Chili Crisp Cottage Cheese Flatbread カッテージチーズフラットブッレドと食べるラー油

My wife is always looking for new baking projects. She came across a flatbread recipe using cottage cheese. In addition, this recipe included “chili crisp*”. We are usually not interested in “very spicy” food. In our household, we keep “Tabasco” and “Sriracha” and use them sparingly or as part of a marinade. We used to have a Japanese version of chili infused oil or ra-yu ラー油 but since we used it rarely, it oxidized by the next time we wanted to use it. Since my wife asked for “chili crisp” for this recipe, I looked into it. The Chinese version appeared to be too spicy for us and we do not particularly like tongue numbing Sichuan pepper which many Chinese brands may include. So I settled for a Japanese mild version of chili crisp from ‘Momoya 桃屋**”.

*Spicy chili infused oil “辣油” is a traditional condiment in Chinese cuisine. In Japan, it is known as “ra-yu ラー油”.  Chili crisp or chili crunch  is a variation chili oil in which bits of chili, garlic and other solids are included. This became very popular during the  COVID time (2020 on) in the U.S. and many brands (including some U.S. brands) became readily available. In Japan, this was known as “eating ra-yu  or 食べるラー油”.

**Japanese condiment maker “Momoya 桃屋” started selling a Japanese version of chili crips which was dubbed as “Looks spicy but not too spicy ra-yu 辛そうで辛くない 少し辛いラー油” in 2009 which was a big hit in Japan.

So my wife started making the bread but at the last moment her friend called and I was left to do the final preparation; making the dough balls, let them rest. Preheating the cast iron skillet. Pressing and stretching the dough balls in to 7 - 8 inch disks without making holes and cooking them in the cast iron skillet. The picture #1 is the result. I included the Japanese chili crisp in the picture (on the side).

This is how we enjoyed it (picture #2). Just dip the bread in the chili crisp. (We subsequently found that spreading the chili crisp directly on the bread works very well too.) The bread and chili crisps were wonderful. The fried garlic adds a nice crunch and the oil is flavorful but not hot; just a bit of buzz which suits us just fine. The bread on its own also has nice flavors.

Ingredients
3/4 cup (170g) cottage cheese, whole milk preferred
1/2 cup (114g) water, warm
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons table salt
1 cup (14g) cilantro, leaves and tender stems*
2 1/4 cups (270g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1 tablespoon (22g) chili crisp, plus more for brushing
vegetable oil, for brushing or greasing

*Or substitute with dill, parsley, or a mix

Directions:
To make the dough: In a food processor, process the cottage cheese, water, yeast, sugar, and salt until smooth, 20 to 30 seconds. Add the cilantro, flour, and 1 tablespoon (22g) chili crisp, in that order, and process in about 8 to 10 second-long pulses, until the dough comes together and starts to gather around the blade.

Scrape the dough into a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise until increased in volume by about 1 1/2 times, 30 to 45 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead it gently, sprinkling with additional flour as necessary, until it's smooth, springy, and less sticky, 30 to 60 seconds. (The dough was extremely, wet and sticky and required the addition of a fair amount of flour to make it workable.) 

Divide the dough into 4 pieces (about 150g each) and shape each into a tight ball. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside until puffy and relaxed, 15 to 30 minutes.

Toward the end of the rise time, preheat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Working with one dough ball at a time, stretch or roll into a 7" to 8" round. Brush the top with vegetable oil, then place, oil-side down, in the skillet. Cook until brown underneath and bubbled on top, 1 to 2 minutes. Brush the other side with oil then flip the dough and cook until brown on the second side, 1 to 2 minutes.

While one flatbread is cooking, shape the next.
For an extra spicy finish, brush the warm flatbreads with chili crisp before serving.

Sweet Potato muffin with Dates and Cranberries サツマイモマフィン

This is another of my wife’s baking projects. The original recipe appeared in Washington Post as “Sweet potato bread with dates and cranberries” but she converted it to muffins. One of the reasons she made this is that we got some Japanese sweet potatoes a week ago and she wanted to use them before they went bad. This recipe was a bit unusual in that the dates were pulverized with oil, eggs, and milk and become a part of the wet ingredients.  The original recipe also calls for fresh cranberries but we didn’t have any so we used dried cranberries (craisins). Since craisins have added sugar and dates are quite sweet, we were afraid the muffin would be too sweet but it was just pleasantly sweet. The texture appeared dense but was very tender. Overall, this is a good unique muffin/bread. We enjoyed it for our breakfast. I ask my wife to continue.

Ingredients
1/2 cup (120 milliliters) neutral oil, (We used Crisco)
1 1/2 cups (190 grams) pitted dates
1 cup mashed, roasted sweet potatoes (We used Japanese sweet potatoes)
1/3 cup (80 milliliters) milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup (65 grams) whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup (65 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (60 grams) almond flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1 cup (95 grams) fresh whole cranberries (We used craisins)
1/2 cup (60 grams) chopped raw pecans

Directions:
Prepare 2 sweet potatoes by piercing the skin, then putting them into a silicone cooking container with a little water. Cover and cook in the microwave until tender (about 4-5 minutes). Remove the skin. Mash them and then run them through a ricer to get rid of any remaining lumps. 

Place the dates in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add the sweet potato puree, oil and milk and pulse until smooth. (Small bits of the dates will remain.) Add the eggs and vanilla, and pulse to combine. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

In another large bowl, whisk together the whole-wheat, AP, and almond flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt until combined.

Add the flour mixture to the sweet potato mixture, and stir just until evenly incorporated. Stir in the cranberries and pecans; the batter will be very thick.

Transfer the batter to the prepared muffin tins. Bake at 325 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for about 5 minutes then remove from the pan.

