Ozoni for the New Year!!!!!

Happy New Year from the Azuki BeaN Mamas!!!!!!!!!
Chef Azuki and Blogger BeaN love sharing recipes with you all year long.  Can't believe
another year has flown by.  Wishing you all magical adventures in 2015!!!!!!!!

Here's a recipe for Ozoni Soup.  It's sure to help you start an incredible year!!!!!!!

Ozoni Soup

Ingredients:
5 C water (for broth)
1/3 C sake
2 tsp hondashi
1 tsp salt
1 tsp soy sauce
2-3 C water (for mochi)
Mochi
Carrots & mitsuba leaves (Japanese wild parsley)- for garnish


Directions:
1.  Add water, sake, hondashi, salt and soy sauce in a pot
2.  Boil all together
3.  Meanwhile in a separate pot boil 2-3 C of water (this separate step keeps the soup base from
      getting cloudy)
4.  Add mochi and remove when soft
5.  Add the delicious mochi in serving bowls
6.  Pour the broth over it
7.  Garnish with cooked carrots shaped like flowers (can cut them out with cookie cutters or by hand)
8.  Add some mitsuba leaves (spinach or napa cabbage can be used in place of the mitsuba.
    Try mitsuba from the Japanese market if you have the time though.)


It's so beautiful, delicious and good luck too!  Eat the mochi in small bites and chew carefully. Maybe we're supposed to eat this soup to start our year out being careful and aware ; )  Our elders and young children should be especially careful or avoid the mochi and just have the broth.

BeaNspiration: Bringing back traditions to your holidays can be informational and fun!!!!!!

Snowman Cupcakes

Merry Christmas from the Azuki BeaN Mamas!!!!!!!!

We wish you all a fun-filled day with family and friends!!!!!!!!!

Chef Azuki is busy using fondant to make make fun 'n fancy cupcakes!!!!!!!!  

She even used mini marshmallows for snow, so even here in Southern California we can pretend there's a chill in the air!!!!!

Snowman Cupcakes

BeaNspiration:  Create your own fun this holiday in a way that tickles your heart!!!!!!!!

Soup's on!

My Little BeaN is feeling a little under the weather so I'm getting out all of Chef Azuki's Soup Recipes and making something warm on these cooler nights.  Let's gather with some comfort food and sit by the fire.  It's time to enjoy the season and keep up our resistance to those cold bugs trying to get in.  

Roasted Chicken Soup

Leftover chicken from the supermarket

8 Cups water

2  zucchini chopped

2  carrots chopped

2 potatoes chopped

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Directions:

1.  Put chicken carcass and shredded chicken meat into a pot of water

2.  Boil it for about 20-30 minutes

3.  Remove carcass and remove any meat left on carcass and add this meat to the pot

4.  Add vegetables and bring to a boil again

5.  Reduce heat, add salt and pepper, and simmer for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender

Pumkin Miso Soup

14.5 oz. can of Chicken Broth

15 oz. can of pumpkin

1 C water

2 Tbsp White Miso

1/8-1/4  tsp pepper

2 potatoes diced

8 peeled baby carrots or 1 large carrot diced

1 medium zucchini diced

Directions:

Get out your soup pot and mix Chicken Broth, pumpkin, water, and pepper together.  When the soup begins to boil, add the white miso paste.  Stir it in until it melts completely.  Add the diced vegetables and return to boiling.  Cover and lower heat to a simmer until the vegetable are tender. 

Stay warm and dry friends!  Eat some Satsuma tangerines and have some hearty soups.
You need to stay healthy for the holidays!  Christmas is only ten days away!  Enjoy!!!!!!

BeaNspiration:  Don't forget to comfort yourself on these chilly winter nights!

