Grape Tart

       

Every year I am happy to get pione, which is a kind of grape, and so excited to have it.
Pione doesn't have seed inside, very sweet, juicy and looks very pretty, gorgeous and beautiful.
Okayama prefecture is famous area for pione, so we can pick grapes in vineyard.
Relatives who live in Okayama send to my family this piones and peaches every year. I am definitely lucky.

The best way to eat is just wash pione and dig it!
Last night I ate it this way but today I got an idea. Yes, making pione tart.

Tart is the best of my favorites. 

**Grape Tart recipe**

<tart dough>
1/6 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup powder sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup flour
a pinch of salt

Put room temperature unsaltedbutter in a bowl, add powder sugar and mix them together. After that add a pinch of salt.
Add an egg yolk and mix them.
Add flour and mix them well, and put those in one.
Hold it with wrap, and place it in the fridge for one hour.
Take it out from the fridge, make a dough sheet and press the sheet the sides and bottom of a tart tin.
Bake the tart in the preheated 200° oven for 15 minutes.

<almond filling>
1/6 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup powder sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup almond powder
rum

Put room temperature unsalted butter in a bowl, add powder sugar and mix them together.
Add an egg and mix them.
Add almond powder and rum.
After mix all ingredients, put the filling in the tart.
Bake it in the preheated 180° oven for 30 minutes. If top of the surface is gets burn, cover with tin foil.

<custard filling>
1 cup milk
1 tbsp of milk
1/3 cup powder sugar
1 tbsp butter
3 egg yolk
2 tbsp flour
rum

Simmer 1 cup of milk in the pan, and add half of sugar in it, stir for a while until just before boiling.
Put egg yolks and 1 tbsp of milk in a bowl, and mix them. Add the left sugar and flour and mix gently. Don't mix well.
Add warm milk into the bowl and mix them.
Strain mixture, remove the residue, and put back all liquid ingredients to the pan.
Stir it for a while, add butter and rum.
Cool it down.


<decoration>
Put custard on the tart with petit knife.
Decorate tart with pione.

Chia Seed Pudding and Granola

Healthy food stream has come to around the world, recently into here.
I tried some of them, it is a little bit long time to get used to my life. Eventually I settle down on homemade granola and chia seeds. Easy to make them.

I am going to dig them very quick and fly to Melbourne tomorrow!

Anime Figure - Otaku Culture-

    

Every month I go to Nipponbashi in Osaka, usually go to Hotel Hillarys on Sakaisuji St. to get my nails done. When I arrived Nipponbashi Sta., go down the street, on the way there is a huge shop for anime figure.

I already knew the shop, I am not interested in the kind stuff like that, though, but I was looking around the shop yesterday, I noticed there were so many foreigners around the shop. Taking picture with a big anime figure in front of the shop, young people were getting into the shop one after another.

That seemed so weird for me. I just didn't know here is famous spot for tourists.
This was electric appliances, especially second hand shop decades ago.
Now there are much foreigners than Japanese here. That means tourists pick up accommodation, sightseeing area or shopping spots around here probably it is very reasonable and convenient because Nipponbashi is close to Nanba.

If you have a chance to visit Osaka, come here.
http://jungle-scs.co.jp/sale/    (Japanese)
You can enjoy Japanese culture, and reasonable stay in Hotels around Nipponbashi.



When I came back to home, I found a figure. A little shocked.
 My son is Otaku? I believe not.





but looking carefully, this girl is so cute, "Kawaii" !

My Favorite Music -from the sound in NCIS -

There are many music I am impressed in NCIS.
Those are no visual of NCIS episode here but only listening of music reminds me the each sceans in past episodes.



#1. All We Are by Matt Nathanson in season 5 "Family".

#2. Nothing more by The Alternate Routes in season11 episode 11, Christmas Special.

#3. Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley/Leonard Norman Cohen in season13 episode13 Scoop".

#4. Hello world by Lady Antebellum in season8 episode 12 "Recruited"

There are more than those.
Always NCIS picks up good music. I can be comfortable to listen those.

Tony with Tali - NCIS Season13 ep.24 "Family First"-

It was a sad final but Tony decided to leave NCIS for Tali.
This is not bad. 
This is departure for Tony and Tali.