Brioche ブリオーシュ

We found some small disposable brioche cooking cups in the cupboard. My wife told me she got them to make individual fruit cakes one Christmas some time ago. She then came across a brioche bun recipe in “Frog Commissary  Cookbook”.  So with the juxtaposition of these two events she decided she had to make it. This is the end result (Picture #1). I am not sure why but the traditional brioche bun has a small “topknot” attached to the “body” making it a snowman shape (#1). In the case of this batch almost all the little knobs fell off. No worry. They made nice little bites for breakfast. These were very nice slightly sweet, rich buns. We had them toasted for breakfast and they were perfect. I will let my wife take over.

Ingredients:
¼ cup milk
½ pound butter, in bits
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 package dry yeast (4 ounce each)
¼ cup warm water
6 eggs
5½ cups flour (1½ pounds) 
1 egg yolk (optional)

Directions:
Gently heat the butter with the milk until the butter melts.

Put the sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer and pour on the warm milk-butter mixture. Stir to dissolve the salt and sugar. Cool to lukewarm.

Meanwhile, bloom the yeast over the warm water in a small bowl. Add to the milk mixture. Add the eggs and mix until smooth. Add 3½ cups of the flour and again mix until smooth. Switch to the dough hook and stir in the remaining flour. The dough will be too sticky to knead but should begin to pull away from the sides of the bowl; this may take 5-10 minutes of mixing. (I could not add all the flour specified in the ingredients because the dough became quite thick before I was able to add it all. Next time I may not add so much flour leaving the dough a bit sticky as suggested in the instructions.)

(Note: This bread requires 3 rises;  the first 1 to 1 1/2 hrs, the second about 1 hour, the third about 1/2 to 2 1/2 hrs. This is anywhere between 2 1/2  to 4 1/2 hours total. In order to have freshly baked brioche for breakfast, the recipe suggests putting the bowl in the refridgerator for the second rise to occur overnight. They suggest checking on it periodically to make sure it doesn’t rise too much before it cools to the temperature in the refrigerator. Then the third rise could be done the next morning after taking the dough out of the fridge. This is what we did.)

Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm spot until doubled, about 1-1½ hours. Punch down the dough and lightly knead in the bowl for 1-2 minutes. Cover again and let rise once more in a warm spot until doubled (about 1 hour). Punch down and knead for 1-2 minutes. With floured hands, divide the dough into 14 pieces (about 3½ ounces each). Shape 12 of the pieces into balls and set one in each of 12 greased individual 3-4 ounce brioche tins.

Divide the remaining 2 pieces into 6 pieces each and roll them into little balls. Poke a hole with your finger in the top of each brioche and put one of the small balls in each indentation for a "topknot” (#2). Set the brioches in a warm spot to rise until very light and doubled in bulk; this could take ½-2½ hours depending on whether dough has been refrigerated Preheat the oven to 375°. Beat the egg yolk and brush it lightly over the brioches as a glaze. (This is optional and we did not do it.) Bake for 15 minutes until lightly browned (#3)

These were very good and made a very nice breakfast. We sliced one into 4 slices and lightly toasted it. Then spread on butter to melt in the residual heat. We each took 2 of the slices. What is not to like? Next time I think I will forgo the top knot and maybe cook them in the smaller sized brioche muffin cups we have.

Prosciutto, dates, and goat cheese bites

This is another one of my wife’s baking projects. She wanted to make savory small bites which will go well with red wine. Since we had extra prosciutto, she wanted to use it up. After searching recipes on-line, she found a recipe using pancetta, dates and goat cheese at Washington Post. Although the recipe specifically called for pancetta, we have learned that among the trinity of Italian cured pork, i.e. prosciutto, pancetta, and guanciale, the major difference between them is the part of the pork they come from; i.e. thigh, belly, and jowl, respectively. So my wife figured she could substitute the prosciutto she had for the pancetta she didn’t have in this dish. The recipe also called for dates. Upon inspection of the back of the pantry, we discovered that the only dates we had were an unopened package of dried dates which had passed their BUB (best-used-by) date by a large margin. We tasted the dates. They tasted OK but the skin was getting a bit hard. So we soaked the dates in hot water to see if that would help and it did. The dates were perfectly usable. In addition the recipe called for making the batter into a loaf of bread but my wife wanted something small to nibble with wine so she cooked the recipe in mini muffin tins. Thus these small bites or muffins were made. The dates added sweetness and prosciutto added a nice saltiness. They both went well with the goat cheese which made the muffin moist.

Ingredients:
3 ounces prosciutto (or pancetta), chopped into pea-size pieces (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 medium onion, minced (1/2 cup)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
12 pitted dates, chopped into pea-size pieces (about 1 cup)
2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley (optional)
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves (optional)
2 teaspoons minced fresh chives (optional)
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 
1/2 cup whole milk
3 large eggs
About 3 ounces (1/3 cup) fresh goat cheese, crumbled into pea-size pieces

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a mini muffin tin by either greasing it or lining it with paper cups.

Cook the prosciutto in a dry skillet over medium heat until crisped, about 8 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the prosciutto to a plate to drain. As needed, pour off all but about a teaspoon of the rendered fat in the pan, then return to medium heat and add the onion. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is wilted and lightly browned in spots. Remove from the heat.

Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and herbs (if using them) in a mixing bowl. Add the pieces of goat cheese. Using a pastry blender cut the cheese into the flour until it is evenly distributed as you would if making biscuits. Add the onion mixture and stir until evenly distributed. Add the chopped dates and use your fingers to break up the sticky pieces and coat them with the flour mixture. This will help keep those solids from sinking to the bottom during baking.

