Over the past six months I’ve had several people suggest the idea of planning a get together where I showed everyone how to make sushi.  I finally decided to make it happen and enlisted a trusty team of accomplices to pull it off.  Over the month and a half that it took us to plan everything, the event slowly morphed into a bigger (and better!) event.  Greg (Sippity Sup) offered up his gorgeous home as our event location.

It turned into an amazing evening attended by 21 people where we learned the basics of making sushi rice and sushi, learned about seafood sustainability, and feasted on a wonderful meal of appetizers, sushi, side dishes, drinks, and desserts.  On top of an evening of learning and good food, the event also helped to benefit a great cause.  The event was chosen to be one of the 24 meals to be featured in Foodbuzz’s extra special September 24×24 event.  Foodbuzz has teamed up with Electrolux for this month, who has committed $750,000 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, and this month’s event is benefiting the OCRF by contributing a donation of $250 in each of the participants’ names!

I was able to do a bit of the prep for the event during the week beforehand.  I bought ingredients, folded paper cranes to go at each place setting on the table,

made the tofu (5 blocks—that’s a lot of tofu!), made the gari (pickled ginger),

and made some daikon hoajo-zuke (pickled daikon radish with Sichuan peppercorns).

The day of the event Mr. Fuji, Josie (Daydreamer Desserts), and I drove over to Greg’s house, unloaded our packed car, and got to work.  Jen (Devour the World) arrived soon after with some additional supplies.  There is a lot to do when preparing a multi-course meal for a group of 21 people!  We started with things like adding some finishing details to the beautiful table that Greg had already set for us and putting together gift bags.

Then we moved on to prepping the food.  Two different companies provided some equipment for the event that made our prep work much easier and more enjoyable.  Zojirushi provided two of their amazing 10-cup Induction Heating Pressure Rice Cookers.  I don’t know what we would have done without these!  Not only did it streamline our rice making process (we had to make a lot of rice), but these cookers also produce perfect rice every time—a nice thing to be able to rely on when you’re trying to provide enough rice for 21 people to use to learn how to make sushi!

Ergo Chef provided 3 knives for all of the slicing, chopping, and dicing we had to do.  We got to try out their 8-inch Chef’s Knife with Hollow Ground Edge, their Fillet Knife, and their Paring Knife.  They also sent along a Carving Knife that we got to give away as a door prize!

Martin (the owner of I Love Blue Sea) and Matt (one of the guys working with him) drove all the way down from the Bay Area the morning of the event with our fresh seafood.  When they arrived, they immediately  rolled up their sleeves and pitched in (their mothers should be proud).

When the rice was cooked, Jen and I made the sushi rice, fanning the rice to cool it, and slowly adding the sushi zu (seasoned vinegar).  I took advantage of the situation and got a free rice steam facial from Jen, who is a master wielder of an uchiwa (fan used for fanning rice).

Then SushiZuri, the people making the appetizers, showed up and started their prep.  That kitchen had so much going on in it that Greg said, “I never thought I’d say this, but I need a bigger kitchen!”

When people started arriving, we started with appetizers and cocktails outside by Greg’s pool.

Greg had arranged for Banzai Beverage to provide sake for the event (he’ll be writing more about that),

and SushiZuri made a gorgeous assortment of salmon, tuna, and blue crab tartars with baked wonton crackers.  Just thinking about them makes me swoon, they were so good.

Course 1: Hiyayakko

Everyone moved indoors and took a seat at the long table.  We started our meal with hiyayakko—a popular Japanese dish of chilled tofu served with toppings.  I made all the tofu during the 24 hours prior to the event so that it would be as fresh as possible.  There is nothing like fresh handmade tofu!

We sliced the tofu into small squares and topped each square with a bit of grated daikon radish, katsuobushi (smoked bonito fish flakes), sliced scallions, a drizzle of soy sauce, and a few drops of toasted sesame oil.

* Make your own tofu.

* Make hiyayakko.

Course 2: Baked Green-Lipped Mussels

Martin (I Love Blue Sea) topped some fresh Green-Lipped Mussels with a mixture of Japanese Kewpie Mayonnaise and sriracha and then put them under the broiler until they were cooked through.

These mussels were absolutely amazing—tender and full of flavor and the sauce added a nice creamy and slightly spicy accent.  As Martin explained, shellfish are often one of the most sustainable options.  They require no fish meal; they take all of the protein they need from the water around them.  In fact, they actually remove debris and nutrients from the water leaving the surrounding seawater cleaner!  As this course was eaten, Martin gave a brief presentation on seafood sustainability and then conducted a wonderful discussion on the topic.

