elmer's green cafe

Saturday we headed out to Umeda to have some lunch before Satoshi's German language class in the afternoon.

I wanted to check out Elmer's Green Cafe in Kitahama.

It is a small cafe, they say they have 40 seats, but I don't think so, maybe half of that.

They have this long (butcher paper) menu by the cash register and it says "order here", but they actually come to your table to take your order.

We ordered the green salad 200 yen (about US$2)...the lettuce was in big pieces and piled quite high. I wished they had made the pieces more bite-sized, it was quite hard to eat.

What looks like a pecan pie in the photo, is actually a tart made of gobo (burdock) and beans...600 yen (about US$6) While it tasted really good, nice and cheesy, the size and texture of the gobo pieces at times made me feel like I was eating...wood.

Satoshi ordered their croquette sandwich...600 yen (about US$6). This "sandwich" came with two round croquette...Satoshi was surprised and didn't know how to go about eating it.

I was surprised too and suggested he attack it with his knife and fork, instead of trying to eat it like a sandwich. I could just see the croquette rolling away.

He let me taste it and it had lots of potato. I also liked their sauce which tasted like a tonkatsu (pork cutlet) sauce.
Dessert was their granola cheesecake 500 yen (about US$5), this was a baked cheesecake, dense and rich.

The crust was made from granola and served with a dollop of cream and poached pears. I liked the hints of different spices in the granola crust.

We also ordered coffee and a cafe au lait. These drinks were discounted 200 yen each because we had ordered from their savory menu....total for the two drink 450 yen (about US$4.50).

Aside from the huge pieces in the salad and tart, their food is delicious. Service is kind of slow and since the owner is finicky about coffee, their coffee takes some time to come out (they actually roast some of the beans before brewing).

All in all, it is a great place to sit and people watch, though I think if all the seats were filled it would be a bit noisy.

I would definitely go back when I'm in the area. (the other 2 photos in the mosaic are of things I saw on my walk back to Umeda, a building that is actually a French restaurant and a pretty rose I saw blooming near Nakanoshima).

Elmer's Green Cafe
1-7-3 Koraibashi, Kitahama Plaza 1F
Chuo, Osaka
Phone: 06.6223.5560
Open: 10:00-20:00

sanshoku gohan

The weather has been kind of bad. There is the kosa (dust cloud from China) that makes the skies all hazy.

On top of that we had a couple cloudy days. I am hoping this won't affect the momiji (maple) leaves from changing colors...we'll just have to wait and see.

The other night, I was craving a bento for dinner.

I've posted this recipe for sanshoku gohan before here.

But since I couldn't find it on my blog when I was ready to cook, I adapted this recipe from the internet instead.

Sanshoku gohan : serves 2: adapted from the internet

250 grams minced pork
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon sake (rice wine)
2 tablespoons shoyu (soy sauce)
2 tablespoons mirin (sweet rice wine)
ginger, grated

For eggs: 2 eggs
1/2 tablespoon water
1/4 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tablespoon mirin
dash or two of shoyu
some oil

2 Bell pepper, thinly sliced

For meat: Brown meat then drain on paper towel.
Put back into pan and add the sauce.
Cook until liquid evaporates.
Set aside.

For eggs: add some oil to a heated pan
Beat eggs with the condiments.
Cook in pan stirring constantly, until fluffy.
Set aside.

For veg: toss in heated non-stick pan, until cooked to desired tenderness.

Put rice into bowl or bento box. Add meat, egg & veg.

Enjoy.

NOTES: if you are putting this into a bento box, make sure everything is cooled (even your rice), you wouldn't want to get food poisoning or anything.

This time around I added a little grated ginger to the sauce for the minced pork. I also browned the pork then drained it on a paper towel before cooking it in the sauce.

I can also see wrapping this (the meat, egg & veg) in a tortilla as a breakfast or lunch burrito.

This bento really hit the spot.

foodie couple of days

I went to Kobe the other day to check out a cafe...Greens Coffee Roasters.

The owner was a 2-time champ in the Siphon coffee division for a Barista competition.

I heard they would be closing at the end of the month, so I wanted to check them out.

The address that they have listed did not match where they actually were...either that or Google maps is wrong...anyway..

It took me awhile to figure out where they were.

Luckily as I was about to give up, I found them.

Though it was a little early for lunch, I was hungry from all the walking around.

I ordered an egg, avocado & cheese panini...450 yen (about US$4.50), this came with some chips and a nice salad.

And since I was actually there to try their coffee, I ordered a cappuccino 450 yen (about US$4.50).

The atmosphere of the cafe was cozy though a bit noisy as it is located right under the railroad tracks.

I love their food and coffee. The combination of avocado, egg & cheese was perfect...nice and creamy.

And the cappuccino was nice too...strong. And when it cooled, it tasted kind of sweet.

I'm glad I got to check them out before they closed, though I hope they change their mind and stay open.

Greens Coffee Roasters
3-167 Motomachi-Kokadori
Chuo, Kobe
Phone: 078.332.3115

On another day, I went to Suita to check out Sanshikisaido.

I looked through my archives and it had been 3 years since I went there.

The color of the trees were beautiful...light red, orange, yellows & greens.

Even on a weekday, there were lots of people enjoying the colors.

After walking up and down the street a couple of times, I had lunch near the Hankyu Kitasenri station at the Sasebo Burger Cafe.

I had their special cheeseburger...480 yen (about US$4.80) and their oni-pote set...430 yen (about US$4.30).