Whisk together the oil, milk and eggs until well incorporated. Using a flexible spatula gently stir and combine the liquid and dry ingredients, scraping the dry ingredients up from the bottom of the bowl regularly.

Scoop the dough into the prepared mini muffin tins. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

These are very flavorful little bites. The combination of savory prosciutto and goat cheese with the sweetness of the dates is a very pleasing contrast. Perfect with a glass of red wine.

Assorted Japanese Mini-pans 日本のミニ菓子パン各種

When I was browsing the Weee site, I came across an item called “assorted Japanese mini pan”. This category of Japanese “pan” bread is called “Kahi-pan” 菓子パン or sweet bread. “Kahi” 菓子 is a rather inclusive Japanese word which may mean candies, cake, sweets, or snacks. When this word is applied to bread, it is sweet bread and/or bread with sweet filling. The most classic is “anpan” アンパン in which sweet red bean paste or “an” 餡 is inside a round bun. While I was growing up in Japan, for whatever reason, my parents would not allow my brother and I to have “kashi-pan” in general. So my memories of having these sweet breads are non-existent. This changed when my wife discovered these Japanese sweet breads on one of our trips to Japan.  Thereafter, whenever we were in Japan, she had to have some for breakfast so we would stop at one of the  Japanese bakeries and buy some. She first found “melon-pan” followed by other Japanese sweet and savories. So when I told her an assortment of Japanese sweet bread was available at Weee she asked me to get it. Apparently, this comes from a small bakery in New Jersey called “Parisienne bakery” (#1 in the composite picture). Despite its name, this bakery appears to specialize in Japanese breads and pastries. In any case, the box came with 7 mini-pan.  We split one at a time as a part of our breakfast.

We can easily recognize a mini melon-pan (A). It tasted exactly same as a full sized.

“B” is, I think, “kuri-kinton” 栗きんとん filled. “kuri-kinton” is a classic “Osechi” 御節 new year’s dish made of mashed sweet potato and chestnuts (#6 in the composite). “C” is almond flavored custard cream filled (#5 in the composite). “D” is “an-pan” filled with smooth sweet red bean paste or “koshi-an” 漉餡 (completely smooth without any remnant of red beans). “E” is another “an-pan” filled with sweets red bean paste with some remnant of red beans or “tsubu-an” 粒餡 (#3 in the composite). “F” is a “kri-mu pan” クリームパン and filled with custard cream (#5 in the composite). “G” is, I believe, another classic  called “Chocolate corona or チョコレートコロナ” which is shaped like a whelk shell and filled with chocolate cream. I did not take a picture of the cut surface but the filling was almost solid milk chocolate (probably because we ket this bread in the refrigerator).

As far as I am concerned these Japanese sweet breads are pretty good and enjoyable, but in small doses. My wife, was absolutely delighted with the treat and has asked me get them again when we order groceries from Weee.

Chocolate Milk Bread チョコレートミルクパン

We regularly get a catalog from the King Arthur Baking. One of them had a recipe for “chocolate milk bread”. Being a fan of Japanese milk bread, my wife decided to make it. Compared to regular milk bread, this is much more difficult to make. A direct quote from my wife: “This is the weirdest bread I’ve ever made.” The dough was especially soft and sticky having the texture of dough you would pour rather than knead. Also the instructions to mix on high speed for 20 minutes were unique. The dough did indeed get stiffer after this treatment but it was still impossible to ”fold” and “shape” as instructed. We ended up using a floured board and a baker’s scraper to form it into a loaf and placed it in a pan. It rose very high after baking but collapsed a bit after it was removed from the pan and cooled. The texture was nicely soft but chocolate flavor was muted. We like it very much but knowing the difficulty of making this, we are not sure it is worth the effort to make it again.

Note: We made a second batch of this bread and using “Common Culinary Knowledge” (CCK) we added enough flour to make a stable workable dough. We also did not knead it 20 minutes but the usual kneading time of 7-10 minutes. We also did not bother reweighing the tangzhong but used it as it came out of the pan. The resulting bread was infinitely better than the first batch and is definitely worth making again (even though no distinctly chocolate flavor comes through). 

Ingredients (X1 one loaf)
Tangzhong
2 tablespoons (11g) black cocoa
2 tablespoons (11g) Dutch- process cocoa
1 1/2 tablespoons (11g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (70g) milk, whole preferred; cold
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (70g) water, cold
1/2 tsp. King Arthur espresso powder (optional). (this brings out the taste of the chocolate

Dough
1 3/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon (219g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour, plus more for dusting or to make the dough stable and useable. 
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (70g) milk, whole preferred; warm (110°F)
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon (41g) granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons (10g) King
Arthur Baker's Special Dry Milk, optional
2 1/2 teaspoons (7g) instant yeast
scant 1 teaspoon (5g) table salt
3 tablespoons (43g) unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg, beaten; divided
Scant 1/2 cup (75g) semisweet chocolate chips

Ingredients (X2) (Why make just one loaf when you can make 2 ?) We made 2 loaves
Tangzhong
4 tablespoons (22g) black cocoa
4 tablespoons (22g) Dutch- process cocoa
3 tablespoons (22g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (140g) milk, whole preferred; cold
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoon (140g) water, cold
1 tsp. King Arthur espresso powder (optional). (this brings out the taste of the chocolate)

Dough
3 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (438g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour (or however more is needed to make the dough stable and useable.  
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (140g) milk, whole preferred; warm (110°F)
6 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoon (82g) granulated sugar
3 tablespoons (20g) Dry Milk, optional
5 teaspoons (14g) instant yeast
2 teaspoons (10g) table salt
6 tablespoons (86g) unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, beaten;
Scant 1 cup (140g) semisweet chocolate chips (we didn’t use this)

Directions:
To make the tangzhong: In a small saucepan, whisk the cocoas, flour, milk, and water until no lumps remain. Over low heat, bring the mixture to a boil, whisking constantly, until the mixture looks glossy and thickened to the consistency of hot fudge sauce, 3 to 6 minutes. Transfer the tangzhong to the bowl of a stand mixer; it will weigh about 145g after cooking (or 284 if doubling the recipe). If your tangzhong is more than 155g, (or 310g when doubling the recipe) return it to the pot and cook it a bit longer. (We did not bother to do this with the second batch and the bread turned out just fine.)