Course 3: Cucumber & Wakame Sunomono

A light refreshing pickled salad made from thinly sliced cucumbers and wakame (seaweed) dressed in a sweet rice vinegar dressing.

Course 4: Sushi

Before we started the fourth course, Jen and I gave a brief demonstration on how to make sushi rice.  Sushi rice, or rice dressed with seasoned vinegar, is an essential component of sushi.  My experience is that good  sushi can be ruined by bad sushi rice.  I wanted to show everyone that if they can make good sushi rice, there is no reason why they can’t make delicious sushi at home.  Then I demonstrated how to make temakizushi (a traditional hand roll in a cone shape) and then maki sushi (sushi rolls).

We provided a variety of fillings for people to choose from (including the gari I made beforehand) and the daikon hoajo-zuke that I made beforehand as a pickle to be eaten on the side.  For the fish, we had:

Dungeness Crab: Strong populations coupled with effective management make this fishery resilient and productive.  As Martin said, “Thank goodness, because it is so delicious!”  The crab was sweet and moist and almost melted in your mouth.  I could easily put away a pound of this stuff by myself.

Wild Alaskan King Salmon: These have an aggressive and fairly effective fishery management program.  Farmed salmon, on the other hand, often has severe problems.  The salmon was absolutely gorgeous and tasted just as good.

Albacore Tuna: This particular albacore is caught using a hand line from a sustainable fishery in the North Pacific.  The belly portion is mind-blowingly incredible.  It is tender and rich, tasting a lot like avocados.  All it takes is one bite and you’re addicted.

Yellowtail: Caught off the coast of Southern California, these jacks – like mahimahi – spawn many times in a season producing prodigious numbers of offspring.  While many years back they were overfished by purse seiners, today they are taken only by pole and line and have recovered to their once abundant numbers.  The yellowtail was wonderful as well, with great flavor and texture.

Everyone had a great time rolling and eating their own sushi.

And look, they even produced sushi to be proud of!  I told them that one of the fun parts of making sushi at home, is that if you mess up on a roll, that just means that you have to eat the evidence.  Although it may not look right, it will still taste delicious!

* How to make sushi rice.

Course 5: Miso Soup

To finish off the savory courses we served a miso soup made with homemade dashi, a mixture of akamiso (red/dark miso) and shiromiso (white miso), wakame, fresh sliced shiitake mushrooms, and negi (a Japanese vegetable that tastes like a cross between chives and green onions).

* Make your own miso soup.

Course 6: Dessert!

Josie of Daydreamer Desserts created a fantastic Japanese inspired dessert buffet: Pistachio Macarons filled with White Chocolate Pistachio Buttercream, Matcha (Green Tea) Macarons filled with a Mint-Matcha Buttercream, a Matcha (Green Tea) Ice Cream, Fuji Apple Sake Zabaglione Ice Cream, and a Yuzu infused Rice Wine Granita.

* Get Josie’s recipe for Matcha (Green Tea Ice Cream)!

The event was definitely a success and I hope that everyone had as much fun as I did!  I couldn’t have pulled it off without a lot of help and support from some amazing people.

A HUGE thank you to our cast of wonderful helpers, presenters and sponsors:

Greg (Sippity Sup), who graciously opened up his home, set the table, provided dinnerware, julienned cucumbers like a madman, as well as accomplishing a whole variety of other activities.

Josie (Daydreamer Desserts), who was our pastry chef extraordinaire, kitchen help, gift bag stuffer, helped me brainstorm for weeks before the event, and was was our event photographer since I never even had the opportunity to unzip my camera bag I was so busy! (Thank you for letting me use all your awesome pictures!)

Jen (Devour the World), who was my sous chef extraordinaire, picked up last minute items on the way to Greg’s house, helped me go through our check list 5 million times to make sure we weren’t forgetting anything, and kept me laughing the whole night.

Mr. Fuji, who came and helped beforehand without complaint, and has put up with me stressing out and being distracted by the whole thing like a saint.  I love you!

Martin and Matt (I Love Blue Sea), who drove down the morning of so that we would have the freshest seafood possible, worked like slaves in the kitchen, helped to educate everyone on the issues that face the sustainability of our seafood, and provided 2 $20 off certificates as door prizes.  You guys rock.

SushiZuri, for providing amazing appetizers, great company, and telling me that my sushi rice was delicious. (Let me tell you how nervous it made me to be teaching sushi making basics to a room filled with people that contained an actual sushi chef!)

Banzai Beverage, for providing the sake for the event.

Zojirushi, who not only provided those 2 amazing rice cookers that saved my sanity, but also provided bags that we used as gift bags for everyone to take home, and fans to use for fanning the hot steamed rice.

Ergo Chef, who provided awesome knives that made our kitchen prep fun and provided an awesome door prize!

