by : Reiko Bread, Sandwiches

Okara Bread Sandwich
おからパンでサンドイッチ

Okay.

Okara bread is legit.

This is my second Okara bread, and this one turned out so good too!

I added a bit too much water, and that was probably why they got a little flat.

But that’s okay, because I was going to use them to make sandwiches anyway, and this flatter version worked probably better.

The white V-cheese I made last night was perfect for this sandwich.

The below is the link to the recipe of the bread ↓　(Japanese).

https://www.orihano.com/orihanobikkuripan .

I added turmeric for the color.

So soft and really perfect for a sandwich.

You can probably tell by now but I’m really into Okara bread.

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by : Reiko Breakfast

Autumn Double Rye Porridge
秋のダブルライ麦粥

We had snow yesterday for the first time this season.

I wish I could say “I can’t believe it, it’s only November!” but sadly I can believe it because we are in Minnesota.

I have mixed feelings about Minnesota’s snow and winter.

They can be so beautiful, but they can also be depressing at the same time, especially toward the end of the season, when I feel like there is no end to it.

Bur right now, at the beginning of the winter season, I’m feeling pretty good.

The snow on the ground looks fresh and so pretty.

And on a day like this porridge is a good choice for breakfast.

I used rye flakes and rye berries both.

Rye from my brother-in-law’s farm.

The rye flakes make the porridge nice and thick, and the berries give an interesting texture.

Satsuma potatoes and apples were added.

And then cinnamon.

Served with walnuts and more cinnamon.

Warm and hearty.

You can add any sweetener if you like (my husband drizzled maple syrup) but I really enjoyed it as is.

The natural sweetness comes from the Satsuma potatoes, apples, and cinnamon.

A wrong choice of mug this morning.

Coffee in the “TEA” mug (lol).

Happy Sunday.

Stay warm.

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by : Reiko Bread, Uncategorized

Two-Toned Okara Bread Rings
ココア南瓜おからポンデリング

Yesterday I talked about how fun to try new food items.

Well, this post also features something new (to me).

Okara Powder!

Okara is soy pulp, usually the stuff left after you squeeze soy milk out.

So okara powder is dried soy pulp and made into powder.

Baking with okara powder is quite popular particularly among dieters.

Apparently, it contains a lot of fiber and it reportedly make you full quickly with a small amount.

I’m all for shedding a few pounds, but more than anything I wanted to try mainly because I was curious how it would turn out.

I should also mention this ingredient too.

Psyllium husk powder.

This is a new item for me to use as well.

This was one of the ingredients for this bread, and the amount that goes in is quite small, but apparently it’s an important ingredient to create the right texture.

It turned out great!

This recipe was fun because you shape the bread in a ring.

The original recipe was all for cocoa version, but I decided to divide the dough into two, one with cocoa and one with Kabocha powder.

And get this.

You “bake” it in a microwave oven!

Okay, it took me a bit longer to shape them in a ring than I expected, but other than that the process is super easy and fast.

You mix everything together, shape it, and cook in a microwave oven for two to two and half minutes.

I won’t lie.

I was quite skeptical because of the unusual ingredients.

But it’s amazing how well it turned out.

No wheat in the dough.

But it’s definitely bread, and a good one.

It has a great texture and is super tasty.

I enjoyed it for breakfast this morning with a cup of black coffee.

I’m sure they are great with butter, but I ate it without.

Frankly I didn’t feel I needed extra fat (and I’m usually a butter person).

The recipe is here -> https://www.orihano.com/okara-mochiponde (Japanese).

I’m planning to make another version of Okara bread this afternoon.

Super excited.

I wish Okara powder was a bit cheaper though.

I think the price here in the U.S. is more than triple compared to it is in Japan (sigh).

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by : Reiko Mushrooms, Noodles/Pasta

Truffle Oil Pasta
トリュフオイルで風味格上げホームメードパスタ

It’s always exciting to try a new food item.

We were at a friend’s house the other day for dinner and a Vikings game.

When I told her how much I liked her hand soap in her bathroom, she told me that she buys a lot of things from Stonewall Kitchen including the soap and truffle oil.

As soon as we were back to our house, I ordered the same hand soap (“Ski Lodge” if you are curious).

I was also going to order the truffle oil from them, but for this I decided to do a little research and look at other brands too.

I decided to get this one because of many positive reviews and the beautiful label.

Just because I wanted to try my first truffle oil on pasta, I decided to make home-made pasta.

Homemade pasta, roast, baby bella, garlic, arugula, walnut, nutritional yeast.

Delicious!

A little drizzle of the truffle oil definitely makes a huge difference!

I’m not a big fan of anything “infused” because if I want the flavor, I will do the infusing myself.

But truffles?

