by : Reiko Bread, Breakfast, Leaf Vegetables

Shiso Corn Bread with Southern-Style Kale
紫蘇コーンブレッド＆南部風ケール

I’ve never lived in the southern states, but I love southern foods.

I added some corn and Shiso leaves to the corn bread batter.

It turned out great.

But next time I will raise the oven temperature a bit toward the end of the baking time to give a little harder crust on top.

It was so good with vegan butter.

To keep the Southern theme, I cooked Southern style kale.

Southern-Style Kale: olive oil, garlic, onion, kale, sugar, soy sauce, white vinegar, crushed red chili pepper, salt, pepper

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Leaf Vegetables, Noodles/Pasta, Vegan Cheese

Truffle Mac and Cheese with Cabbage Steak
トリュフマカロニチーズ、キャベツステーキ添え

It’s strange, but my husband and I were not a big fan of mac and cheese, but now we are of “vegan” mac and cheese.

Especially the one I make with this homemade vegan cheddar is our favorite.

Here is the information you can find about this cheese. ↓

https://sideb.culinarytribune.com/recipes-ive-tried-and-liked/

I use the cheese and thin it a bit by adding soy milk to create this creamy cheese sauce.

Today there was another main actor along with the mac and cheese.

Cabbage steak!

I cook the cabbage in a mixture of water, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, crushed red pepper, and olive oil, covered until tender first, and then after removing the liquid fried it with olive oil.

I loved this.

The cabbage is so tender and sweet, and the little charred part was also very tasty.

I drizzled a little of this truffle oil over the mac and cheese.

It instantly takes the dish to the next level, and more an adult dish!

Delicious!!

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Gluten Free, Sweets

V/GF Cream Puffs with Cardamom Custard and Coconut Cream
ヴィーガンシュークリーム、カルダモンカスタードクリームとココナッツクリーム詰め

Sweets were not my favorite when I was a child.

I would rather go for sushi than donuts.

I know I was a weird kid (lol).

But the cream puff was one of the sweets that I would get excited when my mother made them.

The airy puffs stuffed with sweet cream…

Who could resist it?!

When I came to the States I quickly realized that it was not that easy to find cream puffs.

In Japan we call them “choux cream” and you can find them really anywhere.

So initially that’s what I was asking people about.

Then I found out that they do exist here in the States, but they use a different name, “cream puffs”.

However, even after I looked for them with the right name, I noticed that it was not something you can just get from any bakery or pastry shop.

A good thing was that my mother-in-law would make them.

I was really lucky because it’s not something everyone makes them at home here in the U.S.

But then we decided to become plant-eaters.

That became a problem because I had no idea how to veganize the cream puff recipe.

So, when I found out that someone did and included the recipe in her book, I bought the book mostly just for that one recipe.

This is my third time to make vegan (and gluten free) cream puffs using the recipe, and this time I decided to stuff them with cardamom custard cream and coconut cream.

I always liked my cream puffs stuffed with two kinds of cream.

These were scrumptious!!

You can’t make too many with this recipe, but that made us appreciate this delicate treat even more.

The recipe is included in the book, “Heta Oyatsu,” written (in Japanese) by Yuko Shirasaki.

My basic vegan custard recipe is here. ↓

https://sideb.culinarytribune.com/recipes-ive-tried-and-liked/

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Gluten Free, Main Dish

Shiso Oatmeal Mochi
紫蘇オートミール餅

Whenever I try a new recipe, I experience a mixed feeling of nervousness and excitement.

The idea of making “mochi” with oatmeal sounded so interesting, and I really hoped that it would turn out well.

At the last minute I decided to add Shiso leaves to add an extra flavor.

I just love this herb, and I’m always looking for dishes where I can add it to.

They looked really good.

I made the Mochi and the glaze as directed by the recipe.

I wanted to dress them up a little bit, and I placed my tomato jam on the mochi and sprinkled chopped scallion.

This was so good!

My husband and I devoured it.

The recipe is here ↓

https://www.instagram.com/p/CaMoYdkgHNH/

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Japanese Food, Mushrooms, Rice/Grains

Veggie Tempura Rice Bowl
ベジ天丼

Tempura is my guilty pleasure.

You can really use any vegetables for tempura, but this time I happened to have some interesting things to use.

This was my first time to make tempura with Enoki mushroom, but when it was made into tempura, it became super crispy and the flavor was concentrated, which made it delicious.

Another thing I wanted to use was “Shiso” leaves.

The Shiso tempura was a huge hit too!

By the way this is how I store my Shiso leaves.

Put them in a glass of water, loosely cover the whole thing with a plastic bag, and refrigerate it.

I find that this keeps them fresh for a long time.

The big tempura in the middle is a mixture of onion and carrot, which is another favorite of mine.

Simple but tasty.

The tempura rice bowl is served with Kombu-broth (“dashi”) based sauce.