I found this ending is good or bad, right or wrong on SNS.
I think whole story was good. We could see the different part of Tony's character. Surprisingly we could see Tony's dad's impressing words for Tony. Also Gibbs is making a new team which means new family. We can expect next season story.




"Family first" is Ducky's word in the episode, I was impressed at this moment.
I remember other an American drama.
"La Femme Nikita" has similar ending as well. An agent left the agency behind his lover because his son in the ending. This was also so sad story ending but good drama.
I can tell about this drama later.
In Japan, it is possible to say "Job first".
Especially for 50-60 years old businessman in here.
When I was young, maybe I would have said that. I now changed to say "family first".

It is strong-willed, and thoughtful word.







Good bye Tony☆

I Miss Ziva David played by Cote de Pablo - NCIS Seaon13 ep.24 "Family First"-

I guess if you like Ziva, you might realize which episode this is used in.

That is NCIS season5 episode16 "Recoil". It was about the emotional struggle of Ziva as a undercover agent.
I really love this song.


Final episode is coming tonight.
I can't wait, but wondering I don't want to watch it. It is hard to say my current feeling.  I know the story end but I won't tell here yet.

Before watching NCIS season13 final, I should remember  Ziva David again.
She already left NCIS but I can't forget her.
She was amazing woman to watch as soon as she replaced for Kate in the season3.

She is smart, powerful, strong, beautiful, and loved for good.

Homemade Cookies History

Rainy season is over!  Real summer has come in Japan.
I said no more use oven but lied. I baked cookies.
To feel cool and summer, used super fresh lemon juice in them. This cookie is so tasty.



I have never seen no cookies in our sweets box at home when I was a child. My mom baked cookies quite a lot, and they were always same taste, same round shape, and they were butter raisin cookies. I liked them but actually I don't like raisins at this moment, too chewy to eat for a child so even though there were no snack sometimes at home, I usually did not eat these cookies. Just when I was starving, ate them.

Maybe, or maybe not, my mom's baking start point was cookies. She researched recipes of many kinds of cookies like conducting experiments. She tried to change kinds of ingredients or quantity very often.  I remember she told me " this (butter raisin cookies) is the best cookie recipe. "

Funny thing is that I remember this her cookies taste and I still bake cookies with same recipe.  Her basic recipe's ratio was " flour : butter : sugar equal 2 : 1 : 1." And then just add egg, baking powder, vanilla and some raisins. Very simple.

  

Now I don't use raisins, but use her cookie dough recipe.
Sometimes shaped cookies, and then I bored plain taste, changed to dump in chocolate sauce or put some kinds of nuts inside.

Recent years, healthy food has been popular for example no butter, no regular flour.
I also bake cookies without them or use soybean roasted flour or soy milk.



This is the stream of my baking cookies history. I have no idea what kinds of cookies should I bake next, healthy or not.

However, I miss raisin cookies, I don't eat raisins, though.
These are my precious looking back.



**Lemon Cookie with Earl Grey recipe**

1 cup flour
1/3 cup almond powder
2 egg yolks
1 stick butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbs lemon juice and zest of lemon
1 tbs fine earl grey tea leaves

Demerara sugar for coating of cookies before bake in the oven.


Mix with sugar and room temperature butter.
Warm egg yolks in the microwave for 50 seconds -1 minutes. and after that crush it to very fine.
All ingredients are in one bowl, and mix them.
Make a small ball and coat them with dmerara sugar.
Bake them in the preheated 180° oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

Dark Cherry and Earl Grey Cake

My Mom loved baked goods. Usually cookies, sometimes cakes without cream or chocolate decoration. Once a year, special occasion, she baked strawberry cream cake for my birthday, chocolate cake for my brother. Other time, just regular bake like today's.

This is dark cherry and earl grey cake. When I was a kid, I didn't like cakes tasted liqueur even though a little bit flavor.  Now it is ok, and actually not tasted alcohol, just a weak fragrance.