You should know that oni-pote is short for onion ring and potato (fries). I wonder if Japan is the only country that serves onion rings with fries?? I think it is cool because sometimes you just want a little of both to go along with your meal.

Anyway, the set also came with a drink and I had a Pepsi.

In the past, I tried their BLT but was disappointed because even if they boast being an American burger shop, they don't have American (crispy) bacon.

Their special cheeseburger has lots of pepper, lots of oozy cheese and a special mayo sauce.

Kind of messy but really hit the spot. I also liked the fact that they had old skool music and wi-fi too.

It was a nice couple of days. A little nippy but at least the sun was out.

Sasebo Burger Cafe
4-119 Furuedai, Dios Kitasenri #5Bldg, 1F
Suita, Osaka
Phone: 06.6834.9200

planners

About this time of year and at the beginning of the fiscal year (April), you will see lots of techo (planners) at various stores in their stationery section. 

There are so many varieties to choose from--pocket sized, weekly, A4 (like 8.5"x11" but smaller)....covers with Hello Kitty, leather bound, binder style...the choices are pretty much endless. 

Some have train/subway maps in them. 

Some have the Japanese holidays and good luck/bad luck days too (which could be a post in itself but is explained here). 

I first started using a techo when I studied in Japan. 

After coming back from studying abroad, I would try to visit my host-family during October-November so that I would be able to buy a new one. 

Or if someone was going to Japan for business/vacation, I would ask them to buy me one. 

I especially liked the binder style, which you can put in or take out pages if need be. 

Plus, you don't have to buy a new binder, just get a new refill. 

In the beginning, I wouldn't write much in them, just appointments and birthdays here and there. 

Then gradually I started writing what I was eating. Then the weather. 

For the upcoming year, I decided to change to Moleskine's daily planner. 

It is bigger (and heavier) than what I am used to carrying around, but I figure it would give me more space to write down things. 

Maybe this way I could be more detailed with items, not just writing "bento" (boxed lunch) or "sozai" (pre-made foods). 

I can't wait to use it. 

Do you use a planner? 

How do you use your planner? 

It is Friday here, hope you have a nice weekend!

soup & soup

Well, we ended up not going to visit MIL yesterday. It seems she will be moved to a bigger hospital soon, so Satoshi thought we should wait until she has moved.

Apparently the hospital she is in now, does not have the proper facilities to treat her injuries.

Will keep you posted...

As you can see from my posts over the past couple of days, I've been playing around with my immersion blender/food processor.

One of the things I've made is soup.

Sometimes when we eat out they serve gobo (burdock) potage. Creamy and earthy.

Since I had gobo and satsumaimo (sweet potato) in my refridge, I thought it would be nice to try two different soups instead of just one.

I found a recipe online and split the liquid part of the soup between the two ingredients.

The results were delicious...sort of.

Here is the recipe I followed: from the internet
125 grams gobo (burdock), cleaned and cooked
125 grams satsumaimo (sweet potato), skinned, cleaned and cooked
1/2 onion, chopped
1 consomme cube
500 cc water (2.5 cups)
400 cc milk (2 cups)
20 grams butter (about 2 pats)
2 tablespoons flour

Prepare the gobo and satsumaimo--clean, cook and cut into small pieces, set aside.
Chop onion and heat in a pan with the butter, cook until translucent.
Add the flour and make a roux
Add the water, milk & consomme, cook until heated, do not boil.
Measure out 450 cc of this liquid and put into 2 separate pots.
Whizz with immersion blender until smooth.

NOTES: I steamed the sweet potato and boiled the gobo.

If you do try the gobo soup, I would definitely recommend straining it, it was really gritty. Though I guess you know you are getting all the fiber from it.

The sweet potato soup was on the sweet side but had a smoother texture than the gobo one.

I used skim milk, but you could also sub with soy milk or even cream.

When cooking the onions, you can also add some salt, but I didn't because I used salted butter.

I also ground some pepper on each cup and decorated with some flat leaf parsley.

Aside from the grittiness, these two soups were really nice and perfect for the nip in the air.

I will send these soups to Deb at Kahakai Kitchen for her Souper Sundays.

pum-pe-app-choc muffins

Another addition to the array of muffins on this blog...I think there are 25 variations..

I had roasted some pumpkin and thought it would be nice in some muffins.

Using my new immersion blender, I whizzed the pumpkin with some apple to make a puree.

Added some spices (cardamom, cinnamon, clove, ginger & nutmeg), a handful of pecans and a handful of 60% chocolate chips.

These muffins are quite dense. I didn't put a lot of oil (1 teaspoon) using the apple as a way to keep things moist.

I also put in a little milk (1 tablespoon).

The amount of pumpkin turned out to be a little too much which probably added to the density.

Still, it was delicious though I think it could have used a little more spice, and I loved the orange color.

dinner

The sun has been playing hide and seek lately.

The temperature is slowly making its way down and I wanted to use up the cilantro on my lanai before any kind of frost ruined it.

Over the weekend, I made some black bean dip with some of the cilantro.

We ate this with tortilla and I also froze some of it for a quick pupu (appetizer) during the winter, just heat and eat with chips.

With the rest of the cilantro, I whipped up a batch of steamed pork.

Instead of buying minced pork, I bought a slab of pork belly then used my immersion blender/food processor to mince it up.

I minced up half of the pork and froze it.

With the other half, I dumped all the ingredients in for the steamed pork and whizzed it together.

So fast and easy.

For veggies, I made some kinpira.

Added some brown rice and an umeboshi (pickled apricot).

In a couple of days, I think I'll have to start making soups.

What did you have for dinner?