re-connect

Phil is in town. He contacted me to have lunch the other day.

After waiting for a table, we had a nice lunch at Cercle in Nakazaki-cho...950 yen (tax included)

Starters were their sweet potato soup, a pâté with pickles, broccoli terrine and some kind of mousse.

We both chose the chicken roti. This was served with a porcini and assorted mushroom sauce.

The tables all have these cute drawers for you to get your utensils and other things like plates and napkins from.

The shop is tiny and the portions of food are kinda tiny too.

Even if the food was good, guys (and maybe some gals), I think you may be hungry after eating here...

We then went for coffee at Utena...400 yen (tax included)

This cafe is very laid back and quiet, with jazz playing in the background.

Loved the interior, really retro.

Omiyage (souvenirs) from Phil.

Since we last met, he's been working in Lyon, France, he was so sweet to bring me a foodie French magazine and some chocolates by Chocolat des Princes (a local chocolatier).

I've been using google translate to read the magazine...

I couldn't believe how many chocolates fit inside that box! I shared with Satoshi, they were delicious! (click on the photo to see what each one was)

It was a great day, lots of catching up, lots of good food!

Thanks for a great day Phil! Enjoy the rest of your stay in Japan.

Lots of re-connecting this week, have a nice weekend everyone!

Cercle
3-1-8 Nakazaki
Kita, Osaka
Phone: 06.6373.6232
Lunch: 11:30-15:00, Dinner: 18:00-22:00
Closed Tuesdays

Utena
1-8-23 Nakazaki-nishi
Kita, Osaka
Phone: 06.6372.1612
Hours: 13:00-22:00
Closed Mondays & Tuesdays

Chocolat des Princes
BOUTIQUE DE LYON
49, rue Franklin
69002 LYON
Phone: 04.78.03.34.70

thank you!

Want to thank Katherine at "Making Cakes & Bakes" magazine for mentioning us in their "Live Love Bake Blog" column. Check out the other blogs on their list too.

Thanks again!

(UPDATE: this site has been deleted)

furoku

When I saw this furoku (freebie) with a fashion magazine, I had to get it.

The furoku came with a calendar and book cover (and book mark) by Coach to celebrate Coach's 70th anniversary.

Unfortunately, the book cover is a tad bit small, only 11 cm (4 in) x 16.5 cm (6 in), a little too small for American sized novels.

Luckily, it fits my Japanese sized sketch book.

Can't wait to use my sketch book more, it's been awhile.

p.s. It's a National Holiday here (the Emperor's birthday) and the start of a 3-day weekend (although Satoshi has to work on Christmas), we're off to visit with my host-family today, hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

furoku

Oh my gosh, the weather went from comfortable to totally miserably hot and humid. The sun feels like a broiler.

I don't know why I even put make-up on my face, it just starts to drip off as soon as I go outside (sometimes even before I go out).

When I go to the supermarket, I am just dripping with perspiration. They say this weather should only last this week.

I hope so.

Anyway, also with the new issue of "Elle a Table" was a furoku (freebie), a furoshiki with handles.

This furoshiki is 70 cm x 70 cm.

Perfect if you are bringing something over to a pot luck or even out to a picnic.

I hope to use it the next time I go on a picnic, probably when the weather gets cooler though.

things I'm liking

It's Sunday and Satoshi is working, thought I'd share some random things that I'm liking...

This canvas tote.

I love tea and one of my favorites is Mariage Frères. Recently they came out with a mook (magazine + book) and their furoku (freebie) was this tote.

It is perfect for a short trip to the market and I think it will be perfect to bring
food on a picnic.

How beautiful are these sasanqua petals?

I loved the way the fallen pink and white covered the ground like a carpet.

Recently Yoshimi gave me this for my birthday, a happy pig (a fruitcake) and fair trade chocolates--one with glazed walnuts, one with chopped almonds & one with croquante...I shared half the pig with Satoshi (Thank you!)

What are you liking?

furoku

In America, rarely do you get anything free in a magazine, well except those subscription forms that fall out whenever you turn the pages.

Oh, and maybe a little whiff of a new perfume.

Furoku are supplements (aka freebies) that come with magazines in Japan.

It is all the rage now. I think that more and more publishers are using these freebies to sell their magazines.

It's how I got my Laduree oil cloth bag.

Recently, a fashion magazine, "With", had a cute furoku...a Hello Kitty Liberty of London card case.

