L'OCCITANE Cafe

Hello! Today was a busy day!!! Since I had a day off on Friday and Monday was a holiday, I had a lot of work to do. Also, unexpectedly all employees had to participate in a seminar after work... which took about an hour! I couldn't go to the gym today... too bad :(

Anyway, on Saturday, after the contest, my boyfriend and I went to the L'OCCITANE Cafe in Shibuya.
The first floor of the building is the shop. I got samples of Immortelle Very Precious Regenerating Concentrate and Immortelle Very Precious Cream, which jose recommended! I am using it now ;) The scent is really nice and they moisturize without leaving a greasy feeling!!! I hope they help treat acne as well.
The second and the third floor is the cafe. It was so nice and comfortable that we stayed there for about 2 hours! We had lunch there. What I had was a set lunch menu. It comes with soup, salad, ratatouille, and breads. My boyfriend didn't feel like eating salad, so he had croque-monsieur. The food was great! I wish I could have desserts because their tartes looked so delicious, but I saved it for the next time (saved the calories! ha-ha).

Oh no. I'm dozing off...
I gotta stop and go to bed now.
Good night!

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Aomori Recipe Contest: Second Place!

Yesterday, I attended the final cook-off! It was about creating a daily dish using any of the 3 items (mineral burdock root, apios, and/or dried chrysanthemum) produced in Aomori prefecture.

The contest was held by LSearch (the group that help to promote trade and industry in Aomori) at Denryokukan (the show room of Tokyo Electric Power Co. in Shibuya) and five lucky finalists were selected! There were 5 judges. One is Jyunko Takashiro (a famous foodist) and the other four were from the (selected) general public. I cooked "Mineral Burdock Root, Apios, and Chicken Stuffed Fried Bean Curd, Salty-Sweet Sauce".

The winning recipe was a very beautiful sumashijiru (clear soup) with apios balls, but I am glad that mine was selected as the second place. All pictures above are taken by my boyfriend. Thanks for his support and the encouragement!

It was chilly in the morning, but it changed to fine autumn weather (and was hot) in the afternoon! I even sweated a little!!!

After the contest, my boyfriend and I went to a cafe and had a lunch. I think jose might love this! I will write about it the next time.

I gotta go now!
Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!!

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My Accomplishments

It's a fine Autumn day again today, but gradually getting chilly! Looks like winter is on its way!!! And that was right! The forecast said that yesterday was the coldest this season!

After so long! I will list my recent accomplishments.

On 10/16, my recipe finally won the grand prize at the garlic contest held by the site called kenkokazoku: online shopping site of health food product! The prize winning recipe is "Shrimp and Spinach Stamina Tartar". Luckily, my "Sausage and Spinach Pepperon Rice" won the special prize as well!

On 10/18, my fellow blogger Nazarina passed me this pretty award: Butterfly Award - For the coolest blog I ever know. Thank you!!!







Also on 10/25, she passed me another award: I'm a Chocoholic. How come she knows I like chocolate. Ha-ha! Thanks a lot ;)



On 10/22, my prize winning recipe, "Enoki Natto Meat Sour Miso Bowl" (I wrote about it before), went on Suntory's website!







On 10/24, I received some dashi products from Kamada, in return for putting my recipe on their catalogue. Kamada is famous for natural dashi soy sauce. The recipe, "Japanese Style Stir-Fried Sausage and Komatsuna (Japanese Mustard Spinach)", was the one I submitted to their contest using their product early this year.

On 10/29, my e-mail recipe newsletter for cell-phones was introduced at mini-mag (the publisher)'s weekly magazine! About 200 new readers have subscribed to my newsletter! Thank you!!!

Then last but not least, I have 3 finals to attend in November!!! 2 of them will be held in Tokyo, but one will be in Hiroshima! I need to take shinkansen (4 hours!) to go there. Am I deserve to participate... ?! Hope so...

