by : Reiko Noodles/Pasta

Sea Plant-Food Pasta
磯の香パスタ

Coming from an island country surrounded by the sea, I do love seafood.

You may think I don’t get to enjoy any “seafood” anymore since I’m on the plant-based diet.

Well, that’s actually not the case.

There are things found in the ocean that are plant-based.

Hijiki is a type of seaweed, and it’s used in many dishes in Japan.

Sautee garlic, Hijiki, and chickpeas with olive oil.

Add tomato sauce, and then freshly cooked pasta.

The Hijiki gives plenty of flavors that remind me of the ocean.

So good.

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by : Reiko Sweets

Peanut Butter Fudge Ice Cream
ピーナッツバターチョコレートアイスクリーム

This is one a few things you see in my blog that was not made by me or eaten at a restaurant.

This ice cream was made by my husband from start to finish.

He is a big ice cream fan.

Today there are actually a lot of vegan ice cream options you can buy, but some of them (particularly the ones he likes) can be quite expensive.

Last Christmas my father-in-law gave us homemade coconut milk ice cream, and that got my husband interested in making ice cream again.

We used to have an ice cream maker, but we got rid of it when we started the plant-based diet.

He recently bought the exact same ice cream maker we had before (well, it worked well), and he has been making pretty amazing ice cream.

This one is peanut butter fudge, and it’s delicious.

You can see the beautiful marble design.

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by : Reiko Breakfast

Amazake Apple Muffins
ごろごろ林檎入り甘酒マフィン

Ama-zake is fermented rice and typically made into sweet beverage.

In Japan you can buy it, but I make my own ama-zake for an obvious reason (no one sells it in the U.S.!).

People usually add water or some kind of liquid to original ama-zake to drink it, because the base is pretty thick and has quite intense sweetness.

For this muffins I decided to use ama-zake as a sweetener.

These muffins turned out great!

They are rustic.

The outside has nice crunch, and the inside is moist.

I added some Sake to the batter, which may have helped keep them moist.

What you find in these muffins are big chunks of roasted apple and dry cranberries.

These muffins are perfect for breakfast.

I loved the natural sweetness from Ama-zake.

One thing I’ve begun doing recently with my muffins is that I no longer use the paper cups.

I directly pour batter into a pan.

This way, the side stays crunchy like the top.

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Rice/Grains, Tofu, Vegan Egg

“Egg” Rice bowl
”玉子”どんぶり

Egg Rice Bowl is one of my favorite lunch dishes on the cafeteria menu at the college I attended in japan.

It was cheap (I believe it was about 400 yen (approximately $4.00), filling, and tasty.

Egg rice bowl is basically eggs and onions cooked in soy sauce-based slightly sweet broth and served over rice.

Simple yet (or because of that) I would order it multiple times a week and I never got tired of it.

Making soft “eggs” with silken tofu.

Instead of cooking the “eggs” and onions in broth, I decided to serve the “eggs” and onions with broth on the side.

Pour the broth right before serving.

This was exactly what I was craving for so many years.

Served with miso soup.

Wakame seaweed is one of my favorite things in miso soup.

Don’t forget roasted seaweed as a topping.

Have a great week everyone.

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by : Reiko Asian Food

Bhelpuri Lettuce Wraps
ベルプリレタスラップ

It’s always fun to check out an ethnic grocery store.

But the experience gets better when you go with someone who is familiar with their food.

A few weeks ago I got to go to an Indian grocery store with my neighbor friend, D, and I had a blast!

It was so nice to have someone who can answer every single time when you ask “What’s this?” and tells you which brand is good and which one I should avoid.

When I found this bag of some kind of snack, I got interested.

But when D told me that you can make an Indian street food with this, I had to buy it.

It’s a mixture of rice puffs, peanuts, potato chips, and some other things.

D also introduced us to these yummy chutneys, which are also used to make the Bhelpuri.

Chopped tomato, red onion, and cilantro were added and combined well.

(D added tamarind and cilantro chutney and mixed well at this point, when she showed me how to make it the first time.)