Now for Thanksgiving Desserts

Persimmon Tea Cakes

 Ingredients: 

2 eggs 

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/4 cups mashed hachiya persimmons

4 tbsp canola oil

2 cup Bisquick mix

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg 

1/4 tsp powdered ginger 

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Whisk eggs with fork

3.  Mix together eggs, sugar, persimmons, canola oil and mix quickly for 30 seconds

4.  Slowly mix in Bisquick incorporating it into the egg mixture

5.  Mix for an additional minute 

5.  Pour into tea cake or cup cake pan lined with paper baking cups

6.  Bake for 1 hour or until golden and a toothpick comes out clean

7.  Let cool

Kabocha Pie

 Ingredients:

1 kabocha
3/4 C sugar
2 eggs
3/4 C vanilla almond milk
1 T pumpkin pie spice
1 pkg. (8 oz ) cream cheese softened


Directions:

1.  Make slits in the kabocha and microwave it for 5-8 minutes or until kapocha is tender
2.  Scoop out the seeds
3.  Add kabocha meat, sugar, eggs, almond milk, pumpkin pie spice and cream cheese
     in a blender
4.  Blend until smooth
5.  Use already prepared pie crusts
6.  Bake pie crust at 350 degrees for 5 minutes and then add filling
5.  Bake for 50 more minutes or until center is set
     (be sure to cover edges so it doesn't burn)
6.  Take it out of the oven and let it cool

Crispy Pumpkin Delight

Ingredients:

1 (1 lb. 13 oz.) can pumpkin

1 (12 oz. can) evaporated milk

1-cup sugar

3 eggs

1-teaspoon cinnamon

1-cup moist yellow cake mix

1½ cups of Rice Krispies cereal

1½ sticks of butter melted

Directions

1.     Mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, eggs and cinnamon

2.     Pour the mixture into 9” by 13” pan lined with wax paper

3.     Sprinkle with dry cake mix on top of the mixture

4.     Sprinkle Rice Krispies on top of cake mix

5.     Pour melted butter evenly on top

6.     Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour

7.     Completely cool

8.     Invert pie onto cookie sheet

9.     Remove wax paper

10. Cut into 1” squares

11. Put each square into a paper cupcake cup

Frosting:

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened

¾ cup Cool Whip

1 cup powdered sugar

Candy Corn

1.     Mix cream cheese, Cool Whip and powdered sugar together

2.     Put the frosting in a cookie press and squirt out a flower on each square

3.     Top with a candy corn or candy pumpkin.

BeaNspiration:  So grateful for love and friendship!!!!!!!!

Cranberry 'n Persimmon Sauce

We're continuing with our Thanksgiving Theme recipes.  I'm so grateful for all the ideas I'm getting from Chef Azuki for my Thanksgiving feast!  My family had a preview meal of the famous crock-pot stuffing along with this delicious cranberry sauce.  I loved the persimmon in the sauce which tempers the tartness of the cranberries.  Sweet Fuyu Persimmons are in season so get some at your local farmer's market or grocery store.  If you're growing some in your yard, you're even luckier!

Cranberry 'n Persimmon Sauce

Ingredients:
1 bag (12 oz) cranberries
1 C sugar
1 C water
2 fuyu persimmons finely chopped
1/2 tsp of cinnamon

Directions:
1.  Boil the cranberries with sugar and water
2.  When cranberries just start to pop, mix in persimmons and cinnamon
3.  Simmer until desired consistency and cranberries are soft

Fuyu means winter and there's something so wonderful about enjoying seasonal fruits.  The addition of the fuyu persimmon into this cranberry sauce is simply genius.  It brings back memories of friends or relatives bringing a big bag of persimmons during this time of year.  I'm also stocking up on Satsuma tangerines, another winter growing fruit.

BeaNspiration:  Don't miss out on the treasures of the season!!!!!!!

Crock-pot Stuffing

Here's a tasty stuffing recipe that uses a hint of soy sauce to create a winning combination with either rice or mashed potatoes.  I know my grandmother always made her Thanksgiving meal with a pot of rice, and there was something about her stuffing that made it seem perfectly normal. I'm not sure if she put soy sauce in her stuffing too; but I wouldn't be surprised if she did.  Chef Azuki's stuffing was a hit with my family as we enjoyed roasted chicken, stuffing and rice!  A perfect autumn night's feast!

Crock-pot Stuffing

Ingredients:

1 lb sage sausage

1 box Stuffing mix

1 onion finely chopped

2 stalks of celery chopped

1 can low sodium chicken broth

1/4 C unsalted butter

1/2 C chopped pecans

1 Tbsp soy sauce (shoyu)

Directions:

1.  Brown the sausage in a frying pan

2.  Add Chicken broth, pecans, onion, celery, pecans and browned sausage to a crock-pot

3.  Add melted butter and soy sauce and stir

4.  Slowly stir in stuffing mix until broth is absorbed and other ingredients are dispersed evenly

5.  Heat on high for 1 1/2 hours

Turn setting to warm and serve.  It was so delicious the pecans and celery created the perfect
texture.  Using the crock-pot will make serving warm stuffing a breeze.  I'm making this stuffing for Thanksgiving!