It’s a different story.

For them infused oil works well.

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by : Reiko Sweets

Orange Chocolate Cake
オレンジチョコレートケーキ

What do you make for dessert when you have non-vegan people over.

Something chocolate!

Who wouldn’t like chocolate cake, right?!

I added orange zest to the cake, which gives a nice fresh flavor.

I always like the combination of orange and chocolate.

The cake was topped off with ganache and cacao nibs.

And a big drop of coconut cream!

This was so good.

Everyone liked it.

If anyone is interested, here is the link to the recipe.

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/16779/vegan-chocolate-cake/

Surprisingly, I find good vegan recipes on Allrecipes, a site not strictly vegan.

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by : Reiko Breakfast, Tofu

Taco Waffles
タコスワッフル

So last night we had my husband’s father and his wife over for dinner and card-playing.

They are not vegan, and my father-in-law generally prefers hearty meat-and-potato type dishes.

While they are willing to try many things, they will not touch tofu.

I had a hard time coming up with an idea of what to cook, but eventually my husband and I mutually decided on tacos.

My husband cooked the taco “meat” using the Beyond ground “meat.”

Our guests liked it.

And I cooked tofu, which was marinated and spiced, and then fried to perfection!

I knew our guests wouldn’t touch it, but I wanted it.

I had the “meat”, tofu, and all the topping options on the table served the dinner in the make-your-own style.

This worked well.

Today, we had a lot of leftover from the last night, and I decided to make taco “waffles”!

I used my sourdough starter discard and added cornmeal to make the waffle batter.

Once I placed the waffles on the plate I topped them off with the taco “meat”, tofu, and all the toppings, and then drizzled maple syrup and chipotle sauce.

This was so good!!

I will definitely make it again.

Vegan eaters, what do you like to cook for dinner when you invite non-vegan people?

Having a quiet afternoon this Sunday with a football game on in the background.

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by : Reiko Sweets

Black Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies
黒胡桃チョコレートチップクッキー

When I talked about the black walnuts from my brother-in-law’s yard I finally cracked open, my mother-in-law told me they are good in chocolate chip cookies.

We had her and my father-in-law over for dinner yesterday, and I thought I would make the cookies so that they can try them.

They turned out great, and everyone liked them!

My father-in-law whose family had a black walnut tree when he was growing up told me that mine taste exactly how he remembered.

These cookies are wonderful with milk or black coffee.

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by : Reiko Potatoes/Squash, Soup/Stew

Curried Kabocha Potage
カレー風味かぼちゃポタージュ

I’ve tried different types of squash, but Kabocha continues to be one of my favorites!

I usually leave the skin when I cook Kabocha, but this time I peeled it off only because I wanted my soup to have a bright orange color.

The orange color from the soup and the red from the pot look so good together.

Creamy, slightly sweet, and spiced.

And the color!

Perfect for this time of the year.

We don’t have any Halloween-specific plan today, but we are going to have dinner and watch the Vikings game with our neighbor friend tonight.

So that was the reason I made this soup.

I am bringing it over to her place tonight.

I also got this flower pot for her because she always lends me her books, and this is a little way to say thank you.

(She has a great selection of books, and I haven’t had any of her books I didn’t like!)

Hope she likes the flower pot.

I personally really like the colors.

Very autumn-like.

Apparently this is NOT the book I borrowed from my friend.

Her book I just finished reading is called “The Invention of Wings” by Sue Monk Kidd, and it was excellent.

(Oh, and I do not recommend reading a book when your soup is ready. You don’t want to let it cold!)

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by : Reiko Bread, Nuts/Seeds

Black Walnut Whole Wheat Rolls
黒胡桃全粒粉パン

Another post that showcases the black walnuts from my brother-in-law’s yard.

I’m so proud of myself cracking all of them open.

I was not a huge fan of 100% whole wheat bread before, but lately I’m getting to really like it.

And I think whole wheat goes well with nuts.

Doesn’t it look great?

There was also a pleasant surprise.

You can smell the black walnuts so well when you tear the roll open!

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by : Reiko Nuts/Seeds, Salad

Black Walnut Salad
黒くるみサラダ

I’ve heard how tasty black walnuts were from so many people, and finally I got to try them myself!

This is how they look, after the outer part was removed and dried for several weeks.

I used a large pliers, but the shell was so hard, and it was a lot of work to crack them open.

And once open it was also tricky to get the meat out of it without letting it to be broken into small pieces.

It took me a few hours, but I was able to get about one and half cups of meat.

I thought salad would be a good way to really enjoy the taste of walnuts straight.

Well, the verdict?

Delicious!!

They definitely have a distinctly strong great flavor, definitely different from the regular walnuts.

I would almost describe them as flowery, in a good way.

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