by : Reiko Breakfast

Waffle Tower
ワッフルタワー

Have you seen a waffle tower like this served at a restaurant?

Well, I’ve never ordered anything like that myself, but recently I’ve been seeing more pictures of a waffle tower on Instagram.

Chicken and waffle appears to be the popular dish to make a waffle tower, but I decided to make mine with something totally different.

When I make a plant-based dish, inspired by non-plant-based dish, my goal is NOT to make something just “similar” but “better.”

I’m always striving to create something I would have ordered (instead of the regular version) as a meat/dairy eater pre-plant-eating life.

And I think I achieved that with this one!

Sourdough waffles, fried cauliflower, Moroccan spiced roasted chickpeas (previous post), pan-fried tomatoes, cilantro mayo, fresh cilantro, and maple syrup.

This was AMAZING!

The flavors burst in your mouth, and every bite was a wonderful culinary experience.

Me, trying to take an action shot with the maple syrup drizzle.

I definitely need practice.

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by : Reiko Beans/Lentils

Moroccan Spiced Roasted Chickpeas
モロッコスパイスひよこ豆ロースト

Roasted chickpeas appear to have become popular lately.

The restaurant we get take-out sometimes offers them as one of the topping options for your make-your-own-bowl.

I liked them very much, but I somehow thought it would be difficult to make at home.

Well, that turned out to be wrong.

Roasted chickpeas are SO easy to make, you can make them as good as (or better than!) store/restaurant ones.

We eat chickpeas a lot as plant-based eaters, and it is a great way to have a variety.

This time I used Moroccan-inspired spices, and they turned out delicious!!

Quick note…

Preheat oven to 450F. Drain, rinse, and dry canned chickpeas. Place them on a sheet pan lined with foil, one layer, and put in the oven for about 3-4 minutes. Take them out. Drizzle olive oil, and sprinkle, salt, pepper, cinnamon, cumin, and coriander. Combine and coat the chickpeas with oil and spices well. Put them back into the oven. Roast for about 20 minutes or until they achieve preferred texture.

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by : Reiko Sandwiches

Kimchi Beet Shiso Reuben
キムチビーツ紫蘇ルーベンサンドイッチ

Reuben was one of my favorite sandwiches pre-100%plant-based diet.

Luckily, I’ve learned to create a sandwich that has all the flavors without using any animal products.

This version is a bit different from the traditional Reuben sandwich not because it doesn’t contain animal products, but because I added more flavors.

In this sandwich you’ll find Shiso basil leaves, pickled beet slices, vegan cheese (homemade), vegan meat slices (homemade), kimchi, and Southern Island dressing.

I’ve tried several brands for vegan kimchi, and this is my favorite so far.

Thankful that I can buy it at Target, which makes it very convenient.

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by : Reiko Sweets

Black Bean Brownies with Cocoa Cream Cheese Frosting
黒豆ブラウニー、ショコラクリームチーズのせ

One of the people I enjoy following on Instagram is https://zoebakes.com/ .

She creates amazing-looking cakes and other baked goods, and although they are usually not vegan, I still love just looking at her pictures.

When I found out she was one of the authors of my favorite bread-baking cookbook (“Artisan Bread in Five Minute A Day”) AND she lives in the same state, it made it even more fun to follow her.

(And there are so many things you find interesting on her site, as a lot of things, from her clothes, jewelry, mugs, to kitchen decor, reflect her great eye for beauty.)

So when I just recently saw that she posted this vegan brownie recipe on Instagram, I got so excited.

It’s actually vegan AND gluten-free.

I’ve made brownies using black beans in the past, so I was comfortable with this recipe.

This was very easy to make.

You basically put all the ingredients in a food processor and push the button!

I cut the recipe in half because I thought that would be enough for the two of us, and accordingly I used a smaller pan.

Other than that I didn’t make too many changes.

I used agave syrup, a Medjool date, olive oil, and old-fashioned oats in place of honey, brown sugar, grapeseed oil, and quick oats respectively, simply because I didn’t have them.

The brownies turned out great!

It’s perfectly moist but not dense.

She had frosting recipe posted as well, but I decided to make my own frosting.

I had homemade vegan cheese which tastes like a combination of feta, goat, and cream cheese, and I thought it would be fun to make cocoa frosting with it.

I just added cocoa powder, agave syrup, and pureed dates to the cheese.

I didn’t want to make it too sweet, and it was a right decision,

This frosting went so well with the brownie.