And last, but not least, Foodbuzz, for choosing our event to be featured as part of this month’s special 24×24 event, giving us the opportunity to help benefit the OCRF!

Without all of you, this event wouldn’t have possible and definitely not as fun and delicious!

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I’m so grateful to have sweet blogging friends who I can call on for help occasionally!  This past Friday I had a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy.  For the past month I’ve been scrambling to finish projects and meet deadlines, so that everything would be done before my surgery date.  Luckily, a couple of those sweet blogging friends volunteered to step up and make sure that things didn’t get to quiet here on LFM!  First up is one of my dear friends, Paula, the talented author behind bell’alimento.

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Hi! It’s Paula from bell’alimento. Remember me. ; ) I’m super excited to be able to stop by for a second visit with all of you Fuji Fans! I know it may be a little early in the year for some to be thinking about soup, BUT since my dear sweet friend Fuji Mama is going to be recovering from a little minor surgery it’s the perfect dish to share now and it’s what I would make her if I didn’t live on the opposite coast. ; )

Soup is just good for the soul. It’s comforting from your head to your toes and always makes me feel better when I’m not feeling so hot! Tortellini in Brodo is simply Italian for Tortellini in broth. It’s normally served for special occasions in Italy because it’s made from scratch from start to finish. For this recipe we’re going to take a few shortcuts, but if you wanted to make your broth from scratch and your tortellini feel free! It will definitely be worth the time investment. You can always make a large batch of tortellini and freeze the extras for later!

To make a quicker version of this classic I’ve use a good quality pre-packaged cheese tortellini {you can find these in the refrigerated section at your grocers}. You can also use the dried tortellini {normally found in the pasta aisle} just remember if you do you’ll need to put it into the broth a little earlier as it will take longer to cook than the refrigerated tortellini. I used cheese filled tortellini here but if you want to use a meat filled variety, that’s fine too! Totally up to you!

So grab your dutch oven, your chef’s knife and get to chopping! You’ll be enjoying a nice big comforting pot of Tortellini in Brodo before you know it!

Baci!
Paula

Months ago I saw a call in one of Pillsbury’s newsletters for the opportunity to become a Pillsbury Crescents Ambassador.  I thought, “Why not? I’ve always loved Pillsbury Crescents!”  So I went online and filled out the application, hit submit, and then promptly forgot about it.  About a month later, on June 14th, I got a phone call from someone on the campaign team saying that I had been picked out of the 3,600 applicants to go into the pool being considered for one of 4 final positions.  I had to submit 2 original recipes using Pillsbury Crescents, along with some additional information.  Then on June 30th I was notified that I had been picked as one of 12 semi-finalists!  I was on pins and needles for the next few weeks, and then on July 16th I heard that I was picked as one of 4 Pillsbury Crescent Ambassadors.  I’ve been dying to share every since, but have had to keep it quiet until the whole campaign went live . . . TODAY!!!

So here’s the deal—there are 4 of us who were picked, but we are all now going to be competing against each other to be named the public’s favorite Crescent Cook and for the chance to win $5,000. I need YOUR help!  It is up to the public to choose the ultimate winner.  My first recipe is live and ready for you to print off and try out.  Go on over to get a little taste of the Mediterranean with my recipe for Greek Salad Pizza.

While you are there I would love it if you would throw a vote in for me!  When you vote, you’ll also be entered to win your own cash prize of $5,000 in the “My Crescent Wow” Sweepstakes!  You can vote (and be entered in the Sweepstakes) every day!  For more info about the sweepstakes, me, my recipes and to vote, please visit: MyCrescentWow.com

Comment #216 was left by Jill:

Congrats Jill!  I’m so excited for you to try fresh figs for the first time!  I’ll be emailing you today to get your address so that your figs can be shipped to you!

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I have to admit that I meant today’s recipe to be something totally different.  I cut my last few fresh figs into slices, dipped them in tempura batter, deep fried them, and then dusted them with powdered sugar.  In my head the idea sounded so good.  In reality?  Not good at all.  The result can only be described as a disaster.  The deep frying gave the fig flesh an unappetizing mushy texture.  It wasn’t pretty.  I think this idea still has possibilities, but unfortunately I was out of fresh figs and couldn’t try again and make the adjustments to put my theory to the test.

But what do do?  I needed one more dish to complete my week of celebrating figs.  I decided to finally pull out the dried figs that had also been included in my goody box.  

As I sat looking at them, I remembered a popular way of eating figs in Japan—fresh figs peeled, cut into quarters, and dressed with gomadare (sesame sauce/dressing).  The sweetest of the figs tastes delicious with the creamy rich nuttiness of the gomadare.  I decided to try out making this simple dish with a twist, using some of the dried figs.