To make the dough: Add the flour, milk, sugar, milk powder, yeast, salt, butter, and egg to the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the cooled tangzhong.

Using the dough hook, mix on medium-low speed adding additional flour as needed until a soft, sticky workable dough forms, scraping down the bowl as necessary. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue mixing until the dough almost clears the sides of the bowl (it will stick to the sides for much of the mixing time) and is smooth and elastic, 15 to 20 minutes total (We did not do this with the second batch we made, 7-10 minutes worked just fine). Every few minutes, scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then continue mixing. Eventually the dough will strengthen enough to mostly pull away from the sides of the bowl; the dough will still be slightly sticky but significantly more manageable than it was before. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise until puffy and doubled in bulk, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Lightly grease an 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" loaf pan or 9" x 4" Pullman loaf pan with nonstick spray or vegetable oil.
Use a bowl scraper to gently ease the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently form the dough into two loaves. (At this point the original recipe gave complex instructions on how to fold the dough into various squares, which, given the consistency of the dough was quite impossible. It held together but was more a pouring consistency. (#1) Forming it into loaves was the best we could do.) (#2) Cover and let the loaf rise until it just crests over the rim of the pan, 45 to 90 minutes, depending on the temperature of your kitchen. (#3) (If using a 9" x 4" pan, let the dough rise until it's about 1" below the top of the pan.)

Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the chocolate milk bread for 30 to 35 minutes, until the loaf is fragrant, the top crust is firm, and the internal temperature is at least 190°F. Remove the loaf from the oven and cool briefly in the pan before turning it out onto a rack to cool completely.

The loaf was so soft that when we turned it out it started collapsing on itself (# 4) and we had to cool it on its side. Nonetheless once it cooled it stabilized and the soft texture was very nice. (maybe we should leave it in the pan longer before turning it out). There was almost no flavor of chocolate. We ate it for breakfast lightly toasted with butter. It is good we made this bread because it makes our library of Japanese milk breads (to the extent we know of it) complete. But there are various of the other versions we would choose to make before doing this one again.

P.S. Turns out that over time this bread has gotten better. A nice very subtle chocolate flavor has moved to the fore. The texture has also gotten firmer

Apple Fritter アップルフリッター

We received a Christmas present which included a good number of apples and pears. We finished all the pears and made a significant dent in the number of apples but we still had several honey crisp apples left. We happened to come across this recipe for “apple fritters”. Since we have never made an apple fritter, and we also happened to have some apples on hand, we decided to try it. It was kind of a production but we fried up fritters for breakfast one weekend. We did not bother with “glazing” them. Hot off the oil (#1) and with cappuccino/cafe late, this was quite a special breakfast. Crispy outside and soft inside with apple cinnamon flavors—can’t be beat, although we should not have this type of breakfast too often.

The original recipe came from “Serious eats”.

Ingredients

For the apples:
226 g granny smith apples (we used two honey crisp apples, peeled, cored and diced in small pieces)
42g unsalted butter (1 1/2 ounces; 3 tablespoons)
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon plus a pinch kosher salt

For the dough:
355 g all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons apple pie spice*

2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Canola oil, for frying

*Apple pie spice: 1 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp ginger and 1/2 tsp cardamon.

Directions:
In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Cook, whisking constantly with a wooden spoon, until milk solids sink to the bottom of the skillet and turn light golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add apples and stir to evenly coat in butter. Cook, stirring occasionally, until apples are crisp-tender and still hold their shape, about 5 minutes. Add lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of the sugar, and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves and apples are glazed in sugar mixture, about 2 minutes. Transfer apples to a large plate and refrigerate until cool, about 20 minutes.

Set a wire rack inside a 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet; set aside. Fill a large Dutch oven with 1 1/2 inches of canola oil and heat over medium-high until oil is 375ºF (190ºC).

In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, apple pie spice, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and 1 teaspoon salt to combine; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, milk, sour cream, and vanilla to combine. Add sour cream mixture and cooked apples to dry ingredients, and, using a flexible spatula, fold together until a thick batter forms.

Working in batches carefully drop about 1/2 cup of batter into the hot oil and, using the back of a spoon, immediately press fritter until fritter is about 4-inches in diameter. Fry, adjusting heat as needed to maintain temperature, and use a spider skimmer or slotted spoon to flip fritters halfway through. Cook until fritters are browned, puffed, and cooked through, about 5 minutes (picture #2). Transfer finished fritters to prepared wire rack and repeat with remaining fritters (picture #3).

This recipe made a quite large amount (picture #3). The fritter heated up very well in the toaster oven. They were quite a treat (Can’t go wrong with sweet, spicy, fried bread.) The outside had a wonderful crunch and the inside was soft and sweetly spicy. The apple gave a burst of sweet fruit taste. 

