Onigiri – Japanese rice balls compressed into a triangle. I made them two ways, plain and fried. Onigiri is a classic Japanese snack that you see in almost every bento box. It can be shaped into a ball, a cylinder, a triangle or any creative shape that strikes your fancy. Onigiri can be plain, stuffed or just seasoned. Plain are partially wrapped with a strip of nori to keep the rice from sticking to your... View Article
Roasted tomatoes on the vine with bocconcini. I roasted the tomatoes in the air fryer at 400F for 3 minutes but drizzled them with olive oil first. Add salt and pepper after they are done. Serve with bocconcini, a drizzle of balsamic and good bread. Not sure how you feel about air fryers. I didn’t at first and gave away my first one (a few years ago) but bought one again recently and love it.... View Article
Green pea soup with fresh dill. I found that a good way to use up things in the freezer is by making them into soups. I have made tomato soup with last year’s tomatoes and now this pea soup from market peas that I put in the freezer last summer. Sauté a chopped shallot or two and a couple of garlic cloves in a bit of olive oil until soft and fragrant. Add about 3-4... View Article
Morning. Still trying to get over the Japan trip jet lag. If I comment on your post at 2:00 am you know why. So I bought a Japanese cookbook by @cheftimanderson and I am having fun with it. The book is called #yourhomeizakayaand has wonderful, accessible recipes. I have marked quite a few to make. This beautiful pink salad is grated watermelon radish with a sweet and salty dressing and nori shreds on top. I find it very... View Article
One item I saw everywhere in Japan was these beautiful cake rolls, made in different flavours and filled with whipped cream, fruits etc. it was available at the 711 and at fancy department stores food floors. I think it’s known as Hokkaido roll (named after the Hokkaido milk), or just referred to as fuwa fuwa meaning fluffy). The formal name may be Nihon no Roru Keki. Whatever you call it, it’s a beautiful soufflé like... View Article
Shredded salad with hazelnuts and sweet and tangy dressing. For the salad I used carrots and watermelon radish shredded with a vegetable peeler shredding blade. I added radicchio cut into thin strips with a knife (not torn) and chopped parsley. Add a handful of dried cranberries and toss everything together. Dressing:1 tablespoon maple syrup1 teaspoon Dijon1 tablespoon cider vinegar4 tablespoons olive oilCombine ingredients and whisk to emulsify. Toss the salad with some of the dressing.... View Article
Sourdough focaccia with 80% hydration. 500 g flour400 g water120 g levain15 g salt2 tablespoons olive oil.Combine flour, water and levain, let sit for 30-60 min. Add salt and oil and mix Rubaud method for 3 min every 45 min for 4 h. Transfer to a baking dish. Leave sitting at room temp until puffed nicely, a couple of hours. You can bake the same day or refrigerate and bake the next day but bring... View Article
A couple of cake rolls from the holidays, actually it’s one with two different topping cut in two (to accommodate allergies). You can do this in an hour start to finish, very easy. There is no flour here, just ground nuts.
Bundt cake is my go to cake for everyday “countertop snacking cake”. I also make it when I have guests, so they can help themselves to a piece of cake without much ado. Usually the standard bundt pan is fine but recently I bought these beautiful cake pans by Nordic Ware and have been enjoying the interesting shapes they create. They also slide out of the pan with ease. I made a couple of small... View Article
Slow cooking red peppers stuffed with vegan ground, rice and tomato Passata..I have had cravings for a while for my mother’s food. She was an expert at cooking stuffed vegetables, such comfort food for me that for some reason I don’t make very often. It seems like such a production..This past week I brought back gorgeous striped red and orange bell peppers from Toronto that were perfect for stuffing so I did it. Made stuffed peppers... View Article