The pairing was equally delicious, but I found that the dried figs were even richer than fresh, and the combination with the sesame dressing I had made was a bit too rich.  So I decided to add some baby arugula to add a bit of bite that would help cut through the richness of the pairing and prevent the palate from being overwhelmed.  The combination was a definite success and was beautiful as well.  This makes a fun appetizer that is affordable and takes very little time to make.  You start with a bed of baby arugula, then add a dried fig, cut into quarters, then drizzle everything with a bit of the sesame dressing.

For the sesame dressing, I deviated from the traditional gomadare recipe which uses some harder to find ingredients like Japanese sesame paste, and substituted easier to find ingredients like tahini.

The sauce is delicious, and would make a wonderful salad dressing, as well as a sauce for grilled chicken.  I used dried black mission figs purely for color contrast, but you could use any dried fig—any choice would be delicious.    The combination of sweet, nutty, creamy, and bitter is wonderful.  And the best part about this appetizer?  You don’t have to wait for fig season to serve it, because dried figs are available year round.  A huge thank you to the California Fig Advisory Board for giving me a week of figgy bliss.  I’m afraid of the fig withdrawals which I’m sure are about to hit.

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Now that we’ve used figs in a few sweet ways, I’m ready to go savory!  Figs and cheese make a divine combination, and then if you add a bit of pork to the mix, whether it be bacon, pancetta, or prosciutto, you get the gold medal trio of savory fig combinations.  I decided to bring the winning trio together on squares of puff pastry to make some beautiful savory tarts.

I decided to use some of the fresh black mission figs, not only because of their flavor, but because I thought the color would be a nice contrast to the other colors in play on the tarts.

Although I love making puff pastry, it is such a long involved process, that it just isn’t realistic for me to do so very often at my current stage in life.  For some reason, chasing around 2 active little girls seems to take up a lot of time!  So I thawed out a sheet of store bought puff pastry dough (I used Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry for these tarts), cut it into 4 pieces, put the pieces on a Silpat, and pricked them with a fork.

Then I topped each square with about 1 ounce of brie cheese (I just pinched off little pieces and dotted each square with them), 1 fig cut into slices,

and several small pieces of prosciutto.

Then I popped them into the oven to bake until the puff pastry had done its thing, and was a nice golden brown.  The sweetness of the Black Mission figs tasted wonderful with creamy brie and the salty prosciutto.  The puff pastry was the perfect pillowy vehicle to deliver it all into my mouth.  Despite the more sophisticated presentation, my girls eagerly tasted the tarts because Squirrel pointed out that it looked like pizza.

Although I love eating fig preserves on crackers with cream cheese, or simply spread on a slice of toasted and buttered bread (especially brioche!), fig preserves also make excellent additions to other dishes.  Whether it be using the preserves to make a glaze for a pork roast or adding the preserves to a yogurt parfait, the preserves are versatile and delicious.  I used some of my preserves to make mini fig and white chocolate mascarpone cream tarts.  These tarts are perfect for party finger food.  Not only are they delicious, but they are super easy to make and the components can be made ahead of time.  They are also the perfect size to be slipped into mini cupcake papers and packaged up to be given as a special treat to someone.

I started out by making the mini tart shells.  I made the dough, then rolled it out, and cut out 24 circles using a 2.25″ circle cutter.  Then I pressed the circles of dough into a mini muffin pan (1 1/2-inch muffin cups).  I used a wooden tart tamper to make these go a bit quicker, but you can totally do the same thing using your fingers and pressing the dough into the muffin cups.  Then I pricked the dough with a fork and baked the shells until the edges had turned a golden brown.

When the shells had cooled, I spooned a bit of the fig preserves into each shell, topped them off with white chocolate mascarpone cream, and garnished them with a fresh mint leaf.

The tarts were wonderful.  It’s a good thing that I had lots of people to share them, because it limited the number of times I could pop “just one more” into my mouth.

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* Don’t forget to enter for the chance to win your own box of fresh California figs!!  Details can be found in my Fresh California Figs + A Giveaway! post.

Today’s fig adventure features Kadota figs—the fig with honey sweet amber colored flesh.

I couldn’t resist using some of the figs to make a batch of fig preserves.

I decided that the sweet honey flavor of the Kadota figs would be especially delicious paired with the spicy bite of fresh ginger and one of my favorite ingredients—star anise.

I sliced the figs in half and scooped out their soft flesh with a grapefruit spoon.  Then I went through the process of turning the figs into preserves—making a sugar syrup, then adding the figs, fresh ginger, and star anise, and stewing everything together until it had reduced and become thick and syrupy and fragrant.  After the preserves had cooled slightly, I filled glass jars, sealed them, let them finish cooling, and then put them into the refrigerator.  I didn’t go through the actual canning process to seal the jars, as I knew I would be giving all but one of the jars away.