By the way, yesterday on the news, I saw our prime minister Taro Aso saying that he would increase the consumption tax rate in three years... I think he shouldn't say that now... He just gave us a bad impression to his economic policies he announced yesterday, you know...
Aso pledges 27 trillion yen to fire up economy

I am taking a day off today and Monday is a holiday! Yay!!! Tomorrow I have one of the finals in Tokyo, so I hope I can write about that the next time.

Have a great weekend + Happy Halloween!!!

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Kuidaore Taro Got a New Job

Hi! We have fine weather here again ;)
I had a lunch with my co-worker after a long time!

Do you know Kuidaore Taro?
I once wrote about him before in my diary.
He is a mechanical drum-playing clown in front of Dotonbori (in Osaka)'s famous restaurant Cui-daore: a massive eight-story restaurant with a different Osaka cuisine on each floor.
The restaurant has closed on July 8th and he was removed since then.



However, yesterday, I saw on TV that he is coming back to Dotonbori! He will be back in front of Nakaza building (image on the right) next to the Cui-daore restaurant where he used to stand. Interestingly, Taro is just for rent and he belongs to Taro Company, which owner (Michiko Kakinoki)'s family has launched.
This article shows how popular he is!!!
Kuidaore Taro to debut as 'talent'

I wish I could be famous like him! Ha-ha!!!

Okay, talk to you later!
Have a nice day ;)

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Pingu's Birthday

We have fine autumn weather today! Last evening, it rained cats and dogs. The weather forecast was wrong again :( Luckily, I had an umbrella with me, but I saw many people buying umbrellas at convenience stores.

Do you know Pingu? It's one of my favorite cartoon characters! I used to watch this cartoon series when I was in a high school. It was shown on TV every morning before 7AM I believe... I still have video tapes which I recorded all those series, but unfortunately, I don't have VCR to play anymore... Also, I used to collect Pingu goods! My favorite is the Pingu voice alarm clock, but my boyfriend doesn't like it because it's too noisy... Anyway, today is Pingu's birthday! Happy Birthday!!! I never knew his birthday, but it was on my 2008 Pingu calendar :)

Changing my story, I have a pain in my left shoulder :( I must have strained my muscle at gym... What a spaz... One bad thing happens after another.
On Saturday I again had body composition done. Believe it or not, again, in another week, I gained muscle but my fat went right back where I started... Life is not easy!!!

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The Reality of Processed Foods and Restaurants

This morning, I forgot my gym stuff at home, so I ran back to home and ran to the station to catch my usual train... Isn't it my day? According to the astrology, the stars were in my favor... Hope I'm lucky today.

Anyway, starting from China's milk formula products, melamine has been detected in many of the processed foods in Japan... Also, after pesticide has been detected in a package of frozen gyoza dumplings imported from China, I hear the similar news almost everyday.
But this might be nothing new. We should have eaten something unhealthful without realizing. Isn't it scary? Not positive for our economy, but I want to cook and eat at home.

I will list recent news I found:
10/21: Saizeriya to pay back charges for its pizzas after melamine detected in ingredients
10/25: Insecticide found in Japan instant noodles
10/25: Melamine detected in fresh caramel in Saitama

The weather forecast had proved wrong and it was cloudy and rainy this weekend. Finally, the cloud cleared this morning! But the good thing is that the typhoon won't hit Japan this year!
I found a bird at the river near home. I took it with my cell! My boyfriend said it's a cormorant but I am not sure what this is...

Okay, I gotta go now.
Will see you tomorrow ;)

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Shrimp Tempura Udon Mummy

It is cloudy but warm again, the high is 77F (25C)!

Today, I will translate one of my Halloween recipes in response to the request ;)

Hope all ingredients are available in your area.



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Shrimp Tempura Udon Mummy

Difficulty: Easy
Time: 15min
Number of servings: 4

Ingredients:
4 ebi(shrimp) tempura
1 nori sheet (cut into 4 squares)
cream cheese
frozen udon noodles or pre-boiled udon noodles
sliced cheese and nori sheet for eyes
tentsuyu or konbu tsuyu

Directions:
1. Prepare ebi(shrimp) tempura.
The recipe of tempura is HERE.




