Squirrel tendencies

When I grow up, I'm going to be a squirrel I think...

I eat a lot of vegetables...  But even for me, when I buy vegetables, it tends to have to be two or three different kinds that I then have to eat for the rest of the week so that I eat them whilst they're fresh.  Or else they have to be thrown out.  The vegetables I eat most of are spinach and kale, I make a mean spinach smoothie with various added ingredients, and love using kale as a stir fry base.  The other day, packs of asparagus were on a 3 for 2 offer, so I automatically bought 3 packets, chopped them up and froze them. 

But I'm not so good at variety.  Since I've been in the UK, I kept looking at huge savoy cabbages and thinking that I didn't want to eat it every meal for a week.  (Food was sold in smaller portions in Japan).  I love cooking, but when I'm ravenously hungry, I'm inherently lazy and impatient.  So it dawned on me this morning that I should chop and freeze a lot of vegetables, so that they're just ready to throw in.

Today, shopping and two hours later, any squirrel would be proud of me.  I now have an entire freezer full of chopped vegetables - red onions, shallots, savoy cabbage, leeks, carrots, asparagus, broccoli, spring onions, mixed mushrooms.  On the fruit side - blueberries, blackcurrants and blackberries.  I really enjoyed preparing all that, and knowing it's going to make cooking even more fun, and probably cheaper in the long run!

Turkey, Ham, Mushrooms and Asparagus in a Creamy Sauce

This has become my favourite recipe of the week.  It's not my own, it's been adapted and simplified from this recipe http://www.lekue.es/en/Chicken-Roll.  This LeKue steamer is one of my top kitchen gadgets - it's right up there with the kettle, the rice cooker and the microwave.  Of course, you don't have to use the steamer, you could use a covered microwaveable bowl instead.

Ingredients (serves 1)
100g mixed frozen mushrooms
100g chopped asparagus
1 shallot (small sweet onion), chopped (about 40g)
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp soy sauce
85g turkey escalope, cut into bite-sized pieces
50g cooked ham, cut into bite-sized pieces
25g dairylea or other processed soft cheese

Nutrition Info (assuming you use a spoon to eat up the sauce...)
Calories: 330
Protein: 38g
Carbohydrate: 13g
Fat: 14g
Dietary Fibre: 4g

Method

• Put the mushrooms, shallot, and asparagus in the case and sprinkle olive oil and soy sauce on top.
• Add the raw turkey and the cooked ham and finally the dairylea cheese.
• Close the case, and microwave for 6 and a half minutes until the turkey is cooked.
• Serve immediately.

Warm Brown Rice Salad with Pomegranate Seeds and Grilled Halloumi Cheese

This is a lovely colourful salad.  Halloumi and pomegranate seeds are a classic summer combination.  The honey balances the saltiness of the halloumi and the sharpness of the red onion. 





Ingredients (serves 1)
70g brown rice (dried)
1/4 red onion (about 50g)
50g pomegranate seeds
1/2 red apple (about 50g)
60g reduced fat halloumi cheese, sliced
30g rocket/rucola leaves
1 tsp honey

Method

• Change into an old T-shirt and prepare the pomegranate!  Quarter the pomegranate and break away the seeds from the skin into a bowl.
• Cook the brown rice according to instructions.  Leave to cool slightly.
• Dice the red onion and rinse under cold water to get rid of some of the juice.
• Dice the apple.
• Grill the halloumi slices one side only until they turn golden in colour.
• Put the rocket, onion, apple, pomegranate seeds, honey and rice into a large bowl and mix together.  (If the honey is the set kind, then melt it first for a few seconds in the microwave.
• Serve on a plate and top with the grilled halloumi cheese.  Eat whilst still warm.

Sweet Chilli Marinated Tuna and Carrot salad

I guess this is a bit like a ceviche actually.  Last night I marinated some fresh cubes of raw tuna and pared carrot for tonight's salad...  The tuna certainly tasted lightly cooked but very tender, and the marinade had also tenderized the raw carrot.  Delicious!




