Sandwiches

by : Reiko Sandwiches

Heart Waffle Sandwiches
ハートワッフルサンドイッチ

This was last night’s dinner at our house.

I enjoy breakfast food for dinner, and I was originally thinking about having just waffles.

But then, I still wanted some veggies, and I decided to make them into sandwiches.

All the waffles were buttered and syruped lightly.

I made several different kinds.

This one is my BLT-inspired TGT (tempeh-mixed greens-Tomato) version.

The tempeh was sliced thinly and baked in the oven.

This was my first time to get my tempeh at Trader Joe’s, and I was happy with the quality.

And their package design is always fun.

I happened to have freshly made mayo, and I added chopped tarragon.

As usual, I put a lot inside, so it was hard to close.

But this was delicious!!

Here is another version.

Cashew “cream cheese”, fresh fig, and arugula.

I was so excited when I found fresh figs being sold at Trader Joe’s yesterday.

They were called “Black Figs”, and from California.

It’s so hard to find figs in Minnesota, so it’s always a nice treat when I get to eat fresh figs.

Loved the combination of the saltiness (from the “cheese”), sweetness and juiciness (from the figs), and the bitterness (from the arugula).

This one was created at the request from my husband, who wanted sausage in his sandwich.

In this sandwich you’ll find BBQ sausage and crunchy coleslaw.

It was really good, and I even enjoyed it.

For some reason I really struggled to take pictures of these sandwiches.

Some foods are harder to take good pictures of than others, and I guess this was one of them.

Leave a comment

August 31, 2018

by : Reiko Bread, Breakfast, Sandwiches

Piled High Breakfast Sandwich
高積み朝食サンドイッチ

When it comes to the sandwich, I’m all for “the higher, the better”.

My husband and I used to like to get the sausage breakfast sandwich in the skyway.

It was delicious.

I’m not a huge fan of “fake meat”, but I liked their sandwich because their vegan sausage was house-made.

So when I found out that the chef was sharing how to make his breakfast sausage, I jumped on the opportunity to learn to make it myself.

You can do the same by watching this YoutTube video.

I needed to get a few ingredients (e.g., wheat gluten, vegetable shortening), but the instructions were easily to follow.

I added a few extra spices (thyme, chopped fennel seeds, crushed red pepper flakes, paprika, brown sugar), but other than that I pretty much followed the instructions.

They turned out great!

I even decided to bake my rolls for the sandwiches.

Homemade buns are so much better than the store-bought ones.

These buns are soft and light, and slightly sweet, just the way I like.

I know some people like their breakfast sandwiches simple and go for just a bun, sausage, eggs, and cheese.

But I’m very much the opposite, and I love a lot of veggies (and colors) in mine.

Can you tell what are all there?

On the bun you’ll find fresh spinach, homemade sausage, turmeric tofu steak, more spinach, tomato slices, and mashed avocado.

As I said, I’m not a huge “vegan (gluten) meat” fan, and I really don’t NEED it.

But I do have to admit that the unique texture, the saltiness, and the spices/flavor that come from it does add something extra to the dish.

I would not use it as a main ingredient or eat a large quantity, but when used in a mostly whole-food dish as a little addition, it can be valuable.

Also, my husband does like these meat substitutes, and I would rather see him eat home-made (scratch-made) ones instead of the ones made in factories.

In addition, when you make it home, you know exactly what’s in it and you can adjust the flavors, which is definitely a plus.

By the way, this was my husband’s plate.

Can you tell what’s different from mine (the other pics above).

Have a great weekend everyone!

Leave a comment

August 24, 2018

by : Reiko Bread, Mushrooms, Sandwiches

King Roll
キングロールサンド

Doesn’t my King (mushroom) Roll look good?

I really love everything about king mushrooms.

Its firm texture is so unique and substantial that it can easily take the leading role.

I’ve never tried king mushrooms with mayo together, but it was so good.

Homemade vegan mayo is really a game changer.

First I cut the mushrooms into bite size pieces and sauteed them with a lot of garlic.

Then they were dressed with a mixture of vegan mayo, lemon juice, hot sauce, salt, and pepper.

But before I go on, I should talk about my beautiful buns.

I bought these hot dog pans many years ago.

Actually I quickly regretted because I’m not a big fan of hot dogs, and I didn’t think I would ever make buns for hot dogs.

I’m so glad I kept them.

So excited that I got to use these pans for the first time.

The buns turned out great!

Homemade buns are really the best.

They were light, soft, slightly chewy, slightly sweet, and super tasty.

I think a big part of my not liking hot dogs (even when I was eating meat) was that I didn’t like how those store-bought buns tasted.

The King (mushroom) salad was generously placed on the lightly toasted bun.

Yum!