BeaNspiration:  Magical holiday fun starts with simple ideas!

Coconut Curry Chicken

Chef Azuki has been wanting to make curry.  She bought some coconut milk and decided to try Coconut Curry.  Chop, chop, chopping the veggies and chicken is all it takes to make another delicious meal.

Coconut Curry Chicken

Ingredients:
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
1 can ( 13.5 oz) coconut milk
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 tsp. curry powder
1 large potato chopped
2 stalks of celery chopped
4-6 baby carrots chopped
1 cup cooked chicken chopped

Directions:
Put all the ingredients in a pot
Stir the ingredients togethers as it cooks
Once it boils simmer for 20-30 minutes or until vegetables are tender

Serve with rice and garnish with pickled ginger.

BeaNspiration:  Stir the cauldron and meld together delicious flavors!!!!!!

Chicken Nimono

Chef Azuki never ceases to amaze me. I love how she just tosses ingredients in a pan or pot and ends up with a delicious melding of tantalizing tastes. Today she was inspired by her mother's, simmering dish called Nimono. Any kind of meat can be added but Chef Azuki had some chicken breasts today, so she chopped them up and made this fantastic warm soup/stew-like dish. The evenings are starting to get a little chilly so this one pot wonder will warm your soul with satisfying comfort.  It's a good time to eat your root vegetables, grounding you before the cold winter comes.  I love cooked daikon, it mellows out when cooked and absorbs the delicious flavors of the sauce.

Chicken Nimono

Ingredients:

5 C water
1/8 C shoyu (low sodium soy sauce)
4 tsp hondashi
2 T sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 C chopped chicken
2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 C daikon cut into short sticks, like french fries
1/2 C of carrots large chunks or use baby carrots
1 bunch of green onions chopped into 1 inch sticks
2/3 C edamame

Directions:

1.  Put in water and chicken in a pot or large pan
2.  Cook over medium heat until boiling and foam forms on top of the water
3.  Ladle off the foam and add all the rest of the ingredients to the pot
4.  Heat on medium for 30-40 minutes
5.  Check to make sure the vegetables are tender

It's ready to eat with a bowl of rice.  Nimono is a sure-fire hit for fall!

BeaNspiration:  Look around and be inspired by the season!

Pork Gyoza

Baby BeaN is so sad that his favorite fast food Asian eatery doesn't have gyoza anymore.  Luckily for us Chef Azuki has a recipe to remedy that dilemma.  Yes, let's try to make some gyoza!

Pork Gyoza

Ingredients:
1 lb. lean ground pork
1 T sesame oil
1 clove garlic crushed or chopped
2 T soy sauce
1 tsp salt
3 bunches of green onion
608 napa (japanese cabbage) leaves, finely chopped
1 12 oz package round wraps wonton skin
1-2 T of canola or vegetable oil for frying


Directions:
1.  Saute pork, sesame oil, garlic, soy sauce, salt, napa, and green onions for 7-10 minutes
     (Make sure the pork is thoroughly cooked)
2.  Remove filling from heat and cool
3.  In each round wrap add filling
4.  Wet the edges with water and fold the wrap in half
5.  Pinch the edges together creating a beautiful rippled look at the top
6.  Put the folded edges down into a heated pan with oil
7.  Pan fry in a little oil until lightly browned
8.  Add a small amount of water and cover for 5 minutes
9.  Carefully turn over and cook the other side
10.  Take out and serve with you favorite dipping sauce

Baby BeaN doesn't need any sauce.  He just gobbles it down.  I like it with ponzu and others like a variety of sauces available at the market.  Have it anyway you like it and enjoy!!!!!!

BeaNspiration:  Be inspired to make it yourself!

Spicy Garlic Edamame

I love eating edamame (boiled soybeans) as a mid day snack.  It's delicious plain or with a little salt. But sometimes you're in the mood for something a little more fancy, maybe a party or a special magical night of family fun.  Chef Azuki makes every day and night magnificent with
easy delicious recipes.  Try this one tonight!