Table of Contents 2025

January 2025
January 2     Happy New Year 2025 謹賀新年2025
January 5     Sushi Taro Osechi box 2025
January 8     Sushi Taro New Year Soba 手打ち蕎麦
January 11    Grilled “Tai” Perch Seasoned Rice 鯛飯もどき
January 14     “Karasumi” Japanese Bottarga from Maruhide 丸秀の唐墨
January 17    Bottarga/Karasumi Taste Test 日本の唐墨とサルジニアのボタルガの味比べ
January 20    Apple Pie Muffin and Pan Cake アップルパイ　マフィン
January 23    “Endless” Konnyaku 無限コンニャク
January 26    Mock Tofu 擬制豆腐
January 29    Apple Fritter アップルフリッター

February 2025
February 1    Braised Eggplant with Ground Chicken 茄子のそぼろ煮
February 4    Sashimi Daikon Garnish 刺身の大根つま/けん
February 7    Wild Rice Salad ワイルドライスサラダ
February 10    Apple Pie Muffin Made with Juiced Apple アップルパイマフィン
February 13    Chocolate Milk Bread チョコレートミルクパン
February 19    Ricotta Lemon Cookie リコッタチーズ　レモンクッキー
February 21    Assorted Japanese Mini-pans 日本のミニ菓子パン各種
February 24    Quesadilla with Mini-corn Tortilla and Browned Cheese
February 27    Burdock Root Kelp Roll ごぼうの昆布巻き

March 2025
March 2    Anchovy Onion Cocktail Biscuit アンチョビイと玉ねぎカクテルビスケット
March 6    Shrimp Chicken Gyouza エビと鶏肉の餃子
March 9    Chickpea fries ひよこ豆フライ
March 19    Babka Cookie Muffin バブカ　クッキー　マフィン
March 22    Nappa Cabbage Cream Stew 白菜のクリームシチュー
March 30    Jubako for “hanami” cherry blossom gazing 花見用市松模様の重箱

April 2025
April 2    Hanami 2025 花見2025
April 5    Hanami #2 花見＃2
April 8    “Cotton Candy Grape Muffin” “わたあめブドウ” のマフィン
April 11    “Cotton Candy Grape” Panna Cotta “わたあめブドウ“ パンナコッタ
April 14    Carrot Salad Muffin 人参サラダ入りマフィン
June 2025

June 12    Tokyo Kyobashi Areas Izakayas (part 1) 東京の居酒屋　東京駅八...
June 15    Cream Cheese with Pickled Daikon クリームチーズ　沢庵入り
June 18    Tokyo Kyobashi Areas Izakayas (part 2) 東京の居酒屋　東京駅八...
June 21    “Renkon” Lotus Root in sweet vinegar 酢れんこん
June 24    Tokyo Kyobashi Areas Izakayas (part 3) 東京の居酒屋　東京駅八...
June 27    Lemon Crumb Bar レモンクラムバー
June 30    Tokyo Kyobashi Areas Izakayas (part 4) 東京の居酒屋　東京駅八...


July 2025
July 3    Matcha Almond Pancake (again) 抹茶アーモンドパンケーキ
July 6    Izakaya in Kanazawa 金沢の居酒屋
July 9    Topping of Katsu-Don カツ丼のあたま
July 12    Kyoto Izakaya in Kyoto Station area part 1 京都駅付近の居...
July 15    Vinegar Cured Mackerel Sushi with Shiro-ita Kelp バッテラ
July 18    Kyoto Izakaya in Kyoto Station Area Part 2 京都駅駅付近付...
July 21    Pea, Ricotta ad Mint Gazpacho えんどう豆、リコッタチーズとミントのガス...
July 24    Tottori Izakaya and Shinkansen “Izakaya” 鳥取の居酒屋と新幹...
July 27    Pea, Avocado and Mint Blini グリーンピー、アボカド、ミント　ガスパッチョ
July 30    Izakaya in Sapporo Part 1 札幌の居酒屋パート1

August 2025
August 2    Chilean Sea Bass in Sweet “Saikyo” Miso メロの西京味噌焼き
August 5    Izakaya in Sapporo Part2 札幌の居酒屋パート2
August 8    Cream Cheese Muffin クリームチーズマフィン
August 11    Sapporo Lunch Places Part 1札幌の昼ごはん パート1
August 14    Pork Vindaloo with Baby Corn and Edamame ポーク “ビンダル...
August 17    Izakaya in Sapporo Part3 札幌の居酒屋パート3
August 20    Impromptu Eggplant Mushroom Stir-fry 茄子と椎茸のオイスターソース炒め
August 23    Sapporo Lunch places part2 札幌の昼ごはん　パート2
August 26    Cold Udon with Sesame Sauce 胡麻ソース和え冷製うどん
August 29    Izakaya in Sapporo Part 4 札幌の居酒屋パート4

September 2025
September 1    Savory Breakfast Mini Cheesecakes ミニチーズケーキ
September 4    Izakaya in Sapporo Part 5 札幌の居酒屋パート5
September 7    Mapo (sort of) Eggplant “麻婆風” 茄子
September 10    Izakaya in Sapporo Part 6 札幌の居酒屋パート6
September 13    Oyster Mushroom and Chiku-wa Stir-fly with Yuzu-ko...
September 16    Cheese Straws チーズツイスト
September 19    Small Dishes or “Sake-no-sakana” 酒の肴
September 21    Prosciutto, dates, and goat cheese bites
September 24    Cabbage and pork belly stir-fry キャベツと豚バラの炒め物
September 27    Scallop fry ホタテのフライ
September 30    Yellow Squash Garlic Bites イエロースクワシュ、ガーリックバイツ