The finished preserves were absolutely delicious.  The ginger complimented the sweet fig flavor perfectly, and the flavor of the star anise added a wonderful aromatic licorice flavor.  As soon as the preserves were ready for tasting, I pulled out some toasted whole grain crackers, spread them with a bit of cream cheese, and then added a spoonful of the fig preserves.  A perfect afternoon snack.  I highly recommend it.

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* Don’t forget to enter for the chance to win your own box of fresh California figs!!  Details can be found in my Fresh California Figs + A Giveaway! post.

We are now in the middle of fig season here in California.

I remember eating my first fig when I was about 11 years old at a friends house.  Her parents were Iranian immigrants and they had planted a fig tree when they bought their home in Southern California to remind them of home.  The tree was huge with gorgeous green leaves.  I remember seeing the tree with fruit on it for the first time and asking my friend what the fruit was.  I remember her looking at me incredulously, grabbing a fig off the tree, and handing it to me, urging me to eat it.  All it took was one bite and I knew that I loved figs.   At the end of last month I got an email from the California Fig Advisory Board asking if I would be interested in receiving a package of “fresh-from-the-farm” figs.  How could I turn an offer like that?  Last Thursday I received not one, but two massive boxes filled with figs: 5 flats containing 36 figs in 5 different varieties, and 2 four pound bags of 2 different varieties of dried figs.  I felt like Christmas had come early—the California Fig Advisory Board spoiled us rotten.

My kids have been going fig wild, eating their weight in fresh figs.  I spent the past weekend cooking with figs—enjoying the pleasure of letting my taste buds lead the way.  As a result, I have SO MUCH to share that I’m devoting this entire week to figs.

Why figs?

Spanish missionaries planted fig trees when they established a mission in San Diego, California, in the late 19th century.  But it wasn’t until the early 20th century that California began to really cultivate and process figs, due to the development of more sophisticated cultivation techniques that improved the quality of the figs grown in California.  Since that time California has become one of the world’s largest producers, along with Greece, Portugal, Spain, and Turkey.  California fig growers produce 100 percent of the USA’s dried figs and 98 percent of our fresh figs.  Although the fig is considered a fruit, it is actually a flower that is inverted into itself.  (For the sake of cataloging, I’ll be putting any fig recipes into my fruit section, as I don’t think I have enough flower recipes to merit the addition of another category.)  This “fruit” provides more fiber than any other common fruit or vegetable and is fat-, sodium-, and cholesterol-free.  Figs also have higher mineral content than many of the other common fruits.  One serving of figs contains almost 10% of your daily potassium, 6% of calcium, and 6% of iron.  Figs contain natural humectants—properties that extend freshness and moistness in baked products.  Figs are very delicate and bruise easily, and should be kept in the refrigerator once they have become ripe, where they will stay fresh for about 2 days.  Dried figs, on the other hand, will stay fresh for several months, and don’t have to be stored in the refrigerator, as long as they are kept in a cool, dark place.

California Figs

My family has had a wonderful time learning about California figs.  So far we have only used the fresh figs, as we had so many that I was worried about using them all before they went bad!  There are actually five different varieties of California figs, and each is very different: Kadota, Black Mission, Sierra, Brown Turkey, and Calimyrna.

Kadota Figs

The Kadota fig has a green/yellow skin that is on the thicker side and creamy amber colored flesh.  The flesh is sweet as honey and has been called “natures candy.”

Black Mission Figs

The Black Mission fig is tear-drop shaped with a thin black skin and reddish flesh, with a distinct mildly sweet flavor.

Sierra Figs

The Sierra fig is a new hybrid that has a thicker yellow-green skin, which helps protect the fruit against splitting when the climate changes, and amber colored flesh, and looks a lot like the Kadota fig.  The flesh is milder and not as sweet as the Kadota flesh, but still delicious and creamy.

Brown Turkey Figs

The Brown Turkey fig has brownish/copper-colored skin with hints of purple, yellow, and green, and a mostly pink/red flesh mixed with a bit of white flesh.  They have a wonderful fragrant flavor.

Calimyrna Figs

The Calimyrna fig has golden skin and tender yellow-golden orange flesh.   Many people consider the Calimyrna to be the most delicious of all the varieties and refer to it as “the filet mignon of figs”, with it’s sweet flesh that has a distinct nut-like flavor.  They are extremely perishable and so are often dried in order to preserve them.

Fresh California Figs Giveaway!

