Aojiso Wrapped Chicken Teriyaki Balls

Hi!
Again, I didn't have a chance to write my diary on Friday.
That night, my boyfriend and I planned to eat out but my boyfriend had to work late so we gave up.
Instead, I could have written my diary, but I downloaded Adobe's Lightroom and played with it.
It was pretty cool that you can change room light to natural sunlight, but I couldn't get used to it right away... and still now as well...
There are too many functions!!!

On Saturday, same as last week, my boyfriend had to attend a training class at his work, so I had a breakfast with him at Dean & Deluca and stayed there for about few hours. At noon, I had an appointment with my orthodontist so I went out, but again I went back to cafe, this time Starbucks, and stayed there till 18:00.
After that, I had a dinner with my boyfriend and went home.
At the time I go to bed, I felt very dull and I couldn't get to sleep!!!
I wondered why and my boyfriend said that it could be "Economy class syndrome".
Right... I was sitting in a cramped space for a long time...
If anyone loves to spend a long time at cafe, I suggest you to find a wider seat!!!
Also, lack of exercise can be a factor!!!
To talk about this, lately, I haven't been getting enough exercise...
I am swollen like a pig :(
I love to exercise if I have time... but as you know, I use most of my time creating recipes.
I think I need to force myself to go to GYM, shortly.
I know I can keep up if I once start, since I do a short YOGA workout every morning since last year!

Okay, back to my fat factor!
On Sunday, I created 6 new recipes!!!
I have won many food product samples these days, so I needed to use them in return.
Also, there were some recipe competitions I wanted to try, so I was kind of pushed...
Anyway, I did my best.
I will write about those recipes if I get a chance!

Today, I wanted to write about the other recipe: Aojiso Wrapped Chicken Teriyaki Balls.
I made this on Thursday.
I mixed ground chicken, Riken's new non-oil Teriyaki dressing, minced long onion, grated ginger and bread crumb. Then I wrapped with Aojiso, and cooked in a microwave.
It was juicy & delicious!
Hope this dressing is available all over the world. I will write the recipe in detail if anyone wants.

Finally, today I won the second prize at Philadelphia's cream cheese competition organized by Cookpad.
To tell the truth, none of my cream cheese recipes up to now won a prize, so I am really happy with it!

Okay, I wrote enough!
Please ignore my spell and grammar mistakes!

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Bunapi Recipe Competition

Hi there!
It is again warm and sunny today!

Talking about last Friday, I got honorable mention for Bunapi (white shimeji mushroom) competition at HOKTO KINOKO COMPANY (they produce and sell Kinoko mushrooms).
Since I tried my best, I am not that satisfied with it...
My boyfriend says I'm greedy, but I am just frustrated with the result!

Then yesterday I received a lot of Bunapi character cell phone straps.
Those were the prizes for participation.
In other words, my efforts...

My prizewinning recipe is "Stir Fried White Shimeji and Chicken fillet Split with Oyster Sauce"
It seems like all the prizewinning recipes are healthy using less or no meat but a lot of vegetables.
I wish I could know this in advance...

Anyway, I will continue to do my best!!!

Tomorrow is Friday!
I can't wait to be over!

See you again :)

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Buri Daikon

It is warm and sunny today!
The weather forecast says that it is spring weather :)
Hope it lasts for a while... I hate cold.

Good news!
Today, 100th person made my Buri Daikon(Japanese amberjack simmered with daikon) at Cookpad!
At Cookpad, there is a function to post a feedback with a photo image of the dish you've created. If you scroll down the page, you will find 100 people's photo of my recipe. Isn't it amazing!?
I posted this recipe on 10/31/2005, so it is more than 2 years to reach 100!!! When reached to 10 or 100 or 1000 etc., the recipe will be introduced on the front page of the site.
Anyway I am happy to know that 100 people loved this recipe for sure :)

I used to write about this, but my most popular recipe is Sauteed Pork with Salt Sauce.
At the time I wrote, there were only 395 people but now it increased to 458 people!

Okay, time to go.
See you!

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Aojiso Flavored Natto Dressing Salad

Last night, I watched TV till 1AM since there was an interesting TV program.
I thought I couldn't get up early this morning, but somehow I could :)
Maybe because it was warm and I wasn't freezing in bed.

Anyway, last week, I won Riken's new non-oil dressing samples: Aojiso (shiso leaf), Herb & Lemon, and Teriyaki.
As I mentioned before, people who won these samples should think some recipes (new ideas) in return.
So on Sunday, I made a very healthy salad: Aojiso Flavored Natto Dressing Salad.
I mixed non-oil Aojiso dressing with natto (a traditional Japanese food made from fermented soybeans) and poured on a salad.
It was delicious.
If you like natto, please try it out!!!

Okay, all for today.
See you tomorrow!!!

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Grand Marnier Earl Gray Tea

Hi!
It is very chilly these days.
I wake up freezing every morning.