Spicy Garlic Edamame

Ingredients:
1 lb frozen edamame
3 garlic cloves peeled and crushed
1 T sesame oil
2 T soy sauce
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper


Directions
1.  Place edamame and 1/4 C water in  microwave safe bowl
2.  Microwave on high for 5 minutes or cook according to directions
3.  In a separate pan, saute garlic with sesame oil, soy sauce, salt and red pepper
4.  Add the edamame to pan and toss together
5.  Plate the edamame and serve

Everyone will love this!  Have it as a snack or serve as a side dish to your meal.
It'll disappear magically!

BeaNspiration:  Delicious snacks can be easy to make!

Terrific Teriyaki Turkey Meatloaf

This delicious recipe was made by Chef Azuki with ingredients she had at her house.  There's a funny story about getting older and needing reading glasses that goes along with the unusual dimensions of our ingredient list.  Chef Azuki has these cute measuring cups in a variety of colors and each one holds a certain amount.  We both thought we were using the 1/4 Cup, but to our more critical eye, we found that it was indeed the 1/3 Cup we were using.  So if you're wondering how we came up with 1/6 of cup of soy sauce, that's 1/2 of a 1/3 cup.  Got that?  Does it sound like a common core math problem?  Well, we won't ask you to explain it back to us.  At least we're still laughing and enjoying our cooking adventures, even if we're going to have to break down and get reading glasses.

Terrific Teriyaki Turkey Meatloaf

Ingredients:
2.5 lbs of ground turkey
1/6 C shoyu (low sodium soy sauce)
1/3 C ketchup
4 Tbsp Brown sugar
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 C of panko
1 egg

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees
1.  Mix together shoyu, ketchup, brown sugar and garlic powder
2.  Put the ground turkey in a large bowl and add the shoyu mixture and combine the ingredients
3.  Add panko (Japanese style bread crumbs) and egg, then incorporate this in well
4.  Put it in a pyrex loaf pan
5.  If you like the top of your meatloaf to look caramelized save a little sauce to pour on top
     (you'll have to watch it and tent it with foil if it starts to burn)
5.  Cook for 1 - 1 1/2  hours depending on your oven  (internal temperature of 160-170 degrees)


Yummy!  This is one terrific meatloaf!  I loved the hint of Asian flavor and the panko really kept this meatloaf moist.  You can find panko in the Asian section of your grocery store.  Try it, it's Great!

BeaNspiration:  Laughing through your culinary adventures is magical!

Ojiya--Rice Porridge

Now that the weather is cooling down in the evenings, it's nice to have some Shabu Shabu.  We've already put in the recipe for Shabu that Udon and I will attach it again to the bottom of this post. After finishing up your Shabu Shabu you can make some Ojiya with the broth.  This is the perfect ending to a fall or winter evening, especially if you've had a busy week or weekend and need some comfort food!

Ojiya -- Rice Porridge

Ingredients:
3 Cups of cooked rice
1 egg
1/4 Cup of dipping sauce
Nori, umeboshi and shiso for garnish

Direction:
1.  Place the cooked rice into the electric skillet with left over broth in it.
2.  Cook it until the rice soaks in the broth and becomes infused with flavor!
3.  Scramble 1 egg in a separate bowl
4.  Mix into the rice
5.  Add dipping sauce
6.  Stir together
7.  Place in a chawan (rice bowl)
8.   Garnish with nori, umeboshi and shiso

This certainly helped Chef's Azuki's family recover from a fun-filled yet hectic weekend!

BeaNspiration:  Comfort yourself with comfort food!

Monday, February 11, 2013

Shabu that Udon!

Happy Chinese New Year!  Yesterday was the start of the Year of the Snake.  We’re ready for change and growth this year as we shed our old skin like the molting snake.  Chef Azuki started the New Year creating a new dish.  Shabu-Shabu is a dish that uses thinly sliced Shabu-shabu meat and various vegetables that are picked out of boiling water and soaked in individual bowls of dipping sauce.  Shabu-shabu refers to the noise the vegetables and meat make sloshing around in the water.   Chef Azuki  used kamaboko and tofu instead of the usual thinly sliced meat and added some udon noodles.  The dish is light and fresh, yet still a hearty meal.  Her family had a cooking adventure as everyone participated in preparing his or her own food.  Set up the electric skillet in the center of the table and everyone can make their own shabu udon, the way they like it.  So get on it and “Shabu that Udon”!

