since I was little. Since there was almost no alcohol, I felt compelled to mix it with coffee this year, because I love coffee as much as love sake. *giggles* What is "Sakekasu"? Sakekasu (酒粕) are the lees left over … [Read more...]
Pacman Furofuki Daikon
You see, I gained 7 pounds around the time when I made this recipe. It's just 7 pounds, and I know that it's silly to worry about such a minor predicament; I have much bigger problems to deal with. But Japanese women, I believe, actually feel the same as western women about weight; we desire the comfort of fullness, yet when that desire is repressed for style, and deprivation allowed to rule, we become afraid of everything associated with being curvaceous. Some days I seriously wonder what … [Read more...]
Super Mario’s Grain Salad
Humans have no superpowers. There are no superheroes. We all know that by now. But sometimes I'm skeptical, probably because there's a part of me who is still in denial. Perhaps I was too young when I first watched "superheroes" on TV; it gave me an illusion of hope, that there must be someone with greater power to defeat the bad guys, and no matter what the crisis, they will always save us from despair, and everything is going to be okay. But now I think about it, that was a pretty … [Read more...]
Veggie Burger
You see, Forks Over knives listed this recipe on their website. I am not a certified chef. I am not a nutritionist. I just like to make good stuff. So it means the world to me that this recipe is listed on Forks Over Knives, one of my favorite food documentaries. I think the most important part of making the veggie meat is the flavoring, and also the reasoning why you want to know how to cook veggie meat. These past 5 years I was so busy trying to make a recipe of how, instead of why. … [Read more...]
Cactuar Lasagna with Sweet Potatoes
As a “healthy” food creator, I’ve long noticed that there is a peculiar trend going on about being “vegan”. This Lasagna I made is vegan, but the vegan part is not really important for me. Nowadays being vegan is often perceived as a status rather than a choice, and I'm failing miserably catching up with this "trend". I’ve met so many vegan food bloggers and Instagrammers in my life, but many of them were cracking eggs for pancakes, spreading butter on bread, and even adding anchovies on the … [Read more...]
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