Ingredients (serves 1)
70g fresh raw tuna steak
100g carrot (1 carrot)
30g salad mix of rocket, spinach and watercress (large handful)
juice and zest of 1 lime
1 tsp reduced salt soy sauce
1 tsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
a little cress for garnish

Nutrition Info
Calories: 187
Protein: 18.1g
Carbohydrate: 17.2g
Fat: 5.7g
Dietary Fibre: 4g

Method

• Cut the tuna steak into small cubes.  
• Using a vegetable peeler, pare off ribbons of carrot.  Put the carrot ribbons and pieces of tuna into a bowl.
• In a cup, mix the lime juice and zest, soy sauce, sweet chilli sauce and sesame oil.  Toss with the tuna and carrot until everything is well coated.  Cover with cling film and leave in the fridge overnight.
• When ready to serve, mix with the salad on a plate and garnish with a little cress.

Honey, Lime and Balsamic Dressed Breakfast Fruit Bowl

This is my favourite time of the year for fruit in Britain, when all the berry fruits come into season and are cheapest.  Of course, they are delicious just as they are, but the marinade releases some of the strawberry juice and gives a sweet balance to the tartness of the redcurrants.
  


Ingredients
1 nectarine
a handful of strawberries
a handful of blueberries
a sprig of redcurrants
juice and zest of 1 lime
1 tsp honey
1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Method

• Make the fruit salad the night before.  Wash and dry the fruit. Chop the nectarine and strawberries into bite-sized pieces.  Put the strawberries, nectarine and blueberries in a large bowl.
• In a cup, make the dressing.  Melt the honey briefly in the microwave for a few seconds if it's the set kind.  Add the juice of 1 lime and 1 tsp balsamic vinegar.  Mix together and toss together with the fruit, so that all the fruit has been covered.
• Garnish with the sprig of redcurrants and the lime zest, cover with cling film and leave overnight.  If it's hot weather, leave it in the fridge...  If in England at the moment, you can leave it on the kitchen bench!  
• Bring to room temperature before serving.

Mango and Tuna Sashimi Crunchy Vegetable Salad with Sweet Sesame Dressing

 This is a very refreshing summer salad.  the mango has the same melt-in-the-mouth texture as the tuna, and the flavour is brought out by the dressing.  Although it's only 300 calories, I found it quite filling.

If making this outside of Japan, you need to check that the fish is very fresh i.e. caught the same day.  The large Sainsbury's in my town stocks fish that is caught the same day.

Sesame seeds are high in calcium.  A tablespoon of sesame seeds contains about 10% of the RDA for calcium.  However, because of the hard shell, they need to be broken down to make that calcium accessible to the body.  If you can find crushed sesame, so much the better.


Ingredients (per person)
50g very fresh tuna (outside Japan you need to check it's been caught that day - large Sainsbury's in the UK sometimes (often?) do this)
100g celery (2 sticks)
100g cucumber (this is about 1/4 of a British cucumber)
100g mango (1/2 mango)
strips of nori (dried seaweed)
1 tbsp reduced salt soy sauce
1 tbsp mirin
15g ginger paste
15g horseradish sauce (or wasabi to taste)
1 tbsp (approx 10g) white sesame seeds (or better if you can get the crushed ones with more whole sesame seeds for garnish)

Nutrition Info
Calories: 300
Protein: 17.7g
Carbohydrate: 35g
Fat: 8.3g
Dietary Fibre: 6g

Method 

• Make the dressing.  Crush the sesame seeds as much as you can in a pestle and mortar.  You probably can't crush them entirely, but that's OK.  Grinding the seeds releases the flavour and also makes the calcium more accessible to the body.
• In a cup, mix the soy sauce, mirin, ginger paste, horseradish sauce and ground sesame seeds.  Put in the fridge.
• Now prepare the salad.  Slice the celery sticks.  Quarter the cucumber lengthways and chop into cubes.  Chop the mango into similar sized pieces to the vegetables.  Chop the raw tuna steak into 1cm cubes.  Put everything into a bowl and mix well with the dressing.
• You want to eat this salad cold, so if everything hasn't come out of the fridge, you should cover the bowl and put it in the fridge for an hour.  This would also be nice for marinading, for people less impatient than me!
• Spoon onto a plate or bowl, sprinkle with strips of nori, and enjoy!