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Breakfast, Gluten Free

V/GF Cocoa Pancakes with White Guava Jam
ココアパンケーキ、ホワイトグアバジャムのせ

When we went to a farmer’s market in Hawaii during our vacation, we visited a jam vender, Akaka Falls Farm.

I already knew I wanted passion fruit jam, but I was also interested in getting one more.

My husband and I got to taste several different kinds of jam, and we both agreed that we should get the white guava jam.

It has a bright fresh sweetness with a nice mild flowery flavor, similar to pears, with a tropical touch.

These are my favorite banana pancakes, but the cocoa version this time.

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Sweets

Lemon Butter Cookies
レモンバタークッキー

These butter cookies are similar to the cookies I grew up with.

I love those soft cookies that are very American to me, but I was in a mood for something different.

I dressed them with lemon icing mostly because I feel it is expected, but I actually really enjoyed these cookies without the icing.

This recipe is a keeper! ↓

https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/lemony-butter-cookies

This is a “lemon” butter cookie recipe, but I will use it to make other cookies, like vanilla, by just removing the lemony ingredients.

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Rice/Grains, Soup/Stew

Minnesooota Wild Rice Rye Berry Cream Soup
ミネソタ・ワイルドライスライ麦クリームスープ

Wild rice is considered a local food of the state of Minnesota.

I love its unique texture and nutty taste.

If I had a restaurant, I would make sure to have at least one dish that features wild rice to attract tourists.

Interestingly, there aren’t many restaurants that serve wild rice dishes.

My mother-in-law was given wild rice by her sister, and she shared some with me.

Along with the wild rice in this soup you’ll see rye berries (from my brother-in-law’s farm), onion, corn, broccoli, etc.

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Bread, Breakfast, Gluten Free

Tricolor Breakfast Bagel Sandwich
三色朝食ベーグルサンド

The colors are so vibrant and gives me the energy that I need in the morning.

I have such a hard time getting up in the morning.

My ideal routine would be getting up early so that after getting ready I would still have an hour to relax and do whatever I want to do, like exercise or read.

I envy people who does practice that kind of daily routine, but I’ve never succeeded.

A good thing is that I’m never late to anything, school or work.

So, at this point in my life, I just have to accept that this is who I am.

I made my favorite oatmeal bagels.

I realized that Costco now carries a different tofu.

They have been selling a box of four packages of firm tofu for a while.

Since their price was so good that I was quite regularly buying them.

But the last time I went there they still had a box of four packages, but their new tofu was SO firm, like a brick!

I wasn’t sure how such a firm tofu would work in this recipe.

It’s usually very easy to mash the tofu with my hand and make the smooth dough, but with the new Costco super firm tofu I needed to use all the muscles I had (My arms got sore afterwards…).

As you can see in some pictures, there were some small chunks of tofu left, not completely mashed, but this recipe is very forgiving.

They turned out great!

This comes in handy.

Here are the things I prepared for the sandwich.

Vegan omelet.

Kale pesto.

Tomato Jam.

I’m not always this organized, but once in a while I can be.

Now I’m ready to put everything together.

If this is not a good way to start a day, I don’t know what is! 🙂

The Oatmeal Bagel recipe is ↓

https://www.instagram.com/p/CWakuCxvG4L/

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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by : Reiko Breakfast

V/GF Cheese Cream Stuffed Banana Crepes with Cinnamon and Blueberries
Vチーズクリーム詰めバナナクレープ

The crepes are mainly made of bananas and rice flour, no eggs or sugar.

I was a bit skeptical, but it worked!

The batter is a bit different from the regular one, and initially struggled a bit to cook them.

But here are some of the keys to tasty and good-looking crepes.

  1. Oil the pan well.
  2. Quickly spread the batter in the pan, spread it thin, particularly the edge.
  3. Cook on the middle heat to give some color.

Remember the blueberries I bought a few weeks ago?

I cleaned and stored them differently this time, and now they are still so fresh!

See this post for what I did to keep them fresh longer.

https://sideb.culinarytribune.com/2022/02/11/v-gf-blueberry-lemon-thyme-scones

The crepes were stuffed with vegan homemade cheese cream.

The base ingredients of this cheese cream are tofu and cashew nuts.

I made the cream sweet, but not overly sweet because I wanted to serve this for breakfast and not for dessert.

It was finished off with cinnamon and blueberries.

My husband, who is not a big fan of bananas, said this was one of the best crepes he had, which was a nice surprise.

You can find this gluten-free no-sugar banana crepe recipe (Japanese) here ↓

https://www.instagram.com/p/CWViMLZvvgU/

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*I also have an Instagram account. ↓　There I post some pictures and videos that you don’t see here at the blog. If you followed me there as well, I would love that! When you stop by, say “hi! I would love to hear from you. Thank you.

https://www.instagram.com/culinarytribune/

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