I cannot wait to share with you what we did with our figs, so come back each day this week to see how we used them (other than eating them straight)!  But to get us started on our week of figgy goodness, how about a giveaway?  The California Fig Advisory Board has agreed to help me share the fruits of fig season by sending one of YOU a box of figs!

The giveaway is now closed! To enter the giveaway, just leave me a comment telling me your favorite way to enjoy fresh figs! If you have never eaten a fig, tell me which variety you are most interested in tasting!  I will keep the comments open until Thursday, August 26th, 10 PM PST, and announce the winners (using a random number generator) on Friday, August 27th.  This giveaway is open to US addresses ONLY.

Bonus Entries:

2. Follow @fujimama on Twitter. RT this post and then come back and leave a separate comment telling me you’ve done so. NOTE: You must be following @fujimama for this entry to count.  You can even just copy and paste this tweet to make it easy: @fujimama Fresh California Figs giveaway—win a box of fresh California Figs! http://su.pr/16c5Dq

3. Become a fan on Facebook. Come back and leave a separate comment telling me you’ve done so.

4. Become a fan of the California Fig Advisory board on Facebook.  Come back and leave a separate comment telling me you’ve done so.

5. Sign up for our RSS Feed or Email Subscription.  Come back and leave a separate comment telling me you’ve done so (or if you’re already a subscriber).

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* Figgy References:

• WHFoods: Figs
• California Fig Advisory Board
• Calimyrna Figs

* Disclosure: The California Fig Advisory Board provided me with the fresh and dried figs.  I was under no obligation to write about the figs.

Guess what?  The Washoku Warriors group is now one year old and counting and this challenge was our 12^th challenge!  We continue to add new members from around the globe.  It has been a wonderful year and I have thoroughly enjoyed working through the book with fellow Warriors.  I find their experiences, writeups, and pictures inspiring, and they definitely help me stay the course.  I can’t wait to see what the next year of battling holds for the Warriors.  I will cook every recipe in Washoku, and it will be thanks to my Warriors.  For this challenge I decided to break out of the normal mold and do things a bit differently.  To celebrate a year of Japanese cooking I left the challenge open to the Warriors.  I told them to pick one or two things that they had been dying to try out of the book, or that were their favorite things they made during the past year.  It was really fun to see each writeup show up in my inbox—fabulous variety!!  So check out what the Warriors choose to tackle when they are left to their own devices . . . .

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Fuji Mama

I had grand plans for celebrating the completion of one year of challenges.  But I quickly simplified those plans and then simplified them again, as my month got more and more hectic.  What is it about the end of summer?  Just when you think things should be relaxing and slow, the calendar starts to fill up and that free time you were hoping for turns out to be just a nice thought.  Oh well.  Squirrel started preschool again last week, and I must say that it is nice to be getting back into a more regular structured routine.  Despite the crazy month it turned out to be, I was determined to make at least one thing out of the book that I had been dying to try—tofu no miso-zuke, aka, tofu “cheese” (page 284).  As Andoh points out in the book, despite the fact that this sounds like a “new wave or fusion fare” dish, it’s actually a way of preparing tofu that is at least several hundred years old, showing up in a Japanese cookbook in the eighteenth century.  Tofu is drained and then pressed to squeeze out extra moisture, resulting in a denser, more firm block of tofu.  Then you marinate the tofu in a miso mixture for a minimum of 8 hours.  The marination ferments the tofu, giving it a wonderful flavor that is reminiscent of cheese (thus the use of the word “cheese” in the English name translation).  We kept things simple and spread the flavorful creamy tofu on toasted multigrain crackers—a delicious treat!  Simple, but a wonderful way to celebrate a great year.

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Tamara of nezumi iro mausgrau

I’ve chosen the poached peaches on p. 306, which the Warriors were proposed to make in ‘miso’ challenge #3, and the ginger-stewed eggplant, p.192, simply considering that they would fit the season well. Making the peaches in miso sauce was neither very difficult nor a lot of effort, however, it is not a quick dessert. On the other hand you can easily prepare them in advance.  The recipe taught me a lesson in cutting and peeling stone fruits. The other tricky thing was that I didn’t have saké at home. (And it seems impossible to get any here in my town in Germany that is affordable and at the same time consumable.). I substituted the saké and a part of the sugar by (hon) mirin where, in this case, I mixed in a very little bit of vodka. That’s not the elegant way, but it was ok. The colour of this dessert isn’t overwhelming, so that you may need to save the optical impression with some suitable dishware. It’s taste surely is different from that of western sweet foods, but it’s a light and fresh, yet satisfying dessert. For those who prefer it less exotic I suggest to serve the peaches with a sauce made with chocolate instead of the neri miso, that could be awesome, I think. I can imagine to make this recipe again, possibly having the fruits after a summerly Japanese style dinner. The eggplants went well and turned out to be a nice side dish.