Smoked Mackerel Salad

Ingredients (serves 1)
50g smoked mackerel
100g celery
10g chives
5g dill
50g sour cream
25g horseradish sauce
1/2 tsp white wine vinegar
black pepper to taste
100g iceberg lettuce

Nutrition Info
Calories: 354
Protein: 13.9g
Carbohydrate: 12.2g
Fat: 28.5g
Dietary Fibre: 3.7g

Method

• Chop the mackerel into bite sized pieces, chop the dill and chives finely, slice the celery.  
• Mix the sour cream, horseradish sauce and vinegar together.  Add black pepper to taste.  
• Toss everything together, and serve on a bed of lettuce. Decorate with a little more dill.

Pollock with Orange, Fennel and Courgette

Ingredients (serves 1）
1 fillet of pollock (or other white fish)
2 tablespoons of orange juice
1 orange
1/2 bulb of fennel
1 courgette
freshly grated pepper


Method

• Peel and segment the orange.
• Thinly slice the fennel and arrange in a microwaveable dish (I use the Lekue steam case).
• Spoon over the orange juice.
• Thickly slice the courgette and arrange on top.  Grind pepper over,
• Cover and microwave for 3-4 minutes.
• Remove the courgette and arrange on a plate.
• Put the fish fillet onto the fennel and season with pepper.
• Cover and microwave for 3 minutes, add the orange segments and microwave for one more minute.
• Serve immediately.

Vanilla Balsamic Berries

Breakfast this morning!　Yesterday I found some real vanilla paste in the supermarket which is a slightly sweetened paste of vanilla extract with seeds, and cheaper than buying vanilla pods.

Ingredients
Any berries you like (I used blueberries, raspberries and blackberries)
1tsp vanilla paste (or the seeds of one pod and a little sugar)
2tsp balsamic vinegar

Method

• Mix the vanilla paste with the balsamic vinegar and melt in the microwave for one minute.
• Pour over a bowl of mixed berries and stir to coat.

All Bran Chocolate Crispies

Since returning to the UK, I've really taken to the Kellogg's Fibre Plus dark chocolate bars.  Each bar is 116 calories and contains 5g of fibre.  However, at £2 for 4 bars, it was becoming a bit of an expensive snack...

So here is my first take on a chocolate fibre snack!






Ingredients (makes 12)
100g unsweetened dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
30g reduced fat butter
100g all bran
50g oats
50g mixed fruit

Nutrition Info per crispie
Calories: 123
Protein: 2.5g
Carbohydrate: 12.3g
Fat: 4.6g
Dietary Fibre: 3.6g

Method

• Melt the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over a low heat.  
• Stir in the all bran, oats and mixed fruit.
• Using cling film, squeeze large teaspoons of the mixture into balls and put in paper cases.
• Chill in the fridge, then store in a plastic container.

Alison-style Malay-ish all-day breakfast

Malaysian food is fantastic!  In the week I was there, I barely scratched the surface, but I loved everything I tried.

One of the most popular dishes in Malaysia is Nasi Lemak.  This is kind of an all-day breakfast for Malaysian people, so popular there are Chinese and Indian versions of it too.  Of course it was what I had for breakfast every morning, but it was sold at street stalls, cafes and restaurants too.  At its most basic it seems to be coconut rice, with boiled egg, cucumber, fried dried anchovies and peanuts and a powerful sambal which is a chilli condiment.  I often ate it with a beef or chicken curry too.

For the last week or so, I've had Nasi Lemak cravings ;-)
Of course, I know I could make a much more authentic version than this, but wanted to try and limit myself mostly to using up what is in my kitchen (just had to buy coconut milk and peanuts)...  So my version has Thai, Japanese and Korean ingredients too, but misses out the fried anchovies.  Best not to think about the calories too much in this, just enjoy it!  Nasi Lemak actually means 'fat rice' in Malay...