Shabu that Udon

1 block of Kamaboko sliced thinly

1 Onion thinly sliced into rings

1 zucchini sliced into thick sticks

½ of a head of nappa cabbage chopped

2 green onions thinly chopped

1 block of medium firm tofu cut into cubes

2 pkges of udon noodles

Dipping Sauce

4 Tbsp. Memmi (Japanese Soup Base in a bottle that looks like shoyu bottle)

1 Cup of  hot water

¼ tsp. of Sesame oil

Directions:

1.     Slice and chop vegetables, kamaboko and  tofu

2.     Set up ellectric skillet in the center of the table and turn on

3.     Fill the electric skillet half way up with water

4.     Once the water is boiling, add all ingredients except those for dipping sauce

5.     Prepare the dipping sauce by adding all ingredients into large glass measuring cup

6.     Fill each individual bowl with some dipping sauce

7.     When they vegetables are tender and kamaboko and tofu heated through, each person can pick up what they like and put it in their bowl with dipping sauce

8.     Eat and enjoy

BeaNspirations:  Find ways to make mealtime fun and easy for the cook!

Kabocha Pie

Are you ready for a different type of fall dessert?  If you like pumpkin pie, you gotta try this interesting pie made with kabocha.  Kabocha is a sweet, green, Japanese squash.  It's like pumpkin pie, but somehow feels less dense.  I tried it for the first time today and loved it.  Thank you Chef Azuki for this delicious autumn pie.  If you see kabocha in the supermarket or farmer's market, why don't you try making Kabocha Pie!

Kabocha Pie

Ingredients:

1 kabocha
3/4 C sugar
2 eggs
3/4 C vanilla almond milk
1 T pumpkin pie spice
1 pkg. (8 oz ) cream cheese softened


Directions:

1.  Make slits in the kabocha and microwave it for 5-8 minutes or until kapocha is tender
2.  Scoop out the seeds
3.  Add kabocha meat, sugar, eggs, almond milk, pumpkin pie spice and cream cheese
     in a blender
4.  Blend until smooth
5.  Use already prepared pie crusts
6.  Bake pie crust at 350 degrees for 5 minutes and then add filling
5.  Bake for 50 more minutes or until center is set
     (be sure to cover edges so it doesn't burn)
6.  Take it out of the oven and let it cool

You can have this delicious dessert warm or cold.
It's delicious flavor will getcha from your first bite!

BeaNspiration:  Trying new ingredients is an awesome adventure!

Sunburst Oranges!

Put a little sunshine in your life when you decorate your table  beautifully with fruits or vegetables. Look at this beautiful display of oranges that  Chef Azuki created. It brightened up the day! What a wonderful way to get the kiddies to eat their fruits and veggies!

Sunburst Oranges!

BeaNspiration:  Have a sunny beautiful day!

Tuna Sushi

Here's a delicious way to enjoy tuna sushi.  The sauce is a bright, fresh way to enjoy your fresh catch.

Tuna Sushi

Ingredients:

Rice
Tuna

Sauce:
1 T ponzu
1 T memmi
1 T Yuzu Citrus flavored dressing
Garlic
Green onion


Directions:
1.  Cook rice in a rice cooker
2.  Let it cool
3.  Form rice into small squares or use the plastic mold to help shape them
4.  Slice tuna
5.  Place thinly sliced tuna on top of rice
6.  Put a pinch of garlic and a sprinkle of green onion on each sushi
7.  Put a little sauce on each one
8.  Serve immediately

Chef Azuki and family are enjoying the catch of the day!  We're all eating a lot fish lately!


BeaNspiration:  Beautiful creations in small packages!

Steamed Rock Cod

Chef Azuki's husband is cookin' up his summer's fish haul.  Papa Azuki made this delicious fish with the rock cod that he caught on a deep sea fishing trip.  Can't think of much that's better than having your husband catch the fish and cook it up in a pan.