2. Use frozen udon noodles or pre-boiled udon noodles which looks like the image on the left.



3. Boil udon noodles as directed on package.




4. Spread cream cheese on nori sheet.





5. Wrap ebi(shrimp) tempura with the nori sheet(4.).




6. When Udon gets dry, it's gluten gets strong and sticky. In that instant, wrap udon around the shrimp(5.). Cut out sliced cheese and nori sheet to make their eyes.



7. Pour non-diluted konbu tsuyu over, or dip it in tentsuyu and eat!

Please allow to cool tempura and udon when you wrap. You can eat as cold noodles like zaru udon (chilled udon noodles), or microwave before you eat.

My original recipe in Japanese is here.
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A bad cold (cold in the throat) is going around at work.
I need to be careful :(

Take care you all!!!

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Tempura

Hi! Today, it's little bit cloudy but still nice outside!

Nothing special, but I will write how to make tempura because I had a request to translate one of my recipes which needs this recipe!

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Tempura

Difficulty: Easy
Time: 20min+
Number of servings: 4

Ingredients:
vegetables of your choice (eggplant, carrot, pumpkin, sweet potato, renkon (lotus root), green pepper, shitake, shiso, etc...)
seafood of your choice (shrimp, fish, squid, etc...)
--Tempura Batter
* 1 egg
* ice water
* 1 cup (200cc) all purpose flour
--Tentsuyu (tempura dipping sauce)
* 1 cup (200cc) dashi broth (using packaged dashi powder saves time)
* 4 tbsp. mirin (sweet sake)
* 4 tbsp. soy sauce
vegetable oil
grated daikon radish
salt and sudachi (or lemon) if desired

Directions:
1. Prepare vegetables and seafood before frying. I will explain how to for shrimps: Use beheaded shrimps. Shell shrimps (leave their tails), remove spine, and make incisions in their stomach side to straighten them.
2. Tentsuyu: In a pan, bring dashi broth, mirin, and soy sauce to a boil.**
3. Tempura Batter: Beat an egg and add ice water to make them 200cc. (Be sure to use ice water!) Pour the mixture into a large bowl, sift flour in and mix lightly. (Do not overmix!)
4. Heat vegetable oil in a deep pan to 180~190C (340~350F).
5. Lightly dip the ingredients in the batter and fry them immediately until golden and crisp. Drain tempura on a rack or a sheet of clean paper towel. (Do not fry too many at once.)
6. Serve with tentsuyu and grated daikon radish. Or salt and sudachi (or lemon) is good, too!

Tempura is best served hot!

**For tentsuyu, you can use Yamasa's Konbu Tsuyu (3 times concentrated Konbu kelp seaweed soup stock). You just need to dilute it with hot water as directed on the package. This product is very convenient and it is available overseas!
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Yesterday, I wasn't able to stay up. Maybe because I work out seriously this week! Hope I have some improvements.

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Jack-o'-Lantern Bento

Hi! Today, the high is 75F (24C) but very hot at home in the room... I am sweating!

Guess what! On Saturday I again had body composition done at gym. Believe it or not, in another 4 weeks, I lost a pound of muscle and gained 0.6 pound of fat... I'm going a wrong way! An instructor told me that it could happen if I got used to work out! He says I need to concentrate on my menu... I thought I could get in shape if I go to gym and get it all done :( Nothing is easy!

Anyway, I am still losing the contests. I thought my Jack-o'-Lantern Bento was a good idea... It's face is an egg yolk. I drew the face by cutting nori sheet.



It was a busy day at work. I am drowsy now! Hopefully, see you tomorrow again ;)

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First Anniversary

Time flies! It's been already a year since I started this blog. I realized it few days ago.

Thanks all for coming, taking a look at my work. I really want to thank to those who always leave me some comments. I never thought of being this close to them because I am not the person who gets along with anybody...

This is my "Thank You Tart". I used edible roses ;)

Enjoy your day!!!

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