October 2025
October 3    Green Yuzu, “Kinome” Japanse pepper leaves 青柚子と木の芽
October 6    Japanese “Mizu” eggplant Asazuke 水茄子の浅漬け
October 9    Spanish Mackerel dumpling Soup topped with “Kinome...
October 12    Cucumber with Miso Sauces 味噌胡瓜
October 15    Moon gazing 10/6/2025 月見
October 18    Dishes from Yellowfin Tuna Sashimi Block キハダマグロ刺身の柵
October 21    Scallion Cheese Pinwheels ねぎとチーズの渦巻き
October 24    Hiyaoroshi Sake and Matsutake ひやおろし酒 “如空”と松茸
October 27    Funny cake ファニーケーキ
October 30    Julienned vegetable salad 刻み野菜サラダ

November 2025
November 2    Salmon Shrimp Pâté with Shiitake 椎茸入り鮭とエビのパテ
November 5    Cheese Pennies チーズ (ペニー) バタークッキー
November 8    Japanese Cucumber with “Sudachi” Miso 酢橘味噌胡瓜
November 11    Indian Pudding インディアンプディング
November 14    Kabocha Blini かぼちゃビリーニ
November 17    Brioche ブリオーシュ
November 20    Caramelized onion pizza 飴色玉ねぎピザ
November 23    White Pizza “Pizza Bianca” 白いピザ
November 27    Vanilla Shoofly Pie バニラシュウフライパイ
November 30    Simmered “Ni-Yakko” tofu 煮やっこ

December 2025
December 2    Nutmeat Pate 木の実のパテ
December 5    Wood-ear Mushroom in Sesame Sauce キクラゲの胡麻和え
December 8    Lemon Sponge Pudding/Pie レモンスポンジプッデング
December 11    Scallops and Shrimp with Yuzu Galic Butter Sauce ホ...
December 14    Sweet Potato muffin with Dates and Cranberries サツマ...
December 17    Chili Crisp Cottage Cheese Flatbread カッテージチーズフラットブ...
December 20    Chilean Sea bass with Steamed with Japanese Turnip...
December 23    ”Boti Gosht” Indian style Meat Cubes インド風の豚肉キューブ
December 25    Roasted Bone-in Leg of Lamb 骨付き子羊脚ロースト
December 28    Lotus root salad with Yuzu-kosho Mayo 柚子胡椒マヨ蓮根サラダ

Filled Wool Bread 毛糸のパン

This appears to be a variation of “Frangipane rolls”. The original recipe came from the King Arthur web site. My wife decided to make this. The recipe calls for the dough to be formed into a ring shape in the pan.  Although she used the suggest sized pan the dough didn’t fit as just a ring around the edge so she made a ring with three segments and the 4th segment went in the center (picture #1). The texture and flavor of the bread were excellent.

The filling distributed through out the bread but not very evenly (picture #2) Nonetheless the filling taste complimented this soft milk bread.

Ingredients: ( X 1)
Tangzhong (starter)
3 tablespoons (43g) water
3 tablespoons (43g) milk, whole preferred
2 tablespoons (14g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour

Dough
1/2 cup (113g) milk, whole preferred; cold
2 1/2 cups (300g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1 large egg
4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon (9g) instant yeast

1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon (6g) table salt

Filling
half an 8-ounce package (113g) cream cheese, softened*
2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
zest (grated rind) of 2 medium lemons
pinch of table salt
2 tablespoons (4g) freeze- dried raspberries, lightly crushed
2 tablespoons (15g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
*The cream cheese should be at warm room temperature, at least 68°F.

Topping
2 tablespoons (28g) milk, whole preferred

Ingredients: ( X 2)
Tangzhong (starter)
6 tablespoons (86g) water
6 tablespoons (86g) milk, whole preferred
4 tablespoons (28g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour

Dough
1 cup (226g) milk, whole preferred; cold
5 cups (600g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
2 large egg
8 tablespoons (114g) unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoon (18g) instant yeast

1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
2 teaspoon (12g) table salt

Filling
8-ounce package (226g) cream cheese, softened*
4 tablespoons (50g) granulated sugar
zest (grated rind) of 2 medium lemons
pinch of table salt
4 tablespoons (4g) freeze- dried raspberries, lightly crushed (I didn’t have the raspberries so I used candied ginger.)
4 tablespoons (30g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
*The cream cheese should be at warm room temperature, at least 68°F.

Directions:
1. To make the tangzhong: Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan, and whisk until no lumps remain.
2. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook the mixture, stirring regularly, until thickened, paste-like, and the spoon or spatula leaves lines on the bottom of the pan. This should take 2 to 4 minutes, depending on the strength of the burner.
3. Remove the tangzhong from the heat and transfer it to a large mixing bowl, the bowl of a stand mixer, or the bucket of a bread machine (whatever you plan to knead the dough in).

4. To make the dough: Add the milk on top of the hot tangzhong; it will help cool the dough to lukewarm. Add the flour and remaining dough ingredients. Mix to combine, then knead until a soft, smooth dough forms, about 8 to 10 minutes on medium-low speed of a mixer. (The dough may be tacky and stick to the sides of the bowl slightly; that's OK.)
5. Shape the dough into a ball and let it rest in a lightly greased bowl, covered, for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until puffy but not necessarily doubled in bulk.

6. To make the filling: Combine the cream cheese, sugar, lemon zest, and salt, mixing until smooth.
7. Add the freeze-dried raspberries (or candied ginger) and flour, mixing until everything is evenly distributed.