This time I decided to add the chutney later, right before serving.

This is delicious as it is, but I wanted to add some more vegetables, and I decided to serve it in lettuce wraps.

Another twist was that I added fresh mango on top.

Loved the little sweetness from the mango.

This makes as awesome snack.

Or can be served as a light lunch.

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by : Reiko Beans/Lentils, Breakfast

Matcha Black Bean Waffles
抹茶黒豆ワッフル

Sundays are for waffles.

And so many other things.

Waffles are definitely one of the foods I enjoy on the weekend.

I love anything with Matcha and waffles are no exception.

This time I wanted something “whole-food” as well, and I decided to add some black beans.

Just the ones from a can, quickly rinsed, and then dried.

Ready for some maple syrup.

Now perfect!

Have a great Sunday everyone.

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by : Reiko Bread, Breakfast, Potatoes/Squash

Satsuma Toast
さつまトースト

This is what I was dreaming of for a while!!

Finally I got to make and taste it.

Satsuma potato is a Japanese sweet potato, and one of my favorite potatoes in the world!

It has the perfect sweetness and texture.

It doesn’t get mushy or soggy at all when cooked.

I used to cook them in the oven, but now I use the microwave oven.

It’s easy and takes much less time.

And the result is consistently good.

 

This is how I typically enjoy my roasted Satsuma potato.

With butter.

Lots of it!

The saltiness and the fat from the butter really complement the potato.

But this morning I had this craving for roasted Satsuma AND a toast.

And I couldn’t decide to just pick one.

So I decided to go for this double carbs breakfast.

Make a toast.

Butter it.

Put the roasted Satsuma potato.

Place a lot of butter on top.

Sprinkle black sesame seeds.

So good!!!

I can’t believe I’ve never thought of doing this before!

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by : Reiko Japanese Food

Garbanzo Okonomi-Yaki
ひよこ豆粉お好み焼き

Okonomi-Yaki is a Japanese savory pancake and typically made with regular flour (wheat).

Flour, water, cabbage, and meat/seafood are the main ingredients of the pancakes and then they are served with “okonomi” sauce or Japanese Worcestershire sauce.

There are many variations depending on the region and personal preference.

I have no objection to using regular flour as I’m not on the gluten-free diet, but I happened to have a lot of garbanzo flour which I wanted to use.

Since I really liked it when I made vegan “omelet” with this flour, I thought this would be a good substitute.

This version turned out to be simple yet super tasty!

I added chopped Brussels sprouts, fried onion, and chopped scallion to the batter.

And my secret ingredient, “Naga-Imo.”

Naga-Imo is a type of Japanese potato which is super sticky and is “a must” ingredients at our house.

You don’t really taste the potato, but it makes the pancakes soft and light.

I happened to have a lot of naga-imo at hand, and some went into the batter as grated and some chopped.

Once both sides are cooked, drizzle sauce.

I like to use the thicker type of Japanese Worcestershire/vegetable sauce.

Some falls on the hot pan, but that’s perfectly okay.

It caramelizes and creates a heavenly smell in the kitchen.

At this point I’m so ready to eat!

This was served with a drizzle of homemade vegan mayo and scallion.

Absolutely delicious!!

I loved the texture and the taste created by the garbanzo flour.

My future Okonomi-Yaki will be made probably only with garbanzo flour from now on!

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Rice/Grains, Tofu

Silken Tofu Rice
奴どんぶり

This dish is one of the best examples, “simple is best.”

What you need to make Silken Tofu Rice are…

Rice.

Silken tofu (warm or cold).

Soy sauce.

These are the basic ingredients.

And toppings of your choice.

This time I had avocado mash (avocado plus wasabi and chopped radish), chopped tomatoes, and Japanese Shiso basil.

This was my breakfast this morning.

I love a meal like this.

Simple, yet, fresh and very satisfying.

By the way, my husband had the same food.

This is one my favorite rice bowls.

Love everything, the organic shape, the colors, and the design.

 

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