On Saturday, my boyfriend had to attend a training class at his work, so I had a breakfast with him at Dean & Deluca and stayed there for about 6 hours organizing my stuff, thinking recipes, and so on.
But after a while, I realized that the ladies next to me were very chatty and I couldn't concentrate on anything...
I think I'd better change the place immediately if this kind of thing happened again.
I mean, this weekend, my boyfriend has the class again, so I'm planning to spend my time at a cafe.
I love to relax with a cup of coffee :)

Anyway, on Sunday, I created 5 new recipes again.
But badly, I misunderstood the assignment and created sushi...
My bad habit... I sometimes skim through the text :(
I think I need to try to read thoroughly.

Never mind!

One of the recipes I created is Grand Marnier Earl Gray Tea.
This is very easy.
You just add a tablespoon of Grand Marnier in a cup of Earl Gray Tea.
The bitter orange taste of Grand Marnier gives the tea a rich flavor!!!
Please try.
And then, if you have, have some chocolate with it!
It goes great with chocolate!
I had a happy tea time :)

Shall I write sad news?
I guess not in detail.
Things never work out as I hope... my work wasn't valued... that's all!

Okay, the bright news!
I once moaned about it but finally I won the grand prize at Lettuceclub!
I simmered cod fish in curry flavored yogurt.
On the day I created this recipe, I quarreled with my boyfriend and I didn't feel good, so I wonder why this won the prize.
Anyway, the recipe is on the Lettuceclub's magazine which was just released on 2/9!
I checked it out yesterday and was on P.107 :)

Wow, I wrote enough today!
Bye for now.

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Shrimp And Broccoli Tartar Croquettes

Hello!
How was your Valentine's Day?
Mine was great :)
My boyfriend loved my croquettes.

The theme is "spring colors"!
I mixed chopped boiled shrimps, broccoli, and eggs in mashed potatoes.
For the seasoning, I used salt, pepper and mayonnaise.
They were rich and delicious!

Here I posted the recipe.
Sorry in Japanese.
I will write it in English if anyone wants.

This weekend, I have a plan to cook again ;)
I wish I could have more time but I always thank my boyfriend.
He shows respect for my time.

See you next week!

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Happy Valentine's Day!

Yesterday, I was going to write my diary but didn't have a chance...
To make an excuse, I felt very drowsy at night and went to bed early.
It is very chilly these days so the weather might be the reason!!! haha.
Anyway, I will try my best to keep my diary.

The pic here is Valentine's chocolate cake which I made two years ago.
I used HERSHEY'S chocolate whipped cream for the filling.
I drew heart patterns on the cake.
Isn't it a lovely idea?!
The recipe is here.
I think I showed you most of my pretty Valentine's Day recipes ;)

Different story.
Recently (might be from the latter half of 2007) many food companies are promoting their products by offering free food product samples. They ask web users to create recipes or write about the products on their blog in return.
Whenever I find an offer, I apply for it. Luckily, I win most of the offers... In other words, I have a lot of tasks!!! I enjoy cooking but hope I can manage to use them all.

I have a many things to write!!!
There are a lot of new food products in Japan and they are all unique and interesting.
Hope I can write about them one by one every day.
About upcoming event-related food in Japan, too :)

Tonight, I am going to cook croquettes for my boyfriend.
I hate to fry things on weekdays but since he doesn't like sweet stuff, he should love them!
Also, I have another gift for him! Hope he likes that as well :)

Okay, I gotta go now.
Have a happy Valentine's Day!

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Chocolate Chunk Muffins with LOVE Message

The three-day weekend was fast.
It is again the workday :(
But this week we have only 4 days to work, which is good.

This weekend, I didn't go anywhere.
It snowed on Saturday and was very cold, so I was right to have no plan.

On Sunday, I created chocolate muffins but they weren't good, so I tried them again on Monday. The LOVE Message on top was easy, but the muffins... those were hell in many ways.
Since I wanted to create something original, I got pretty tired going through a trial and error process.
Anyway, I finally created!
Here is the recipe in Japanese.
I will write it in English if anyone wants.

Oops, I'm running out of time.
Bye for now.

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Bite-Size Sashimi Tofu

It is almost midnight.

I'm pretty tired tonight that I surfed TV variety shows on youtube without any purpose.
Actually, I used the Internet to reply to the comments and e-mails but couldn't thus :(

Monday is a national holiday, so we have 3 days off this weekend!
Since I don't have a special plan, I believe I'm gonna stay home and cook.

The pic here is "Bite-Size Sashimi Tofu".
I cut the tofu into bite size and put sashimi on top.
You eat them with soy sauce and wasabi like you eat sushi!

Okay! I'm really tired now.
I rewrote this diary since it disappeared once :(
I want to ge up early tomorrow morning, so good night!
Have a good weekend!

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Pink Crisped Rice for Valentine's Day

Hello again at night!
Today, it wasn't that busy but I was lazy that I couldn't write until now.

Anyway, I forgot to write one thing yesterday!
Every Wednesday, based on a certain theme, top three recipes are introduced in the newsletter published by cookpad.com (No.1 recipe search/posting site in Japan).
This week, they introduced "pink recipes" and mine was chosen as No.1! The recipe is here :)
I made this 2 years ago. Time flies.

It's Friday tomorrow!
Then we have three days off this weekend, so I can't wait!!!

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Muffin

I am drowsy now...