It is perfect for my train pass.

Do magazines where you live come with something free inside?

ahi poke sliders on mini buns

Last Sunday, I tried the recipe for "Ahi Poke Sliders on Mini Buns" which was featured in "Edible Hawaiian Islands Summer 2009".

I had to make my ahi poke from scratch because it doesn't exist here.

I followed this recipe, which I always use to make poke. And not thinking, added the tomato and cucumber which the recipe called for....bad move.

The "burgers" fell apart...it was a mess in the pan...edible but ugly. We ended up eating most of the poke; raw, on the side. (I put some kim chee on this slider to "hide" the damage.)

So, a couple of days later, not appreciating failure in the kitchen, I tried it again, this time leaving out the tomato and cucumber and whizzing it for a bit in the food processor (which the recipe says to do, but I hadn't the first time around).

It came out better and it was great on the rye roll with a smidge of mayo (Best Foods, of course). Add an ice cold glass of beer and you have a great dinner, lunch or snack.

Here is the recipe if you'd like to try it.

Ahi Poke Sliders on Mini Buns from Edible Hawaiian Islands Summer 2009
Makes eight 4-inch mini burgers

2 pounds fresh ahi (tuna) poke, from your favorite local fish market
3 tablespoons macadamia nut oil
8, 4-inch Portuguese sweet rolls

Place the ahi poke in the work bowl of a food processor with the metal blade and pulse until poke is ground. Don't overgrind; keep it slightly chunky. Do this in two batches.

Turn on the grill. When hot, place a large skillet on the grill with the oil and heat the pan until very hot. Cook the poke burgers on the hot pan and sear both sides. Don't overcook; center should stay rare. Place cooked poke sliders on buns and serve.

Enjoy!

NOTES: After making the poke, I let it sit in the refridge for about an hour for the flavors to meld. I didn't use macadamia oil (I've never seen it here) and just used a non-stick pan.

Also, I couldn't find something close to Portuguese sweet rolls (which in my opinion is similar to brioche), so I used what I could find, rye rolls.

If you cook this on the stove, cook it on low heat for about 3 minutes on each side. The middle will be raw and the outside seared. If you don't like to eat things semi-raw, you may want to cook it all the way through.

This was so good, it was hard to put down once I started eating it.

on a side note: Did you know that the amount of ahi (tuna) the world eats a year is really high? (The world put together eats a lot, but apparently, Japan eats even more) So high that the experts are saying that if limits are not placed on fishing or purchasing from fishermen, tuna will be non-existent by 2010 (um, that is next year?!)

Fortunately, when I bought this tuna, it was cultivated in Yamaguchi prefecture (made in Japan). Hopefully, more of these farms will be able to answer the demand for tuna (and maybe other seafood too) and leave nature alone to repair itself.

furoshiki

After seeing La Fuji Mama's post about furoshiki. I had commented and she asked me to post about my Coach furoshiki. (I got the Coach furoshiki when I purchased a fashion magazine here.)

I then went through all my furoshiki....I didn't realize it but I do have somewhat of a collection.

A bunny chirimen (crepe) furoshiki (46 cm x 46 cm).

And the Gion matsuri cotton furoshiki (100 cm x 100 cm).

A Laura Ashley cotton handkerchief that turned into a furoshiki (56 cm x 56 cm).

Sbilla (which I think is a Japanese brand) cotton furoshiki (48 cm x 48 cm).

Cotton tea towel that turned into a furoshiki (48 cm x 48 cm).

And the polyester Coach furoshiki (70 cm x 70 cm). This one is a bit stiff, guess it will take some time to soften.

Here are some ways to use furoshiki from the magazine article--as a means to carry wine, cake, flowers or as a bag.

This site offers techniques on how to tie furoshiki for various objects.

I use the 100 cm x 100 cm furoshiki mainly to carry dishes to pot luck, and the smaller furoshiki to carry bento and mugs to picnics.

If you want to help the environment, want to stop using plastic bags but don't know how to sew, this is a great way to carry groceries and gifts because any squarish piece of fabric can turn into a furoshiki. Also, if you use a nice piece of fabric you could use the furoshiki as gift wrapping and give it away along with the gift inside.