Today I miss this buttery cake. While I was baking, I was shocked of huge amount of butter in the recipe. Recently it is popular to bake without butter because healthy or lack of butter in the supermarket in Japan. Many baker try to use vegetable oil. Those are not bad but sometimes I want to eat butter flavor cake.

By the way, lack of butter is serious problem recent years. We can still buy but it costs very high.
About 400 Japanese yen per 200g. Hope to be cheaper!


**dark cherry and earl grey cake recipe**
(10*10 square pan)

<preparation>
cherry
Put 1 can of dark cherry and 1tbs of cointeau into a saucepan, and simmer it. Cool them down.

crumble
1/2 cup flour
2 tbs butter
2 tbs sugar
vanilla extract, coinyrear.

Put flour and sugar  in a small bowl.
Cut into small cube of butter, mix with flour. Add vanilla extract.
Sit them in freezer.

meringue
3 egg white
1/5 cup sugar

Beat an egg white and sugar until stiff peak.


<sponge>
1 1/2 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1tbs earl grey
vanilla extract,  cointreau (favorite liqueur)

Whisk room temperature butter and sugar until color changed to close to white.
Put egg yolk one by one.
Add vanilla extract and cointreau.
Mix them and 1/6 of meringue gently, and add flour and baking powder.
And then, mix all leftover of meringue and flour.
Put dough into a square pan and bake at 170° preheated oven.
15 minutes later, take out it from the oven, put cherry and crumble on top.
Bake at 160° oven for 25-30minutes.

Abusolutely delicious Japanese white bread

I got a loaf of white bread from my sister which was selected one of the best white bread in Japan.

http://nogaminopan.com/     (Japanese)

This is so delicious without butter, jam, even toasted. Very fluffy.

I thought white bread is same in every country before I knew other country's bread because bread culture came from them. In fact, I realized when I went to Canada, it was totally different.

I couldn't find white bread like Japanese fluffy and thick.
I couldn't find bakery like Japanese various kind of meal bread like curry buns. I just found very thin white bread,buns or pastries.

It has been so popular to bake bread at home using bread machine since years.
Put all ingredients in the bread machine, we can eat fresh out of like an oven next morning. What this machine is great is we can bake so many kinds of bread not only white bread, but also pastries.

I sometimes dream about foreign oven like big and huge gas power, but is impossible in here, and baking bread is usually tough amd tale a long time to make, so that's why bread machine is getting popular here.
I want to have one in the future.





Love honey toast☆





Tearing off this loaf of bread is best way to taste!


Here is one more special. Curry bread.

  

This is deep fried bread which has curry inside.
It is so good.  Crispy outside, thin bread dough, and amazing curry paste inside.

http://www.sunny-side.co.jp/   (Japanese)



If I hava a chance to drop by here, I want to get other kinds of bread.

Matcha Shiratama Parfait

Hopefully no bake in such a humid season.
Like summer hot temperature, but not actual summer until rainy season is over. I need something cool all day long.

Shiratama dumpling is easy to make and feeling cool. Perfect homemade dessert in summer.

Shiratama powder is made from sticky rice flour, so like Mochi when we eat.
Today I used matcha shiratama powder, but if I don't find it, can use regular shiratama powder and matcha powder. Just mix them.

Not enough to fill my stomach only shiratama dumpling. I also put small pieces of sponge cake, kinako sugar (sweet roasted soybean flour), vanilla ice cream.
Oh my god, this is in heaven!  I was full. No more supper tonight.....



**Matcha Shiratama dumpling recipe**

(10-12pieces)
1 cup matcha shiratama powder
1 1/3 cup water

Mix with kinako and sugar


Put shiratama powder in a bowl.
Pour water gently, not all, keep water a little just in case dough is too dry later.
Make dough, and divide small ball. (10-12pieces)
Put small balls into boiling water in the sauce pan, and wait dumplings float on water.
Wait for 1-2minutes after dumplings come floated.
Take out all dumplings into cold water in a bowl, make them cold.
Drain water, and serve dumplings on the plate, and sprinkle kinako sugar.

Good things is leftover dumplings can be freezed. When you eat it next time, just put them boiling water for a few minutes.