Leave a comment

August 15, 2018

by : Reiko Sandwiches

Tomato Lover’s Avocado Toast
トマト好きのアボカドトースト

I usually do not do grocery shopping at Costco because most of their packages are too big for our household of two.

But sometimes I forget that there are only two people in our house and one of them does not even like avocado (although this has been changing lately!), and grab a large bag of avocados.

When you find yourself in such a situation, you’ll make avocado toast!

This is a tomato lover’s avocado toast plate.

This one is with green salsa.

This is with green tomato chutney.

And this one is with fresh multi-colored mini tomatoes.

By the way, these tomatoes are from Costco, too…

Happy Thursday everyone!

Here is one more thing that came home with me from my last trip to Costco.

The cherries must be in the season right now.

They are so sweet and delicious!

Unfortunately (or fortunately?!), I’m the primary consumer of the cherries, too, though…

Leave a comment

June 14, 2018

by : Reiko Sandwiches, Tofu, Vegan Egg

Go Local! V-Egg Salad Sandwich
ローカルがいいね、Vエッグサラダサンド

I got beautiful whole grain English muffins from a co-op store.

While I was at the store, something caught my eye.

“Minnesota Local”.

Since we changed our diet and now pay so much more attention to what food we buy, certain key words get my attention, like vegan, plant-based, no preservatives, no artificial colors, no artificial flavors, organic…

And “local” is also one of them.

Well, it’s actually a big one for me.

This green tomato chutney was produced by Urban Roots, a local organization that help “youth interns to develop leadership, entrepreneurial, and life skills” through their Market Garden, Conservation, and Cook Fresh Programs.

This is how I built this sandwich.

First, tomato and onion slices.

Spinach.

And then crunchy tempeh.

They look pretty awesome already at this point.

But wait.

It gets even better.

A heap of V-egg salad goes next.

Left-over V-egg salad goes into my pretty Pioneer Woman cup to be stored and enjoyed later.

Now here is the main supporting actor!

Green tomato chutney from Urban Roots.

I love when the producer lists the ingredients up front, not in small print hiding in the back.

This always means that the maker is proud of their product!

And I liked what I saw.

They apparently create wonderful flavors.

The tomato chutney was a GREAT addition to this sandwich.

The only other thing I need is a glass of home cold-brewed coffee.

Leave a comment

June 9, 2018

by : Reiko Main Dish, Mushrooms, Sandwiches, Tofu

Truly Awesome Blue Cheese Burger
凄いヨ！ブルーチーズバーガー

Blue cheese burger has always been one of my husband’s favorite burgers.

Remember?

I just made plant-based blue cheese using the recipe from this book.

Well, there was a reason my husband asked me to make the blue cheese first.

Since I couldn’t decide if I wanted to use tofu or portabella mushrooms for the “burger”, I decided to go with both.

Can you tell how beautifully the blue cheese melted?

Onion slices were placed first, and then teriyaki-balsamic glaze was generously drizzled over everything.

I mean, really, how awesome does this look?!

These burgers were prepared for the Memorial Day Weekend, and it was a perfect main dish.

Happy Thursday everyone.

Leave a comment

May 31, 2018

by : Reiko Main Dish, Sandwiches

Memorial Day Lunch
メモリアルデー・ランチ

I slept in this morning.

I went for a looooong bike ride in the late afternoon yesterday.

I didn’t think I was that tired, but apparently my body needed the extra sleep to recover.

So I’m very proud of myself because this morning I got up and then went for another bike ride!

This time it was not as long as the yesterday’s but I had a nice sweaty workout.

After a quick shower and a big glass of ice water, I began preparing lunch.

Menu:

-Portabella Tofu Gorgonzola Burger
-Mustard Potato Celery Salad
-Green Salad
-Corn on the cob
-Watermelon
-No Layer Trifle

Mustard Potato Celery Salad.

For my potato salad, a must ingredient is celery.

Since I put so much celery, I don’t know if I should call it “potato salad” or “celery salad”!

LOVE watermelon!

Only problems are 1) I can only buy one when my husband is with me (too heavy to carry with other groceries); 2) It’s often too much for myself (my husband is not a big watermelon fan, so usually I end up eating the whole melon myself).

Dessert was a no-layer trifle.

Cubed sponge cake was served with almond flavored cream and fresh berries.

I do own a lot of gingham clothes, don’t I?!

Leave a comment

May 28, 2018

by : Reiko Leaf Vegetables, Sandwiches

Just For You JF BBQ Sandwich
ジャスト・フォー・ユーBBQサンドイッチ

BBQ Sandwich.

This is one of the sandwiches that make my husband happy.

The main ingredient is jackfruit.

The keys to make canned jackfruit taste better are 1) take off the salty taste from the can as much as possible and 2) dry well and then cook until browned to give flavor.