I sprinkled some cocoa powder and cacao nibs on top.

This was exactly what I wanted for Thursday afternoon snack to go with my coffee.

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by : Reiko Breakfast, Japanese Food, Rice/Grains

Azuki Onigiri Teishoku
お赤飯おにぎり定食

Teishoku is a set meal ordered at many restaurants in Japan.

It usually comes with rice, miso soup, and several small dishes.

I love Teishoku because they are usually nutritionally balanced, and you get to enjoy many different dishes, a little of this and a little of that.

I posted the Azuki rice a few weeks ago, but this time I made it into Onigiri, a rice ball.

Tofu with Amaranth caviar and Shiso.

Sweet and spicy gochujang potatoes.

I can eat a big bowl of rice, just with this.

So good!

It was fun to put together this Teishoku meal because I get to use all my favorite Japanese dishes.

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by : Reiko Noodles/Pasta, Soup/Stew

Somen in Gazpacho
ガスパチョそうめん

I wanted to post this before September, because this dish screams summer!

I did make and enjoy it on one hot summer day, and it was delicious.

The cold somen noodles served in cold and refreshing gazpacho was exactly what I needed.

It was topped off with “ground” tofu and radish slices.

The weather changed so dramatically here in Minnesota.

It definitely felt like “fall” today.

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by : Reiko Bread, Breakfast

Bagel with Fresh Figs and Blueberries
無花果とブルーベリーのせベーグル

There are a lot of fruits and vegetables I like, but figs are a few on the top of my list.

I should probably put it on my “love” list, not “like”.

So when I found organic black figs being sold at a store yesterday, I had to buy them.

They are SO good!!

I might have talked about this before, but I didn’t know what good figs taste like until I was vacationing at a resort in Mexico a few years ago.

They always had a plate of fresh fruits at the lobby every morning, and their figs were out of this world good!

That was when I realized that a few times I had had figs in my life up to that point were mediocre, to say the least (sadly).

I do like “organic” but it is not a huge issue for me when I choose my produce, but when it comes to figs I do choose organic ones without hesitation.

They just seem to taste better.

Homemade bagel.

Luckily I found the last one in the freezer.

It already looks good simply toasted.

But wait to see how it gets dressed up.

A thick spread of homemade awesome white creamy cheese.

I don’t know the best way to describe this vegan cheese, but it’s kind of a combination of feta, cream cheese, and goat cheese.

It’s got wonderful tanginess, creaminess, and a unique flavor, which can be found in all the three types of cheese I mentioned.

I could eat so many bagels just with this spread!

It was then loaded with fresh figs and blueberries.

Scrumptious!!

The time period when we can get fresh figs (from the west coast) in the Midwest is limited.

So I am intending to enjoy them to the fullest while I can.

Breakfast is ready.

This is my first blue plate I recently purchased from a store that was having a big closing sale.

I wasn’t sure how the food would look on it, but that turned out not to be an issue.

This blue color really makes food looks great.

I wish I had bought a few more pieces in this color.

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by : Reiko Sandwiches

Cheese Steak Waffle
チーズステーキワッフル

This was something I wanted to make for a while.

It’s not a difficult thing to make, but it does require preparation, mostly because I make my own cheese and “meat.”

Yesterday I finally had time to make my vegan meat, and today I sliced and cooked it to make the steak.

Doesn’t this look great?!

I also made my vegan cheddar yesterday.

So I was ready.

All I needed to do today was to make waffles.

I made sourdough waffles as I had the perfect amount of sourdough discard I wanted to utilize,

Love sourdough waffles, as it create a wonderful crispy texture outside and nice chewiness inside.

I kept it very simple.

Sourdough waffle, homemade vegan cheddar, homemade vegan steak, and a mixture of fresh spinach and arugula.

This was so delicious!!

I had a hard time convincing myself one was enough.

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by : Reiko Sweets

Vegan Madeleines
ヴィーガンマドレーヌ

Yes, I continue to bake madeleines, trying to perfect my vegan version.

The last two times I used egg replacer in place of eggs, but this time I used apple sauce for one batch and flax seeds for another.

I really liked the apple sauce version.

The color and the texture was perfect, and it was delicious!

The only thing was that you do detect the taste of apple.

It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s not supposed to be an “apple” cake.

The flax seed version was okay.

It was still tasty and the texture was fine, too, but it was not as flavorful as the other versions.

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