Read Tamara’s post about the challenge: peaches and eggplants

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Janet of The Taste Space

I am delighted to join the Warriors for this challenge as my first.  I know that there are many delicious recipes in Washoku, but one of my tried-and-true favourite staples is Silken Tofu Topped with Enoki Mushrooms.  This is one of my favourite dishes, especially when enoki mushrooms are on sale, as the silky, melt-in-your-mouth tofu is paired with pale, tender, enoki mushrooms smothered in a delicate, subtle dashi broth flavoured with soy sauce, mirin and sake. It is a snap to put together. This is simplicity at its finest, very much the quintessential trait of Japanese cuisine. Depending on the mushroom you choose, this dish vary from delicate as I described with the enoki mushrooms, to more robust with maitake mushrooms.

Read Janet’s post about the challenge: Silken Tofu Topped With Enoki Mushrooms (Tofu no enoki an kake)

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Sarah of Somedays

I didn’t think I was going to make this challenge, and when it comes down to it, I guess I didn’t actually – the cooking this month wasn’t done by me but by my boyfriend.  My excuse is that after getting back from a week in Indonesia I was hit by some nasty bug or bugs and left without much energy or appetite.  U came to the rescue, however, and cooked up a big batch of tonjiru (miso-based soup with pork and veggies) that was both gentle on my fragile stomach and full of goodness to give me some much needed energy.  Hardly the celebration of a year of Washoku Warriors that I had been hoping to put together, but perhaps the best way of symbolizing a year for U and I.

Read Sarah’s post about the challenge: One Year

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Jeanie of ROWR!!!

I’ve been OBSESSED with ramen for some time now so I was pretty excited about making the Miso Ramen for this month’s challenge..  I was a little apprehensive about making the broth from scratch because of the time involved, but it turned out to be fine because I had a friend over who helped me cook the broth while I made some gyoza to eat with the ramen.  I enjoyed the final product, it was light and flavorful and I liked all the vegetables.  I was not able to find mugi miso in my local Japanese grocery store – I substituted with shiro miso since that’s what I like.  I will keep an eye out for mugi miso so I can use it next time.  I have lots of noodles left over and I look forward to making this dish again.  I’m feeling inspired to try making other types of ramen!

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Anne of Gullo Goodies

For Challenge #12, I had an opportunity to choose any recipe from my new cookbook, Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen by Elizabeth Andoh. I chose Yaki Nasu, a chilled roasted eggplant dish because I LOVE eggplant.  Plus, the recipe required three ingredients (yes, only THREE!) and looked easy to whip together.  This was the perfect starter recipe for me. :)  Since I already had sea stock and seasoned soy sauce, this dish came together quickly and easily. The hardest part was waiting 24 hours to allow the eggplant to marinate in the sauce.  It was worth the wait and oh so good!  ENJOY!

Anne’s post about the challenge: Yaki Nasu: Chilled Roasted Eggplant

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Phoebe of Studio of Good Living

‘What’s for dinner tonight?’ My husband yelled as he was running out the door with our daughter on his hip.  ‘Washoku’ I muttered, head buried in the cookbook of the same name.    I selected 3 recipes that I had to make.  One was made, the rest merely fantasy.   The one I chose was the Tonkatsu recipe—you know the picture on the back overleaf?  That’s it!!  It was far easier to make than I anticipated and absolutely delicious.  Instead of the traditional heavy Tonkatsu sauce, the pork is divided into two portions and rolled with two very different fillings.  One, with umeboshi plum paste and shiso leaves, the other with nori and leek miso.  They were both delicious and very different.  The leek miso and nori gave an exotic, brooding quality to the Tonkatsu.  The shiso and plum paste was my favorite—I found these flavors to be particularly haunting.  The Tonkatsu made in this fashion was lovely to look at too.  They would be a fantastic hors d’oeurve at a dinner party.  It ended up being thumbs up all around.  I will definitely make this again.

**News: A friend of mine recently contacted me about a project her son has been involved in, to see if I would be able to help her get the word out.  Her son Park has been working with his aunt, who is a Peace Corps volunteer in Malawi, to build a library for the school in Tchawale.  The library has been built, now it just needs books on its shelves.  (See and read more about the library.)  They are working with a fabulous non-profit organization called the Tipping Bucket, that helps normal people spread the word about projects they are involved in.  The idea is to spread the word to as many people as possible to donate $1.00.  I have already donated, but know that many of you may be willing to donate $1.  Story time in our family is a much anticipated time of each day, and so children having access to books is a cause that is near and dear to my heart.  So if you are able and willing, I would love to have some of my big-hearted friends pass on the love to my little friend Park, and help him exceed his goal and fill those bookshelves!