NCIS Season13 ep.23 "Dead Letter"

NCIS season13 finale was on TV in May, but in Japan we can watch it on next Thursday. I will be frustrated whole next 7 days.... no, I have been since May even though I know the story. I couldn't help checking the ending of this season on internet.

So, I watched episode23 last night. 
In the beginning a FBI agent Tobias Fornell was shot in Gibbs's home, but he survived at the end. I am happy to see his daughter Emily's smile because she is growing up beautifully these days.I didn't want Fornell gone.

Anyway, the point I concern about is Tony DiNozzo for sure. He is leaving in last episode. I miss him so much but not like Ziva David. 
DiNozzo is definitely indispensable in NCIS for 13 years, so I wonder how Gary Glasberg handle this next episode. Is it possible new characters a cool MI6 agent guy and an intimidating FBI woman agent in episode 23 last night will be main? I'll see...
I want write about Tony and Ziva more but it is better next week.

NCIS is amazing drama even though producer made a trailer of popular main characters' death. First of all, Caitlin, and next was Jenny Shepard, Marc, so many good people were killed by NCIS producer without hesitate. Last week, even Tom Morrow. I liked him. However, I have had a blast for 13 years, which means producers and story are awosome.

We can watch NCIS on FOX or other channels every day including past seasons.
I watch season9 from the early morning and afternoon as much as I can, season 3 and season 11 at night every day. I have had a TV life like this for a few years. My family must be disgusted to see me and I think so by myself. I know I am too crazy about NCIS.

I haven't got over Ziva's loss, and possible Tony's as well.
How can I manage this sad feeling from next week? I hope to get it from American senior by 2 months.

"Brooklyn"

I went to movie theater to watch " Brooklyn".

The story is that in 1950 an Irish lady immigrates to United States to find a job, and falls into romantic with a man there. And then she must have to choose the countries for one reason.

**story**
Eilis lived in a small Irish village with her sister and mother.
She decided to go to United States alone by support of a Priest , and could get a job as a department store salesclerk there. In early days of US she was struggling with homesickness, but was getting adapted to her new life.
At a Irish party she met Tony, a local Italian, they loved each other in days and got married behind her family.
One day, she got the news that Rose (Eilis's sister in Ireland) died and decided to go back to Ireland temporarily. She had a dilemma between two countries.



This is historical, human lifestylish and very romantic movie.
I wish I wanted that the movie included more historical part, but there are still a thing for me to think in the movie personally. What was the most important reason Eilis could decide to go back to Ireland when Rose died? 
For Rose? For her mom? For Eilis herself? All those are behind her husband Tony she loves.

When I lived in Canada, my mom passed away. I didn't come back to Japan then, after a year I came back to hometown. This was my choice and didn't regret but in years later, sometimes I thought what would happen to me if I had come back when my mom died. Eventually this is not big deal. Just a little bit change of my feeling at the moment.


I haven't been to a movie theater for a long time. I was surprised the theater was very smaller than before, not only this theater most of theaters are getting small and aren't crowded all the time even though discount day.
I know it costs high to watch movie in Japan.　1,800 yen for an adult!
I wish I could watch like other countries like much cheaper.

Trip to Chicago in May 2016

Chicago, I visited 2 months ago, is more amazing city than I expected.


Lots of architectural structure and filming location entertain me for just strolling in the city.
A few friends told me why I was going to Chicago. I just had an idea to go, for example, the author which I was reading a book recently was from Chicago, or found a ticket on the internet, something like that.

They thought the image of Chicago is a gang city,and  might be dangerous for solo trip. This is a little bit ridiculous, I am really careful when I travel  for sure, but this is the real that there is some stereotype of Chicago in Japan.
This is exact same thing that an old couple I met at the jazz bar when I went to Chicago.
They are from Chicago, and said This city is beautiful, fun, and very entertaining but still has that kind of dangerous part.


Anyway, I had fun here a lot.

  
http://www.choosechicago.com/things-to-do/tours-and-attractions/millennium-park/
huge park here to play, enjoy the view.




http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/chicago_s_publicartcaldersflamingo.html
This is the sculpture in downtown. close to my hotel so I watch this everyday while I stay Chicago. Very Chicago!

