Birthday Cake Idea

It is raining today. Last night, I fell asleep while typing my diary.
Rain makes me drowsy!

Actually, I was waiting for my boyfriend. He had an English class late in the evening and after that he went drinking with his co-workers and didn't come back...
This morning I found him slipped out from his suit trousers (I guess he might have been uncomfortable with those on), lying on the floor... He said he has got a hangover. Right... he looked painful. I gave him a medicine for headache and left home. Hope he is doing fine now...

Oops! I just realized that I forgot my cell at home!
It's because of disrupted routines in the morning :(

Talking about my boyfriend, I didn't have a chance to write about his birthday cake for quite a while! This is the cake I made for his 33rd birthday. It is a strawberry shortcake with pink whipped cream. I decorated it with heart-shaped strawberries. Don't you think it's cute? Or, too cute for a guy? Ha-ha.



Different story.
Yesterday, I received a high-grade bousaizukin!!! It is a hat that guards your head from fire and other dangerous things. I choose it from "a wedding thank-you gift catalog", which is actually my boyfriend's. He says that I take things too seriously, but I think if you are prepared, you don't have to worry.
I forgot to bring it with me today, but I'm gonna keep it handy at my workplace!

In addition, my boyfriend won a 2 dozen water (tennensui) bottles, which I also won the other day!
I was thinking of keeping some bottled water on hand in case of emergency, but too many...

I wish I could use my luck evenly.



I'm changing my story again.
Lately, I am completely disillusioned with my job. My supervisor has no ambition. I am trying to think no one is perfect, but sometimes I can't take it.
But the way I think is better than before. I used to not know when to give up things, but now I try to take it easy and go on to the next, enjoy cooking after work!
I am kind of perfectionist, so I hate wasting time. A non-productive day is unthinkable...
(Then why don't I change my job...?! That's a different story.)
But but but! I have a bad habit. If I've got quite a lot to get through, I put things off... such as housework, e-mail replies to my friends, etc... My priority is always cooking (creation), so I barely have time for anything else!!!
I need to do things more sensibly.

Sorry for my rambling.
The shortcake story (my main story) is buried in details.
Please wade through...

Today, I have the second facial stuff!
Hope they remove my makeup thoroughly!

Will come back tomorrow, if I can :)

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My Accomplishments

Hello! It is sunny today! Hope it lasts.

Today, I will list my recent accomplishments.

In March, I wrote that I passed to the finals and create drink recipes using camu camu juice concentrate for a Peruvian restaurant called "Miraflores".
I won the grand prize!!!
The prize winning recipe is CAMU CAMU BEER, which is very easy!
You put 1tbsp of camu camu juice concentrate in a glass, pour 175cc of beer, and garnish it with mint leaves.
The sour taste of camu camu matches the beer perfectly; very refreshing!
It is going to be served at the restaurant in the near future.

Then again, I won the special award at the Yodoran (iodine-enriched egg) recipe competition by Nosan Corporation.
This time they asked for the recipe using their brand-new mayonnaise and Yodoran.
I think this is my fourth time to win this contest. Once I won the top prize, but the rest were the specials though.
I made kabobs using boiled eggs and chicken fillet with 'cod ovum-mayonnaise mixture' and aonori on top.
It is rich in flavor but not greasy because I used the chicken fillet!

Then yesterday, I won a special prize at Suntory's contest using their tennensui (Southern Alps natural mineral water). The contest was held at Cookpad (recipe site).
They asked for rice bowl recipes that use their water to cook rice and toppings. The rice bowl I made is not that special. I just cooked what I had in my refrigerator: ground meat, enoki, and natto with miso and vinegar seasonings.

Last but not least, I advanced to the finals of the survival food contest which I mentioned before! The finals will be held at Tokyo Big Sight on June 7th! I hope I can enjoy.

You know what?! I am unlucky with money!
Very funny, but I am losing all the money related prizes.
Of course, money isn't everything though.

Speaking of money, yesterday morning, I calculated my expenses because the receipt papers bulged my wallet and wanted to throw them away.
It's been a month since I last calculated, so the figures didn't add up.
5,060yen was missing!!!
I couldn't remember what I bought in a snap, so it couldn't get out of my mind for a whole day...
Anyway, I finally remembered in the evening! I added 5,000yen that I borrowed from my boyfriend. When I returned, I just subtracted the same amount, which made my expenditure plus minus zero!
But not sure about 60yen, hmm...

Sorry for the details...
Better not borrow or lend money!

I'm drowsy now.
Good night.

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Tonkatsu - Pork Cutlet

It was a rainy weekend.
It cleared up today, but it gonna rain again from Thursday :(

On Saturday, my boyfriend and I went to a famous Tonkatsu restaurant called "Katsukura" near the station. Tonkatsu is a popular (home-style) dish in Japan. It is a deep-fried breaded pork cutlet about two centimeters (0.7 inch) thick and sliced into bite-sized pieces, served with tonkatsu sauce (a type of thick Japanese Worcestershire sauce) and shredded cabbage on the side.
Katsukura's main branch is in Kyoto. They are picky about their foodstuff. They use hearth-baked crispy bread crumbs that seal in the flavor of pork. Their cabbage is fresh from the farm. For their dressing, they only use yuzu (citrus ichangensis) from Kitoumura in Tokushima prefecture. The oil they use to fry is trans fatty acid free, which is healthy. They certainly ensure the safe pork for the cutlet. Tonkatsu sauce they use is made with red wine, apple and natsumeyashi (Chinese date), that give a mild and rich taste.
For tonkatsu, either a pork fillet or pork loin cut may be used. My boyfriend loves pork loin, so he ate a 170g (6oz) portion of it. They also have takiawase (simmered seasonal vegetables)! This is my favorite, so I had it instead of eating cutlet :) To tell the truth, I am not that crazy about tonkatsu, but they have what we each like, so we go there once in a while!

On Sunday, I created 5 new recipes as usual.
I don't mention it in my diary every time, but I get this done every week.

Now it is almost 0AM!
Again, running out of time!
I gotta stop now.
Will write tomorrow :)
Good night!!!

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