Steamed Rock Cod

1 whole rock-cod, gutted, cleaned and scaled
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 C green onions, chopped
1/2 tsp sliced ginger
1/3 C soy sauce
1/3 C peanut oil
3 T oyster sauce
1 1/4 tsp sesame oil
Pinch of salt and pepper


Directions
1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2.  Use a sharp knife and cut slits in the fish
3.  Place the fish in a baking pan with 1/2" of water in the bottom of the pan
4.  Sprinkle ginger and garlic powder in the water
5.  Cover the pan tightly with foil
6.  Place in the oven for 20 minutes or until the fish is flakey
7.  Take the fish out of the oven and remove from the pan
8.  Gently take the fish out and place it on a serving platter
9.  Season with salt and pepper
10 Sprinkle green onions on the fish
11.  In a small frying pan, heat peanut oil and sesame oil until it begins to smoke.
12.  Pour the oil over the fish
13. Mix soy sauce and oyster sauce together and pour this over fish
14.  Serve immediately


The crispy skin and delicious flavor makes this a family favorite!  Papa Azuki needs to go fishin' again soon!

BeaNspiration:  Inspired to reel in life and enjoy it's gifts!

Jello Gummy Flowers

Gelatin, what an interesting concept!  Break apart some collagen protein, mix with water and create a colloid.  Not exactly solid, not exactly liquid...but a magical, jiggly substance.  Add some flavoring and you get a flavorful dessert.  Well, I've had soft jello for the achy tummy, finger jello for the outdoor picnic, but never have I had Jello Gummy Flowers.  The texture is softer than gummy candy and the flavor is jello-magnificent.  This latest cooking experiment by Chef Azuki and Little BeaN was a summer success!  It's amazing how altering the amount of gelatin or changing the technique, alters the consistency of this wonderful colloid!  

Jello Gummy Flowers

Ingredients:
3 oz. box of Lime Jello Powder
1/4 C of unflavored gelatin
1/3 C water
Petite jello molds

Directions:
1.  Pour water in a pot and add the gelatin and jello powder
2.  Heat on medium heat for about 3-5 minutes or
      stir until the jello and gelatin are completely dissolved
3.  Carefully pour the jello into a measuring cup
4.  Pour into the petite flower jello molds
5.  Put into the freezer for 10-15 minutes

And magically you have jello gummy flowers.  Then, watch them magically disappear!

BeaNspiration:  Everyday experiments are wonderfully inspiring!

Kinako Mochi

Do you remember the days when your mom would make you mochi and you'd dip it in sugar and shoyu and then kinako?  I remember those days with a tender heart and lots of warmth!  What could be better than that?  Maybe this...Homemade sweet mochi with kinako on it.  Some of you may wonder...what the heck is "kinako"?  Well for those of you who may not have "kinako" memories, kinako is roasted soy beans that are ground into flour.  It's got an interesting, hard to describe flavor.  It doesn't really taste like soy beans or "edamame" to me.  There's almost a peanut buttery flavor to it.  And when you mix kinako with this homemade sweet mochi, it's magic!

Kinako Mochi

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C mochiko ( sweet rice flour)
1/2 C sugar
1 2/3 C water
1/4 C kinako

Directions:
1.  Mix together mochiko, sugar and water
2.  Pour the mixture into 9 by 9 pan sprayed with non-stick spray
3.  Cover it with plastic wrap
4.  Microwave on medium high (50 % power) for 10 minutes
5.  Pour onto a cutting board floured with more mochiko
6.  Flour the mochiko
7.  Let cool, then cut into pieces and shape into balls
8.  Roll each piece in kinako

Now it's time to enjoy my favorite type of sweet mochi!  Leave it to Chef Azuki to send me down memory lane and sweeten my day!

BeaNspiration:  The melding of two can become one wonderful wonder!

Strawberry Smoothie with Boba

Chef Azuki's family went to an Asian Market and her boys discovered Boba (tapioca pearls) in a bag.  They wanted to try and make their own version of a Boba Drink.  They looked in the refrigerator and found 6 fresh strawberries.  They brought out the blender and this is what they came up with.....

Strawberry Smoothie with Boba

Ingredients for Boba:

2 c water

1/4 c boba

Directions:

1.  Place water in a saucepan and boil water on high

2.  Add boba to boiling water

3.  Stir gently until boba is plump

4.  Lower heat to medium and cover the pot for 5 minutes

5.  Drain water and cool down boba with cold water

6.  Add to smoothie

Ingredients for Smoothie:

1 c almond milk

1 c ice

6 fresh strawberries

2 T sugar

Directions:

1.  Place all ingredients into the blender
2.  Blend together until frothy

2.  Pour into a glass, add boba and enjoy!

This is a great way to spend quality time with your family and enjoy a refreshing beverage at the same time.