8. To assemble: On a lightly floured surface, gently deflate the dough, divide it into four pieces (or eight if doubling the recipe), and shape each piece into a ball.
9. Cover the dough and let rest for 10 minutes.
10. Line a 9" springform or a 9" round cake pan (at least 2" deep) with parchment and lightly grease the parchment.
11. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it into a 6" x 12" rectangle. If the dough begins to snap back during rolling, set it aside and begin rolling out the second piece. Return to the first piece to continue rolling it to the full size after a couple of minutes, giving the gluten a chance to relax.
12. Portion a quarter (or eighth of the filling for doubled recipe) onto the top half of the rectangle. A tablespoon cookie scoop works well here.
13. Position the rectangle so its 12" sides are vertical. Starting at the top, spread the filling across the entire width of the rectangle (leaving about 1/4" bare on each side) and down about 6" or 7", leaving the bottom 5" to 6" bare (#1). If the filling is difficult to spread, warm it in the microwave for 15 seconds and stir; check the consistency. Repeat, if necessary, until it's an easily spreadable consistency.
14. Using a bench or chef’s knife, cut the uncovered dough at the bottom into very thin strips (anywhere from 1/8" to 1/4" wide) (#2).
15.  Fold the long edges of the rectangle in to prevent any filling from seeping out and pat them gently to flatten.
16. Starting from the filling-covered top and rolling toward the uncovered strips, roll the dough into a log about 6" long (#3).
17. Lightly press the strips into the rolled log to secure. Place the log, seam-side down, into the bottom of the pan so it's snuggled up against the pan’s outside edge (#4).
18. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough, placing them into the pan to form a complete circle around the pan’s outside edge. (Or until all the pieces are in the pan) (#5)
19. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
20. Cover the wool roll and let it rise for 60 to 75 minutes, until
puffy.
21. To finish and bake the roll: Brush the roll with milk, being careful not to deflate the delicate dough.
22. Bake it for 28 to 32 minutes, until it’s golden brown on top; a digital thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf should read at least 190°F. (#6)
23. Remove the roll from the oven and cool it in the pan until you can transfer it safely to a rack to cool completely.
24. Storage information: Store leftover wool roll bread, well wrapped, at room temperature for several days.

Tips from our Bakers
The tangzhong starter can be made ahead of time. Simply cook it up (making a double, triple, or quadruple batch if you like, for future use) as instructed in steps 1 – 3. Remove from the heat and transfer to a small bowl, pressing a layer of plastic wrap over the top of the mixture to prevent a skin from forming. Cool to room temperature then store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to five days. When you're ready to bake your Wool Roll Bread, add the tanzghong to the dough. (If you've made a big batch of tangzhong, use a heaping 1/3 cup (95g) for a single batch of dough.) Use warm milk when mixing the remaining dough ingredients; proceed with the recipe from step 4.
Let your culinary imagination run wild with this recipe, since the sky is the limit for filling combinations. Cinnamon sugar? Chocolate? Butter and garlic? Pesto and cheese? Whether you go sweet or savory, don’t overload your bread with filling.

This is wonderfully elegant. The bread is a very light slightly sweet milk bread. The filling is very subtle but goes perfectly with the milk bread. It forms a pudding-like filling which is distributed through out the bread. (No need for butter or jelly here). The filling has a slightly sweet taste and a hint of the cream cheese flavor peeks through. The candied ginger contributes a random burst of gingered sweetness which is a nice contrast with the rest of the flavor of the filling. This is a bit of effort to make but it is worth it and although this bread seems to be a version of frangipane rolls they are two different breads with two different personalities. The difference makes it worth while to make both. 

Frangipane Rolls フランジパンロール

My wife’s sister sent this recipe from King Arthur Flour to my wife knowing my wife is a fairly accomplished baker (challenge???). It appears to be a very fancy recipe and the “frangipane” was even a separate recipe. In any case, my wife rose to the challenge. Being a King Arthur recipe, the original recipe called for their “Raspberry and orange jammy bits” in the filling which we would have had to buy. She skipped this and just used the “frangipane”. The thin layer of frangipane added a nice and distinct almond flavor and the rolls had a nice texture and slightly sweet taste (picture #1). It took some work for my wife but she said it was worth it. 

Frangipane recipe (makes about 360 gram which is perfect for the frangipane rolls recipe below)

Ingredients: 
6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (99g) granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1 cup (96g) King Arthur Almond Flour
3 tablespoons (23g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour or King Arthur Gluten- Free Measure for Measure Flour
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 teaspoons almond emulsion or almond extract

Directions:
1. In a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, and salt until pale and fluffy, about 1 minute on medium speed.
2. Stir in the flours, egg, and almond flavoring. Mix until just combined.
3. Use the frangipane as desired: fill tart shells, pipe into croissant dough, top slices of Bostock, or come up with your own way to use this flavorful, nutty filling. Bake the frangipane as directed in your recipe or until it’s golden brown and smells nutty.
4. Store leftover unbaked frangipane in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 2 months.

Frangipane roll recipe:

Ingredients: (doubled the original recipe)

Tangzhong (starter)
6 tablespoons (86g) water
6 tablespoons (86g) milk, whole preferred
4 tablespoons (28g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour

Dough
5 cups (600g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1 cup (226g) milk, whole preferred
2 large eggs
8 tablespoons (114g) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
2 tablespoon (18g) instant yeast
2 teaspoon (12g) table salt

Topping
2 tablespoons (28g) milk,whole preferred
2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar, optional

Directions:
1.To make the tangzhong: 
In a small saucepan, combine all the ingredients and whisk until no lumps remain.
2.Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook the mixture, stirring regularly, until thickened, paste-like, and the spoon or spatula leaves lines on the bottom of the pan. This should take 2 to 4 minutes, depending on the strength of the burner.
3.Remove the tangzhong from the heat and transfer it to a large mixing bowl, the bowl of a stand mixer, or the bucket of a bread machine (wherever you plan to knead the dough).