Be creative and do your part to help the environment.

omiyage

"Omiyage" means souvenir in Japanese. When the Japanese travel they often buy LOTS of souvenirs to give away to friends, family and co-workers. Recently, the Japanese travel agencies have been selling "omiyage" to their customers before they even take off for their destinations. This is to relieve the Japanese of wondering what to buy and carrying the items around with them on their trip. The agencies also have the "omiyage" sent to the customers home, so that it arrives the day that they arrive back home!

I don't really like this idea of ordering items from a catalog. In fact, I like roaming local supermarkets to find stuff that the locals are buying. I think we were in Belgium when we roamed the aisles of a local supermarket. We found a lot of great foodie items!

Well, Satoshi is back from his business trip. He was in Sydney and the Gold Coast for the past week. Besides Tim Tams (a chocolate covered cookie made in Australia), I wasn't quite sure as to what kinds of foodie items Sydney and the Gold Coast had to offer, so my "omiyage" list was for him to buy me Australian food magazines. I surfed the internet and found an online subscription site that listed various food magazines. I wrote up a list and gave it to him before he left for Australia. I must say, he did a great job at getting most of them. (Thank you!!) He said he found most of them at Borders Books.

My list:
Donna Hay
Delicious
Australian Gourmet Traveller
Dish
Italianicious
Crema
Regional Food Australia

What Satoshi got:
Donna Hay
Delicious
Australian Gourmet Traveller
Vogue Australia Entertainment & Travel
Italianicious
Crema
Waitrose Food Illustrated

I'm so excited...now to read them all :)

edy, tortillas & saita 2

In Japan, a lot of food items have contests--turn in the bar code to be entered to win a prize, answer a question to win and so on.

In September, I had bought 2 desserts from a convenience store and was eligible to enter their contest. All I had to do was send in my receipt and I had the chance to win an "Edy" card. "Edy" is the latest way to pay for things in Japan.

Some cell phones have this chip installed so that all you need to do is swipe your cell phone over the vending machine and it pays for your juice. A lot of convenience stores also have this system, and recently some train lines also have this system. You can put money into the card and it will subtract from your card to pay for things. Another type of "Edy" card is like a credit card where you pay for things at the end of each month. I was lucky and won one of 6000 cards with 1000yen (about $10) on it!!...what to buy next. :)

If you are like me and like Mexican food, you'll realize that a rare commodity here is tortillas. You can find salsa and avocados, but tortillas...A while back, I had found some in a gourmet supermarket, but after that never saw it again. Recently though, while doing my daily grocery shopping I found some. There were only 5 in a package and it was close to $3!! Still, I bought them and made us some soft tacos for dinner--they were good.

In October, I had bought a "healthy" box lunch which 7-eleven and Saita (a ladies magazine) produced. This past week, they came out with the 2nd version of their "healthy" box lunch. This box lunch has hijiki (seaweed) with komatsuna (a type of chinese cabbage), sweet potato boiled in a lemon sauce, tofu hamburger with minced chicken and tomato sauce, kinpira (burdock root & carrots cooked in sugar and shoyu), broccoli & carrot and 7-grain rice with soy beans and adzuki (red) beans...Yummy!!

Well, after a week of losing my voice, I still have the sniffles, but other than that am feeling much better!! Hope you all have a great week.

saita box lunch & ousunosato

Yesterday, I tried something new.

I bought a bento (boxed lunch) from a convenience store. I usually don't buy my lunch from a convenience store because they mostly have fried foods in their boxed lunches.

This bento was featured in a magazine that I buy twice a month called SAITA.

The bento had (from the top row) vegetable nishime (vegetables boiled in a soy sauce broth), niku dango (a meat dumpling), tamagoyaki (seasoned scrambled egg that is cooked in layers), kinpira (burdock root thinly sliced and cooked with chili pepper & soy sauce), hijiki (a type of seaweed cooked with corn and beans) & kokumai (literally "black rice", the grains are black and when you cook them with some white rice, they turn the white rice a purplish color) mixed with some sweet potato...it was delicious...pretty healthy, huh?

Today for breakfast, we tried an ume (pickled plum) rice mix that I bought from Ousunosato. It was easy, cook 2 cups of rice and stir in the mix!! Yummy!

A couple of years ago while walking along the Gion shopping arcade in Kyoto, I came across a shop, Ousunosato, that sells ume (pickled plum) products. I started with the ume dressing, it is great on daikon (radish) salad.

Since I can't go to Gion all the time, I now order different items from them through the mail. Can you believe that they let you pay the delivery guy when he delivers the items? You don't have to put a down payment or anything!! Very trusting.