Today, I went to the partner company's exhibition in Shinagawa.
I attend it every year and was the third time this year.
Every year, before I return to my office, I walk around Shinagawa station.
ecute is a pretty cool place, so I love to go there.
They have many popular stores, such as Cold Stone!

Today, I tried the muffins at She Knows Muffin.
They have many different flavors.
I tried Earl Grey, Soybean Flour and Honey Bran.
They have very small muffins which is about 1.5 inches wide, so you can try many different flavors at once!
Their crunchy muffin tops were great!!!
Those were simmilar to the muffins I used to eat in the US!
I want to bake some muffins this weekend!

Also at ecute, there were Valentine's day Tanzaku (are the small pieces of paper to write wishes, sometimes in the form of poetry, hanging them on bamboo).
I wrote a message to my boyfriend :)

Okay, all for today!
Good night.


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Cupcake Decoration

Hi!
The spell check function is not working since last week... Only me?
Hope it comes back someday.

Anyway, writing about last Sunday, I created 5 new recipes as usual.
One of them is the cupcake!
Recently decorated cupcakes are getting popular in Japan.
Japanese love American stuff!
Those are something like Eleni's and Ruthy's cupcakes in NY at Chelsea Market.
Eleni's cupcakes are colorful & cute!
Ruthy's Sesame Street cupcakes are awesome!!!
Those kinds of cupcakes are now seen at many stores in Japan.

So, for that reason, I decorated my cupcakes :)
I chose pop colors since those are the latest concerned with fashion this coming season!
I used philadelphia cream cheese for both cupcakes and frosting (white chocolate ganache colored green).
The slight sour taste of the cream cheese is delicious!!!
For the butterflies, I used raspberry chocolate.
I have the recipe here, but in Japanese... sorry.

Okay, time to go.
See you tomorrow, hopefully!!!

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My Accomplishments

Hello!
Sorry again! I didn't have a chance to write my diary on Friday.
I was unexpectedly busy.

On Thursday, I could survive the party without feeling uncomfortable.
Since the restaurant was located in a department store, we didn't expect to eat delicious food, but the food there was pretty good!
I had a good time.

Anyway, today I want to write about my recent events.
There are many thing going on!!!

Last Friday, I won the "Angel Prize" at Megami's Recipe site!
I used to write about this site for many times, so please search my diary if you want to know about it in detail.
The prizewinning recipe was "Stir-Fried Salt Rubbed Chinese Cabbage".
I received a comment from Yukio Hattori, which made my day happy :)


Also, on that day, I got honorable mention for Sushi competition at All Japan Sushi.
They put out a call for new sushi menu and there were more than 400 submissions, so it was pretty competitive.
I created Fillet-o-Sushi.

Then the sad news (or good news?!).
On Saturday I received a message from Megami's site.
They say that they are going to stop the site for a while to renew the site.
It was on such short notice that I couldn't accept it for a while...
Hope they come back soon.

Then the bright news!!!
On Sunday my "Lucky Eho-Maki" recipe was posted on the front page of cookpad.com (No.1 recipe search/posting site in Japan).
I checked my statistics at cookpad this morning and realized that I had a lot of traffic on that day! Wow!!!



And today, I got honorable mention for "salt Zosui competition" at shio-navi.com.
shio-navi.com is the site to search & learn & evaluate about many different kinds of salt(mainly in Japan).
My piece was "Chicken Broth Zosui".
I boiled a Chicken Thigh Meat in water and flavored cooking liquid with salt and used for Zosui. You eat it with varieties of ingredients.

Also today, I passed the initial screening to go to the finals and create drink recipes using camu camu. I think I'm gonna be busy again this month!

Okay. I wrote enough today!
See you tomorrow :)

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Hassaku Ginger Sour Drink

As I wrote last week, I remade the Sour Drink again!
Finally, it was successful!
I soaked honey, hassaku (Japanese sour orange) and ginger in vinegar.
The bitter taste of hassaku is brisk and refreshing! The hot taste of ginger warms you up in the winter.
It was my boyfriend's idea to use hassaku, so I am glad that he gave me this idea.
The recipe is here.
Sorry again in Japanese, but will translate if you want.

Anyway, I gotta go now.
We have a convivial party which was canceled on 1/15.

Hope I can enjoy...
See you tomorrow.

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Hand Care Items

Yesterday, I couldn't write my diary because my home PC couldn't go online... Sometimes our LAN has a temporary problem, so this might be the reason. Hope it is fixed by this evening.

Anyway, I wish I could have a day off... my supervisor is verrry annoying. But I'm a good girl, I hardly ever take off from work!

Moaning is enough!
Today I want to write about my hand care items.
Since I cook almost everyday, my hands are brittle and cracked in winter. So this winter, from November, I started to use some hand care products!

The image on the right is Edible Hand Cream.
Since it contains edible ingredients, you can use it while you are cooking! It costs a bit but helps a lot!

The image on the left is Casabella's Water Stop Gloves. I hate to wear gloves while washing dishes but I soon got used to them. They just fit my hands!
Also, I love this kind of pink :)

Okay. I gotta go now.
See you again tomorrow.

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