4.To make the dough: 
Weigh the flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. Place the flour into the bowl with the tangzhong and add the remaining dough ingredients. Mix to combine, then knead — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — until a soft, smooth dough forms, about 8 to 10 minutes on medium-low speed of a mixer. (The dough may be tacky and stick to the sides of the bowl slightly; that's OK.)
5.Shape the dough into a ball, place it in a lightly greased large bowl or standard dough rising bucket, cover, and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. The refrigerated rise will make the dough much easier to handle and shape
6.To assemble: On a lightly floured surface, gently deflate the dough, divide it into four pieces and shape each piece into a ball.
7.Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.
8. Prepare a square pan with a parchment sling or reusable silicone liner. Lightly grease any exposed sides of the pan.
9. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it into an 8" square. If the dough begins to snap back during rolling, set it aside and begin rolling out the second piece. After a couple of minutes, return to the first piece to continue rolling it to the full size (this gives the gluten a chance to relax).
10. Portion one quarter of the filling onto the top half of the square. 
11. Starting at the top, spread the filling across the entire width of the square and down about 4", leaving the bottom 4" bare (#1). If the filling is difficult to spread, warm it in the microwave for 15 seconds and stir; check the consistency. Repeat, if necessary, until it's easily spreadable.
12. Using a bench or chef’s knife, cut the uncovered dough at the bottom into very thin strips (anywhere from 1/8" to 1/4" wide) (#2).
13.Starting from the filling-covered top and rolling toward the uncovered strips, roll the dough into a log about 8" long.
 14. Lightly press the strips into the rolled log to secure. Cut the log into four 2" pieces and then place them, seam-side down, in a row and in alternating orientations in the pan (#3).
15. Roll, fill, and shape the remaining pieces of dough, placing the rolls into the pan to form 4 rows of 4 buns, each row in an alternating pattern (#4 & #5). Cover the rolls and let them rise for 60 to 75 minutes, until puffy.
16.While the rolls rise, preheat the oven to 350°F.
17.To finish and bake the rolls: Gently brush the rolls with milk, being careful not to deflate the delicate dough, and sprinkle generously with granulated sugar.
18. Bake the rolls for 30 to 35 minutes, until the tops are golden brown; a digital thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 190°F (#6).
19. Remove the rolls from the oven and cool in the pan until you can transfer it safely to a rack to cool completely, at least 15 minutes. Serve the rolls slightly warm or at room temperature.
20. Storage information: Store leftover mini wool rolls, well wrapped, at room temperature for several days.

These rolls have a very delicate flavor accented mostly by the frangipan which provides a delicate slightly sweet almond flavor. The bread has the texture and flavor of a milk bread while the frangipan provides a slightly custard like filling interspersed through out the bread. This is definitely a very sophisticated bread.

Mary Walsh's Currant Cake マリイウオルシュのカラントケーキ

We like food themed travel shows. One of which was by Phil Rosenthal. It started as a PBS show “I’ll Have What Phil is Having” which evolved into a Netflix show called “Somebody feed Phil”. Although we had forgotten about it, turns out we had a copy of “Somebody feed Phil The book”. We rediscovered it while looking for another cookbook on the book shelf. It is an interesting read of behind-the-scene stories of the first 4 seasons but it also contains recipes provided by the local chefs they visited during the show. Among those recipes, was one titled “Mary Walsh’s Currant Cake”. Since St. Patrick's day was coming up and the current cake was basically an Irish soda bread my wife decided to make it. According to the book, although it was called current cake one of the secrets of why it tasted so good was that Mary didn’t use currents. She used sultanas (golden raisins) instead. Maybe she used sultanas because she didn’t have any currents. We, of course, didn’t have any currants either (we also didn’t have any sultanas). So my wife used raisons and dried fruit medley from Harry and David. (So really we should probably call our version dried fruit medley cake). As the queen of ingredient substitution in recipes my wife did not stop there. The recipe called for orange and lemon zests but we did not have any oranges. We did, however, have some Meyer lemons which have a flavor that is a cross between a lemon and an orange. So she used that instead and it worked well.

You can see the dried fruit medley and raisins on the cut-surface (picture #1)

Ingredients:
2 ounces (½ stick/55g) unsalted butter (room temperature), plus more for the pan
3¼ cups (450g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 tablespoons (25g) castor or light or dark brown sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Zest of 2 Meyer lemons
1 cup dried fruit medley
1 cup of raisins
1 large egg
1¼ cups (300ml) buttermilk
2 tablespoons (30ml) heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and place a baking rack in the lower third of the oven.
Lightly butter an 8-inch round cake pan. In a large bowl, mix the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt together. Use your fingers to rub the butter into the dry ingredients. Use a citrus peeler to zest the Meyer lemons. Add all the zest and the dried fruit to the bowl with the flour mixture and stir until well combined.

Put the egg in a medium bowl and whisk in the buttermilk and cream. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the buttermilk mixture.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the remaining buttermilk, stirring to make a very moist, shaggy dough. Or, use your hands: grip the edge of the bowl with one hand, stir with a broad circular motion with the other. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured work surface and dust your hands lightly with flour. Gently shape the dough into a thick, roughly 6-inch (15cm) round and use a bench scraper or large spatula to transfer the dough to the center of the cake pan.

Brush the top and sides of the dough with the reserved buttermilk mixture and sprinkle the remaining brown sugar on top (#2). Put the cake pan in the oven, reduce the temperature to 400°F (180°C).

Bake for about 40 minutes until the bread is lightly golden brown on top and sounds hollow when tapped (#3). Transfer the bread to a wire rack and let cool for about 20 minutes. Cut the bread into thick slices and serve it warm with butter.

This is a very nice soda bread. Perfect for Saint Patrick’s day. It had a dense moist texture and a mild slightly sweet taste. The robust flavor of the butter milk as well as the citrus note from the Meyer lemon zest came through nicely. The dried fruit added a nice burst of sweetness.