I made this today.  It's my day off so I could afford to spend an hour cooking breakfast (and generate an awful lot of washing up for one person!), and 'twas so filling and tasty it'll definitely serve as lunch too.  I'll have the other portion for lunch at work tomorrow, so that's sorted too!

Ingredients for the rice (1 portion)
75g dried rice
60g coconut milk

Ingredients for the sambal (2 portions) - not so powerful
one medium onion, sliced into quarter rings
1 tsp olive oil
2 tsp anchovy paste
1tsp ginger paste
juice of one yuzu
1-2 tbsp kimchi base
1-2tsp Thai sweet chilli sauce


Ingredients for the chicken curry (2 portions)
1 tsp olive oil
2 tbsp Thai curry paste
1 large chicken breast


Ingredients to serve 
Chopped cucumber
Natural shelled peanuts
Hard boiled egg



Method

• Cut the chicken up into pieces and marinate overnight in the Thai curry paste in the fridge.
• Boil the egg until hard-boiled and then cool under a cold running tap to avoid a grey yolk.  Peel and quarter.
• Chop the onion.  Chop the cucumber.
• Cook the rice as normal with a fraction less water.  When the rice has almost absorbed the water (after about 40 minutes in my rice cooker), stir in the coconut milk and continue to cook.
• Make the sambal.  Fry the chopped onion and anchovy paste in the olive oil until cooked.  Add the yuzu juice, kimchi base and sweet chilli sauce.
• Make the chicken curry.  Fry the chicken for 5 minutes until browned and sealed.  Put in a saucepan, cover with water and a lid and continue to cook for 10 minutes until the water is mostly absorbed.  Add 2 tbsp coconut milk.
• To serve, put the rice on the plate with the boiled egg, chopped cucumber, peanuts, chicken curry and sambal.  Enjoy!

Creamy Shiitake and Wasabi Soup

I don't often buy mushrooms, but I just fancied some mushroom soup today, and this creamy smoky soup with a very slight kick is what I came up with...





Nutrition Info (serves 1 as a light lunch)
Calories 253
Protein 11g
Carbohydrate 43g
Fat 5g
Dietary Fibre 7g

Ingredients
1 potato (about 150g)
100g shiitake mushrooms
100ml soy milk
50ml drinking yoghurt
1tsp wasabi from a tube
200ml water

Method

• Wash the potato and microwave in the oven for about 8 minutes until cooked.  Wash the mushrooms.
• In batches, blend the potato with the mushrooms, soy milk, drinking yoghurt and water.
• Gently heat the mushroom cream in a saucepan and mix in the wasabi.
• Serve hot with a grating of black pepper.

Pea, Potato and Ham Soup

Nutritional Info (per serving)
Calories 224
Protein 10g
Carbohydrate 43g
Fat 3g
Fibre 8g




Ingredients (serves 2)
300g potatoes
150g frozen peas
80g onion, roughly sliced
100ml soy milk
20g parma ham, chopped
salt

Method

• Steam the potatoes whole in their skins in the microwave for about 10 minutes. (I use the LeKue steam case.
• About 5 minutes into cooking time, add the sliced onion and frozen peas and finish steaming.
• Puree in batches in the blender.  Put into a saucepan and heat gently.  Add salt to taste.
• Pour into two bowls, and divide the ham over the two bowls.

Broccoli and Gorgonzola Potage

This is a creamy tasty satisfying soup! The recipe makes enough for two people for lunch.









Nutritional Information (per portion)
Calories 371
Protein: 18g
Carbohydrate: 56g
Fat: 10g
Dietary Fibre: 9g 


Ingredients (serves 2)

430g potatoes, unpeeled
220g broccoli
160g onion
150ml soy milk (or regular milk)
50g gorgonzola
salt and pepper to season

Method

• Roughly chop the broccoli - stalks, florets and leaves all OK.
• Roughly slice the onion.
• Steam all the vegetables.  I use my LeKue steamer for this in the microwave, steaming the potatoes whole in their skins for 10 minute, the broccoli for 5 minutes and the onion for 2mins 30 sec.
• Measure out together 150ml soy milk and 350ml water.
• In batches, blend the steamed vegetables and liquid together in a food processor, transferring each batch to a large saucepan.
• When all the soup has been blended, crumble in the gorgonzola and stir over a gentle heat until the cheese has melted.
• Season to taste.  I used a good grinding of salt and a black pepper mix that includes orange and lemon peel and garlic.
• Serve hot.