My hotel was good access in downtown and reasonable. The building looked old but clean in the room.
https://clubquartershotels.com/chicago/central-loop




http://www.jazzshowcase.com/
This is so great to enjoy jazz music. Close to downtown, and we can go daytime.
Many people were local, and all of them I talked in the bar were so nice.


I want to recommend to all my friend who like traveling about trip to Chicago.
I want everyone like this city to stay.

Japanese pickles in Kyoto -Tsukemono-

    

I went to Kyoto last Sunday to meet my old friends.
Most of time we chatted in cafe or restaurant because we met since 10 years, but we felt to do something seems like Kyoto. So we went to famous huge food market in Kyoto called Nishiki Ichiba.

http://www.kyoto-nishiki.or.jp/ (Japanese)

http://kyoto.travel/en/thingstodo/entertainment/252 (English information)

This is long street which has more than a hundred food shop. We can get anything here, and enjoy Kyoto food.  There packed with people including foreigners.
I enjoyed to buy Tsukemono, Japanese pickles, here this time.

Japanese pickles taste salty, sometimes miso taste, not vinegar, so a little bit different from other country style.
We can buy pickles in local supermarkets but Kyoto is very famous for Kyoto veggies pickles. So good to eat with  rice.


      ↑                  ↑                 ↑
eggplant　　 burdock　　asuparagus


   

This is my favorite pickles, red beet. Tastes sour, salty and sweet a bit.

What I was surprised while shopping, I found Tsukemono which I can keep in room temperature. Usually Tsukemono should keep in fridge, so sometimes it is hard to bring them home. Easy to try for tourists!

I eat Tsukemono every day at supper time. I believe that rice, miso soup, and Tsukemono are exact basic Japanese cuisine.

Matcha Tiramisù

Tiramisu has basically cocoa powder on top and mascarpone cheese inside.
This coffee flavored dessert from Italy attracted me so much in early 90's, my mom challenged to make it at home.

It was always good to challenge to make something but she didn't know the real taste before she made. She just got recipe from newspaper.
Our family was feeling nice to taste her homemade cooking only by mom's challenge mind because we had new food that we couldn't eat out around that time.

Just after that, Japan has bubble years and tiramisu got known everywhere. Restaurants began to served tiramisu as Italian fancy desserts, and I heard first time of a kind of very new cheese, called mascarpone.

Now we can arrange to healthy, and replace to matcha taste. It turned to Japanese dessert.
Didn't use egg, cowmilk, cheese as a vegan food today.

**Matcha Tiramisu recipe**

<base matcha sponge>
1cup all purpose flour 
1/2cup almond powder
1/8cup vegetable oil
1/4cup cane sugar
1/2cup soy milk
2tsp matcha powder
1tsp baking powder

Put all ingredients in a bowl and mix well until smooth dough.
Put the dough in square pan (6*6 inches).
Bake it at 350F/180C preheated oven for about 20minutes.

<filling>
1cup soy milk
3/4 cup coconut milk
1/8 vegetable oil
1/3 cane sugar
1/6cup starch
1/2tsp gelatin powder

Put all ingredients in a sauce pan at low heat, mix well until they are thickened.
Remove from the heat and pour it on base matcha sponge into square pan.

Sit in the fridge for a few hours.

Sprinkle matcha powder on tiramisu.

Long for Cherry Pie

I am not big baker of pie.
Baking cherry pie is huge event for me.

The reason I baked cherry pie is just because I had a chance to make it.
Cherry season has come and I saw Agent Cooper on tube last week.


In '90s Twin Peaks was explosively popular.
At this time, we couldn't watch US drama as much as moment before, so Twin peaks has a kind of charismatic popularity among its funs.

Agent Cooper loved Cherry pie in episodes, and I was so curious about this cherry pie.
Cherry pie attracted me at this time so much.
That is similar to a kind of longing for going to United States. That was huge dream for me. Most of Americans hearing of this, they probably would make fun of me and say,
"Just a pie! Make it and eat it."
but in Japan we could not find cherry pie in pastry shop at that time. I remmber that I thought this is the big difference between Japan and America.


I am eating put ice cream on cherry pie. So good for sure.
This was a taste of my old dream.