BeaNspiration:   Special moments in the kitchen can create wonderful memories!

California Shiso Poke Bowl

Our fishing husbands brought back some tuna.  Chef Azuki created another delicious recipe with her shiso plant.  If you're lucky to get some fresh caught tuna, here's a great dish to make.

California Shiso Poki Bowl

Ingredients:

1 C blue fin tuna (cubed)
1 cucumber (cubed
1/2 avocado (diced)
4 shiso leaves ( thinly sliced)
2 T shoyu
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper


Directions:
1.  Cube, dice and slice ingredients
2.  Place in a bowl with shoyu, oil and sprinkle on red pepper
3.  Toss it together


What a delicious, refreshing way to use your fresh caught tuna!  Pour the poke over hot rice and enjoy the refreshing flavors.

BeaNspiration:  Enjoy California magic everyday!

Obon Dangos

Chef Azuki continues to be inspired by the obon carnivals.  Today she decided to try her hand at making Dangos.   They always remind me of the story of Momotaro, the peach boy.  In that story, his adopted mom makes him food when he goes off to fight the monsters.  I always imagined him eating these for dessert.  Like a donut hole, only better!

Obon Dangos

Ingredients:

3 C flour

1 C sugar

3 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 eggs

1/2 C milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Canola oil

*1T sugar

*1 T cinnamon

Directions:

1.  Combine all the dry ingredients except the * items

2.  Whisk milk and eggs together

3.  Combine dry and wet ingredients until a dough forms

4.  Form small balls with the dough

5.  Heat oil

6.  Deep fry until golden brown

7.  Mix together cinnamon and sugar

8. Roll the hot dangos in cinnamon/sugar

9.  Let cool if you can wait!  Don't burn your mouth.

Now you're ready for some delicious dangos.  Dang!  They're great!

BeaNspiration:  Enjoy a little sweet snack to start you on your journey

Shiso Chili

Chef Azuki went to an Obon festival and enjoyed eating chili over rice.  With her new shiso plant on her counter, Chef Azuki came home and decided to try her own version of chili with shiso.  Shiso is a Japanese plant where the leaf is used as a culinary herb.  The Shiso added to the chili cut some of the acidity making a really delicious chili.

Shiso Chili

Ingredients:
1/2 lb top sirloin cut into thin strips
1 onion diced
1 T canola oil
1/4 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 C butter
1/4 tsp pepper
2 large shiso leaves
1 can stewed tomatoes


Directions:
Brown the meat, onion garlic powder and seasoned salt in canola oil
Place the meat mixture and all the rest of the ingredients in a crock pot and set on low.
Cook for 6-8 hours.

So get your rice on and enjoy this delicious crock pot Shiso Chili with rice today!

BeaNspiration:  Inspiration is everywhere!

Peach Smoothie

It was so hot and humid today!  The Azuki BeaN Mamas were rushing to get some important mail out and tallying up proceeds from their book sale.  Little BeaN meanwhile created this delicious refreshing drink for us.  Love the taste of summer peaches and the sweetness of our Little BeaNs!

Peach Smoothie

Ingredients:
1 C ice
3 C orange Juice
2 ripe peaches
1/2 C almond milk
1/4 C half and half


Directions:
1.  Cut up peaches
2.  Add all the ingredients in a blender
3.  Blend it all together until frothy and delicious!


Thank you Little BeaN for thinking of us.  I guess we can't call you "Little" anymore since you're
way taller than Chef Azuki and I.  Love that you shared your recipe with us.  Thanks for the refreshing smoothie on a hot and hectic day.

BeaNspiration:  It nice to have our kids treat us to wonderful surprises!

Asian style spinach

Today the Little BeaNs were having pizza.  Chef Azuki and I didn't really feel like pizza so we looked in the refrigerator to see what we could quickly whip up.  Chef Azuki had some spinach and a lot of rice that she already had cooking for dinner.  We decided some tofu and spinach would be perfect with the rice.  As usual, Chef Azuki added her special touch and created a  dish with gluten-free tamari light soy sauce.  Hubby BeaN is trying to eat less gluten so we were testing the taste of the gluten-free soy sauce.  It was delicious!

