b.l.t.

Recently, Nate of Hwnpake in Okinawa, sent me a care package (Thank you!) Inside was a package of BACON, mayo, egg noodles, wafers, lots of szechuan peppercorns, seasoned salts and haw flakes.

So, the other day for lunch, Satoshi and I had B.L.T.s, though you can't see the bacon, it was super crispy and delicious! (If there is one thing that I can't find on mainland Japan, it is crispy bacon. Though you'd know that already if you've been reading this blog.)

I also hadn't had haw flakes in ages to the point where I had forgotten how they tasted. Still it was nice to receive all those goodies.

Thanks Nate you really made my day!

Have a nice weekend everyone!

yutanpo

After 6 years here, I finally bought one. Actually, I didn't know about them until recently. Yutanpo is the Japanese version of a hot water bottle. They are made of totan (tin), yes, like the totan roofs some of our houses have in Hawaii. There are plastic yutanpo too, but I think the metal ones hold the heat longer.

This one is about 12 inches long and 10 inches wide and holds about 3 liters of water. Heat water to just before boiling. Add it carefully to the yutanpo, cork it tightly and slide it into the fabric bag.

Be careful! If the water is too hot, you could get mild burns.

It is best to put the yutanpo into your bed to warm it up, then when you are ready to sleep, take it out. This is to prevent burning yourself while sleeping.

In the morning, the water should still be warm, and you can use it to wash your face or dishes.

I'm hugging mine as I type.

warming up

Yesterday was raining off and on. It was brrr...cold. The condensation would come out from your mouth when you talked.

Though I made this dessert for Sunday's dinner, I wanted to share it with you on this cold day.

I love apple crisp. It is even better with fresh blueberries in it. I've made it before and posted about it here.

We recently received a box of apples from Satoshi's friend (Thank you!). What would you do with 36 apples? Well, I gave half of it away. We've been eating some for breakfast and I also made an apple crisp with blueberries.

1 apple, sliced into bite sized pieces
1 handful of blueberries

Topping adapted from Ellie Krieger
1/4 cup flour
2/3 cup muesli
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
20 grinds fresh cinnamon
1/4 cup EVOO

Mix the fruits with the topping mixture. Bake in a oven-safe dish at 350F (180C) for 40 minutes.
Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Though the ice cream is cold, the warm crisp is definitely a nice way to warm up.

This morning, I made some bread pudding using a chocolate orange french bread, blueberries and a sprinkle of vanilla sugar on top. Out of the oven it was bubbly and hit the spot on a cold morning.

Hope you are staying warm where you are.

li hing popcorn

I recently posted about li hing here.

Well, the other night I made some li hing popcorn.

After popping your corn, add half a teaspoon of the li hing powder with 1 teaspoon of sugar to the popped corn, shake the pan and enjoy! If that isn't enough crunch for you, add in some arare (rice crackers).

ebisen

Whenever Satoshi goes to Nagoya, he always picks up some Furaibo--twice fried chicken wings, for me. This time around he bought another favorite of mine, ebi senbei or ebisen . This one is made by Bankaku. The crackers are crispy and very shrimp-y, makes you feel like you are chomping on the shells of the shrimp!

Can't get to Nagoya? Don't worry, they are in most large department stores around Japan.

arashiyama

Saturday was a beautiful day. We headed out to Arashiyama, which is on the West side of Kyoto prefecture.

Though most of the fall foliage had fallen, we were able to catch a glimpse of what was left.

Have a good week.

UPDATE: We got a phone call from the police in Kobe, apparently they caught a group of 5 Chinese, ages ranging from 20-25 in a burglary, the police have their incident information on-line, so our incident was also noted. I felt funny talking to the police officer over the phone...well, because you just never know. (we really need to get caller i.d.!) Anyway, the police turned out to be legit and they are gathering more info. Hopefully these are the guys. It is too bad that they didn't have any of our stuff on them at the time.

Dhanggit...memed again

Dhanggit, of Dhanggit's Kitchen tagged me for a meme. I love memes they are so thought provoking....here goes.

What were you cooking/baking 10 years ago?
I wasn't or does burning things count??---I was actually buying pre-made foods, going out to eat and enjoying the luxury of having a mom to cook for me.

What were you cooking/baking 1 year ago?
Okara potato salad

5 snacks that you like
1. Chocolate (dark please)
2. Popcorn with arare (rice crackers)
3. Almonds, cashews
4. Scones, muffins
5. anything crunchy, salty and sweet

5 recipes you know by heart
1. Dashimaki tamagoyaki (omlette made with Japanese stock)
2. Layered taco dip
3. Carrot salad
4. the rest I use the cookbooks for the measurements

5 culinary luxuries you would indulge in if you were a millionaire.
1. Get a bigger kitchen with an island in the middle, lots of counter space to put a Kitchen Aid, espresso machine and other large gadgets onto, plus two ovens for baking.
2. Have a wine cellar filled with all kinds of wines and champagnes.
3. I would travel to different countries to take cooking/baking classes.
4. Hire someone to do the cooking at least on the weekends.
5. Get a plot of land to grow some flowers, herbs and veggies.

5 foods you love to cook/bake
1. scones
2. muffins/cupcakes
3. cakes, breads
4. bulgogi
5. trying new recipes

5 foods you cannot eat/will not eat
1. natto (fermented soy beans)--too stinky
2. mentaiko/tarako (salted pollack eggs with chili/salted pollack eggs)
3. uni (sea urchin)
4. reconstituted shiitake mushrooms
5. fish with lots of tiny bones--too much work to eat

5 favorite culinary toys
1. food processor
2. If I had more counter and storage space, I'm sure I would be able to add more to the list

5 dishes on your last meal
1. Mom's sweet sour shrimp
2. Mom's baked beans
3. Kua Aina's (in Haleiwa) avocado bacon sandwich
4. Something mexican with sour cream and guacamole
5. The slow and low ribs from Le Bistro on Oahu

5 happy food memories
1. the first dinner I had with Satoshi on our first date
2. dinners with my family on Sundays in Hawaii
3. get-togethers with my host-family
4. lunches and coffees with my friends
5. the first time I baked bread

I think this meme has made its way around the blogosphere, so if you'd like to answer these questions, consider yourself tagged!

Thanks Dhanggit!