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You probably thought that my obsession with recipes containing sweetened condensed milk had finally passed.  But I’m back today with a sweetened condensed milk sneak attack!

Just when you thought the coast was clear!  I know, I’m mean like that.  I’m sorry.  I can’t help myself.  I blame it all on my mom’s side of the family.  Seriously.  My free will was taken from me the moment my mom started the sweetened condensed milk family email discussion and I’ve been pathetically helpless ever since. (And hey, no family members are allowed to take advantage of my use of the word “mean,” “pathetic,” or “helpless” in describing myself in any future family emails . . . . Yeah, you know who you are.)  Family recipes have ranged from pies, to cookie bars, to cakes and drinks.  My cousin Julie was even kind enough to share her favorite recipe using sweetened condensed milk:

Julie’s Sweetened Condensed Milk Treat

INGREDIENTS:
1 can sweetened condensed milk
spoon

Do not eat spoon.

I had to laugh when I read that one, as I recently confessed the theft of a can of sweetened condensed milk to my mother that I committed when I was about 10 years old.  When I was growing up, whenever my mom made something using sweetened condensed milk, I remember begging her to give me the empty can so that I could use my finger to capture any remaining molecules of the sweet elixir and then lick my finger clean.  I remember one day that the temptation of the sweetened condensed milk sitting in the pantry became so great that I finally gave in, sneaking a can of it out of the pantry and spiriting it away to my bedroom, where I proceeded to eat the contents of the can by myself over the course of the next couple of days.  So yeah Julie, I love your recipe.

Some of you may be scratching your heads thinking, “What? I mean, c’mon Rachael, sweetened condensed milk is so ‘old school.’  Only people still making molded jell-o dishes, tuna surprise casserole, and pigs in a blanket, drinking Tab and Tang, and decorating with avocado green and harvest gold shag carpet still use sweetened condensed milk as much as you do.”  But I’d like to submit that it’s time for you to rethink those seemingly mundane cans of sweetened condensed milk at your local supermarket.  First of all, if you look at the ingredients listed on a can of sweetened condensed milk, you are going to see two things listed: concentrated whole milk and sugar.  That’s it.  No undesirable preservatives, no high fructose corn syrup, no ingredients that sound like they belong in an evil scientist’s secret lab . . . just milk and sugar.  My highly intelligent mother also made an important argument as to why you should reconsider sweetened condensed milk: “Perhaps if you look at it as an important part of international cuisine, it might regain its luster.”

You see, my family discovered through our crazy joint sweetened condensed milk exploration, that sweetened condensed milk has an important international presence.  In an effort to be more appreciative of other world cultures, I submit that we need to further explore the world of sweetened condensed milk.  I’ve already told you about its presence in Japan, but our family discussion also revealed other countries that utilize sweetened condensed milk in their cuisine.  My cousin Lisa, who lives in London, England, shared a recipe for Banoffee Pie, an English pie that is made with bananas, cream, toffee, and boiled sweetened condensed milk.  My brother shared an avocado smoothie recipe that uses sweetened condensed milk as the sweetener.  After a bit of research, my mom discovered that this is a popular Vietnamese treat (Sinh to Bo).  Further investigation has revealed that sweetened condensed milk is a common ingredient in many Vietnamese treats, such as Vietnamese iced coffee, and Vietnamese Cassava Cake (Banh Khoai Mi).  Flipping through an Indian cookbook during this International exploration, I found several dessert recipes containing sweetened condensed milk, including little coconut balls (Nariyal Laddoo) and cardamom ice cream (Elaichi Kulfi).  But it was ultimately Brazil that prompted the recipe in this post.  After posting my initial Sweetened Condensed Milk Mania recipe for Caramel Popcorn, my friend Damaris left a comment saying, “Sweetened condensed milk is the first ingredient of every Brazilian recipe. It’s the ultimate good ingredient.”  My uncle, who lived for several years in Brazil, shared a recipe for Brazilian lemonade.  At the time I had strawberry syrup sitting in the refrigerator, leftover from making Strawberry Condensed Milk Japanese Shaved Ice, so I decided to try out my uncle’s recipe, adapting it to use up some of the strawberry syrup.

All I can say is that I should probably never move to Brazil.  If their other recipes that use sweetened condensed milk are this delicious, I would quickly become the size of an elephant because I would have zero self-control.  This drink is the perfect balance of sweet strawberry and zingy tart lime—incredibly refreshing and incredibly addictive.  When you add the sweetened condensed milk to the rest of the ingredients and blend everything together, it develops a delicious creamy foam that will have you pouring yourself a second glass, and then a third, and then . . . .