Asian Style Spinach

Ingredients:

3 C  coarsely chopped spinach
1 Tbsp gluten free tamari light soy sauce
3 stalks of green onions, chopped
1/2 cloves garlic or a dash of garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
Shaved bonita flakes or sesame seeds for garnish

Directions:

1.  Wash spinach and put it in a pot.  The leaves will be wet, don't dry it off.
2.  Cover the pot and heat on medium for 5-6 minutes.
3.  Put spinach in a colander and use tongs to squeeze out water,
     pressing it against the side of the colander.
4.  Add soy sauce, chopped green onions, garlic or garlic powder, and sesame oil
5.  Toss together
6.  Put a mound on a small dish and sprinkle with shaved bonita flakes
     or sesame seeds


This was just delicious with tofu cubes and rice.  The spinach was flavorful and delicious and a great compliment to the tofu and rice.  Shaved bonita flakes can be found in Japanese specialty markets.  If you can't find it, sesame seeds are a great substitute.  You can find sesame seeds in the spice area of the supermarket.

BeaNspiration:  Sometimes you can create a little magic with everyday items!

Black Cod

Blogger BeaN's hubby returned from Alaska with Black Cod.  Chef Azuki loves black cod and made this sweet and savory black cod dish for her family.  This fish is soft, silky and moist.  It's a unique and delicious experience.  Try it, you'll love it!

Black Cod

Ingredients:
1/2 C mirin
1/2 C water
1/2 C shoyu (soy sauce)
1/4 C sugar
1 T sesame oil
1/4 tsp onion salt
1 bunch of green onions, chopped
4-5 generous filets of black cod


Directions:
1.  Add mirin, water, shoyu, sugar and sesame oil in bowl
2.  Put the fish in a skillet and pour sauce liberally over the fish
3.  Heat on the stove at medium heat for about 20 minutes
4.  Place the fish in a bowl and spoon some sauce over it
5.  Sprinkle green onions on top

Have this fish with rice and enjoy!  It melts in your mouth!


BeaNspiration:  Be surprised by the flavor and texture of life!

Easy Quiche

Today, Chef Azuki made quiche.  I always thought quiche was difficult, but with ready-made refrigerated pie crusts and left over roasted chicken, this dish was put together in a few minutes. The hardest part was waiting for it to bake.

Easy Quiche

Ingredients:
1 ready made refrigerator pie crust
1 1/2 C shredded Mexican blend cheese
4 tsp flour
1 C shredded cooked roasted chicken
3 eggs
1 C milk
1/2 C fresh spinach, chopped

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2.  Line a pie pan with the refrigerator pie crust
3.  Poke holes in the bottom with a fork
4.  Bake pie crust for 5 minutes (this keeps the bottom from getting soggy)
5.  Toss together cheese and flour
6.  Layer cheese mixture, chicken and spinach in crust
6.  Whisk together eggs and milk
7.  Pour the egg mixture over the other ingredients
8.  Bake for 30-40 minutes or until egg is cooked

This was delicious and so much easier to make than I thought.  In a few minutes it's ready for the oven and you can put up your feet and read a book for half an hour while it bakes.

BeaNspiration:  Something exquisite can be made by mixing together the simplest ingredients.

Salmon Steaming in the Oven

Here's a delicious easy way to make fish.  Chef Azuki melds the flavors in foil packages for delicious results!

Steamin' Salmon

Ingredients:
1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C Shoyu (Soy Sauce)
1/4 C Mirin
1/2 tsp onion salt
1 tsp sesame oil
3-4 salmon fillets (24 oz)
16 asparagus stalks, remove bottom inch or so (where it snaps off)
1 box of mushrooms
1/2 red bell pepper
1 bunch of green onions
Foil


Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees
1.  Combine Sugar, shoyu, mirin, onion salt and sesame oil
2.  Split salmon fillets
3.  Slice mushrooms and bell peppers
4. Remove the ends of the asparagus
5.  Chop the onions
6.  Package the salmon, sauce, asparagus, mushrooms, bell pepper and green onions in foil packages
7.  Bake in oven about 20 minutes

Then take it out of the oven and serve.  It's so juicy being steamed in it's own juices in the foil package.  You can even make this on a camping trip.  The little BeaNs ate their fish all up!

BeaNspiration:  Sometimes it's all in the packaging!