Chocolate Healthy Truffles

This was an experiment rather than anything else to see what kind of high protein/high mineral/high fibre snack I could make.  Really pleased with the result!  Despite the wacky ingredients, they're delicious (think chocolate cheesecake/brownie mix), not too sickly, and incredibly filling! I accidentally(!) ate 5 and may never need to eat again... They look high in fat because of the cheese and the almonds, but that also pushes up the protein and mineral content so I think is worth it, as part of a balanced diet. 

Note
On testing these ones out on friends, it seems that people prefer a sweeter truffle, so maybe add more powder sweetener to taste.  Or even smoked chilli?  The kinako flavour overpowers the cocoa a bit, so next time I think I'll try rolling in cocoa or ground almonds...  Will update...

Nutrition Data (for 2 truffles)
Calories: 120
Protein: 5.8g
Carbohydrate: 9g
Fat: 6.8g
Fibre: 2.2g
Calcium: 118mg
Magnesium: 36.4mg
Zinc: 0.8mg
Iron: 1.6mg

Ingredients
100g red kidney beans
28g ground almonds
2 fresh figs (70g total)
28g grated cheddar
2 pieces iron-enriched processed cheese (30g total)
15g cocoa
1 tsp zero calorie liquid or powder sweetener
7g kinako (roasted soy bean flour), for dusting

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Put all the ingredients into a blender and blend as far as possible, then mash in a bowl using a fork.
• Put a sheet of greaseproof paper onto a baking tray and spoon on 10 heaped teaspoons of mixture, flattening into rounds.
• Bake for 15 minutes, then cool on the paper on a wire rack. All you will have done is dry out the mixture a bit.
• Roll each round into a ball and into kinako (roasted soy bean flour).

Growing Goya

So that I can find this information on growing goya again this year, this is an article I found back in May this year.  

'Green curtains' block heat, save energy

The Yomiuri Shimbun http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110509004046.htm

A growing number of people are turning to nature to help them save electricity this summer, creating so-called green curtains of climbing plants.
According to the Energy Conservation Center, Japan, a key element in power conservation is reducing the use of air conditioners, which consume the most electricity in homes. A green curtain helps block the sun and keep room temperatures from rising through transpiration of the plant's leaves.
Green curtains can be easily set up at home, and Tokyo's Itabashi Ward Office has been promoting them as an effective way to battle global warming.
With power shortages expected this summer as a result of the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, the ward office has received an increasing number of inquiries from local residents about growing green curtains.
It also received more than two applications for every spot available in a class organized by the ward office on how to grow a green curtain.
Likewise, Katsushika Ward of Tokyo distributed free goya bitter gourd seeds to residents in late April. All 500 packets were taken by the second day.
A Katsushika Ward official in charge of distributing the seeds said, "Interest is higher [in growing goya] than usual. Many people are trying to grow it for the first time."
Tsuneo Kobayashi of Itabashi Ward, 79, has grown goya since 2009. He said the plant can make a four-meter high and three-meter wide green curtain as its vines grow.
"The room with a green curtain is clearly cooler than one next to it, which gets direct sun," Kobayashi said. "Seeing green plants soothes me."
Plants suitable for making green curtains include goya, bottle gourd, morning glory and others.
Accordnig to Koichi Sugawara, secretary general of the Tokyo-based nonprofit organization Midori no Curtain Oendan (green curtain cheering squad): "You can save money on electricity by making green curtains, which also give you the joy of growing and harvesting something."
Ichiro Awano, public relations director of Sakata Seed Co. in Yokohama, recommended goya for green curtains because it is easy to grow. People who want to use planters should purchase one that can contains at least 36 liters of soil, Awano said.
Goya seedlings should be planted 20 centimeters apart in a planter filled with soil for growing vegetables. It is important to fix a garden net firmly under the eaves, which goya vines could twine around. A net with a mesh of 10 to 18 centimeters should be used, Awano said.
When goya has seven or eight mature leaves, the tip of its stem should be nipped off to help lateral buds grow. Provide additional fertilizer after goya begins bearing vegetables, he added.
"If you want to make a thick leafy curtain, you should give extra nitrogen fertilizer," Awano said. "But this will result in a slightly smaller harvest."
It is now the season for planting seedlings in Japan, but the best time differs slightly by region.
"Before you actually start, you should seek advice on how to grow seedlings at the garden shop where you purchase them," Awano said.

(May. 10, 2011)

See also
http://hobiger.org/blog/2011/07/
http://greenjapan.com/living-in-japan/3597/

Goya (Nigauri/Bitter Gourd)

I've just found this post that I started back on 15th August, but never got round to posting.  This strange knobbly looking vegetable is a goya, quite possibly one of my favourite vegetables for its fresh unusual taste and nutritional value.

I first ate this five years ago when I went to Okinawa, the southern-most group of islands in Japan.  In Okinawa, it is most well-known in Goya Champuru recipes.  It seems to be a vegetable that causes mixed reactions.  Many people say it is bitter and so they don't like it.  But paired with the right ingredients it is incredibly refreshing!  Having said that, I love it so much I eat it raw in salads and smoothies.  

It is extremely rich in vitamin C, B vitamins and many essential minerals, higher than other dark green vegetables.  It's also supposed to show improvement in psoriasis sufferers, but difficult to pin that one down!

As far as growing it is concerned, it is a very popular summer plant in Japan.  It is a climber and forms a dense mass of leaves so is known as one of the 'Green Curtain' plants.  'Green Curtains' block sunshine going into the house and so make rooms much cooler.

This year I decided to have another go (3rd time lucky?) at growing this vegetable.  Previous attempts have been abysmal, really through my own fault (too small a pot the first, planting late in the season in poor soil the second).  But this year, there was more information available on the internet on growing this vegetable due to energy saving requirements in eastern Japan after the Tohoku earthquake.

When I started this post in the middle of August, I was feeling rather discouraged...  As well as the above I had written, 'So far I have eaten 3 of my own goya, plus have another 5 currently on the plant, hopefully more to follow!  This is from 2 plants.  Don't think that's exactly a roaring success, and the leaves are rather sparce and pathetic actually, although they do block some of the heat.  But...  much better than previous years, and I pinched out the growing tips rather too late I think, taking the advice I thought I got from my goya-expert neighbour!  I'll definitely try this again next year.  Apparently, planting directly into the soil also helps get a much denser curtain but that's not really an option without a lot of planning...'

Now it's another month on, and I've been really happy with the number of goya I've got, at least for my first attempt.  In the last few weeks, the leaves have become really abundant from about a metre  and a half off the ground, and in the last week or so I've had a goya a day!  Seems to be a late starter!  I've just taken this photo today.  Thinking about the fact that the leaves were sparce at the beginning and never ended up growing at the bottom of my plant, I think I've worked out the reason for that. Thinking I was cooling it down, I sprayed the leaves as well as watered at night.  But that seems just to have killed them off.  Next year!

Chocolate Banana, Spinach and Kiwi Smoothie

Don't knock this one before you've tried it...!  Blend 2 green kiwi, 2 large handfuls of spinach, 1 banana and 1 tbsp cocoa powder with some mineral water.  Amazing!  I might add some blueberries next time.

Celery and Pear Smoothie

Blend 2 pears and 3 sticks celery together with mineral water and a tablespoon of lemon juice.

Peach and Kinako Smoothie

The kinako (roasted soy bean flour) adds a nutty flavour as well as protein and B vitamins.

Ingredients (serves 1)
1 peach
1 tbsp kinako
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tbsp fresh mint


Method

• Put everything together in a blender with some ice cold mineral water and blend.
• Serve immediately or chill in the fridge.