Sake Kasu(Sake lees ) Cheesecake with Fig & Blueberries -vegan-

   

Sake kasu(sake lees) , which is residue of when making sake, is fermented food. It has high nutoricious food, so reconsidered to use for healthy food since years.

I can't hold alcohol, but I can eat sake kasu after alcohol is evaporated enough, like cake or cookies. When sake kasu is cooked, smells like cheese, this is the reason sake kasu cake is called cheesecake even if it does't have cheese.

This cake has fig and blueberries. We can enjoy sweet and sour with sake kasu flavour.
Best match☆

**Sake Kasu(Sake lees) Cheesecake with Fig &Blueberries recipe**
18cm (7 inch ) round-shaped cake tin

<base>
50g almond
50g cashew nuts
50g oats
50g vegetable oil
20g maple syrup

<filling>
150g sake kasu(sake lees)
200ml soy milk
100g soy yogurt
50g coconut oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
150g cane sugar
60g almond powder
90g pastry flour
1 tsp baking powder
3 middle size figs
150g blueberries

Bake the base:
1. Put all ingredients for the base in food processor and blend them.
2. Press the crust in bottom of cake tin firmly.
3. Bake it in the oven at 180° for 12 minutes.

Make the filling:
1. Warm soy milk in the sauce pan. Don't boil. Make sake kasu in small pieces and put all into the pan. Make them smooth paste and remove from the heat.
2. Add soy yogurt, coconut oil, cane sugar and lemon juice. Blend them thoroughly.
3. Sieve dry ingredients.
4. Add dry ingredients into wet and mix them.
5. Slice figs and place them on the crust.
6. Place blueberries on the crust between fig slices.
7. Pour the filling into the cake tin.
8. Bake it in the oven at 170° for about 60 minutes. Cover with tinfiol on the way not to burn top. Make sure cooked though inside.

9. Cool it down. Better eat after sitting for a night to make it to be moist and rich taste.

Matcha ice cream with waffles -vegan-

Clear weather today after huge powerful tyhoon has passed. However it is in west Japan. North and east area has caution right now, hope all will be safe.





**matcha ice cream with waffles recipe**

<matcha ice cream>without ice cream maker

3 frozen banana, about 300g
       (depend on sweetness of banana, add maple syrup)
40g almond
40g cashew
100g soy milk
1 tbsp matcha powder

1. Place frozen banana, almond, cashew in food processor and blend them.
2. While blend them, add soy milk.
3. Add matcha powder and blend all. When you taste it, if you like strong matcha flavor, add more.
4. Put all of mixture in a container, leave it in the freezer for at least 6 hours.


<vegan matcha waffles >

200 pastry flour
10g baking powder
20g maple syrup
40g cane sugar
70g soy yogurt
60g coconut oil
200ml soy milk
a pinch of salt

1. Sieve flour and baking powder twice in a bowl.
2. Add cane sugar, maple syrup and a pinch of salt to the bowl. Mix them thoroughly.
3. Add soy yogurt and soy milk to the bowl. Mix them until smooth.
4. Add coconut oil and mix all ingredients.
5. Ladle the batter into a preheated waffle iron.
6. Cook the waffles until nice golden and brown.


~If you change below, you can make non-vegan buttery waffles.~
70g soy yogurt → 2 eggs
60g coconut oil → 60g melted butter
200ml soy milk → 200ml whole milk


<decoration>
Soy cream and with matcha powder, powder sugar, kinako powder, goji berries, edible gold leaves

☆kinako powder is made from soybean.

"English Vinglish"

This is the Indian movie I watched when I was surfing on movie channel of cable TV one day. It was good more than I expected, I was late for class (this is on TV in the morning, and I wanted to watch as soon as possible).


**story**

A housewife(her name is Shasi) came to NY for family wedding preparation, and went to English class. She was modest, humble and sweet tempered housewife in her country with her well-educated husband and children, and then she became to open-minded and independent while she got used to life in NY with new friends.


In India, especially not in the city, I guess it is possible still closed society, which means let's say, talked about for housewives at home. I imagine like old Japanese ones, even we still have this circumstances. This is not bad but hard to live for housewives quite often. Dominant husband, need to be stick to the traditional family rules or like those.

When I watchted Shasi in this movie, and then she was getting independent in NY, I felt to support her in my mind. She had struggle between her traditional family style and new life with learning new language, culture and self-confidence.

This movie reminds me when I experienced to study in English in foreign counrty for the first time as Shasi had. Now I admire her smartness and beauty as an independent woman for entrepreneur.

Rich Pudding Cake

Once a year or two years I make rich custard pudding without guilty.
I tried to get healthy food recent years, but not every day. In my opinion, I need take balance to take food and this is on my responsibility.
I go to see a doctor when I am sick and take medication. Speaking of food into my body, I decide daily food control on my own even if I can get doctor or nutrician's advice.

I also wanna get a nice response from my family about daily meal or dessert requests as much as I can.
To keep good family healthcare, get family smile first.

**pudding cake recipe**
For about 18cm cake pan
Today I used smaller square pan and small cup

<caramel>
50g granulated sugar
1 tbsp water
2 tbsp hot water

<pudding custard>
6 eggs
500 ml milk
70g sugar
vanilla extract

<sponge base>
70g flour
50g sugar
2 eggs
25g butter

Blueberries and mint leaves for decoration.

1. Prepare to cake pan. Put melting butter inside of cake pan.

Make caramel;
1. Put water and sugar into sauce pan and warm it. When it turns light brown, add hot water. Watch out burning. Pour caramel into a cake pan.

Make custard;
1. Warm sugar and milk into a sauce pan until sugar dissolve. Don't boil them. Break eggs in a bowl and add warm milk. Mix them thoroughly.
2. Strain custard through a strainer twice. Add vanilla extract.
3. Pour custard into the cake pan.

Make sponge base;
1. Beat eggs with sugar in a bowl until it turns white and thick.
2. Add flour and mix them quietly.
3. Add melting butter into the bowl and mix them.
4. Pour sponge base ingredients into the cake pan. Spongebase could be floated.

Bake pudding;
1. Preheat oven at 170°.
2. Boil water.
3. Bake pudding cake in baking sheet with hot water in the oven for 35-40 minutes.
4. Cool it down and place in the fridge for a few hours.
5. Flip over the cake on the plate to serve.

Beautiful spot and new explore in Osaka -Osaka Castle Park-

  this is from the bridge called "Gokuraku-bashi".


I have chances to go to Osaka castle park quite a lot because I live in Osaka city and Osaka castle is placed in the middle of business area in Osaka city.
However, I walk around there only a few times in a year, in March, April and November of beautiful flower season.




Unusually I walked though on the way back to home on weekday, I was super surprised. More than about 90% foreigner tourists there. I saw two Japanese family and couple.

When I think about it, this is good place to know Osaka, history, samurai, and enjoy the walking.
I just felt odd. Feeling like that I am in other country but have a familiar sight. I was asked to take photos for tourists many times in the park yesterday. Funniest thing was I took so many photos for me there.




This is from the top of castle(called Tenshukaku). So beautiful, it was sun down time.




This is from the bridge(called Osakajoshinbashi).



This short cut was not bad.  Short cut means walking though the park without taking trains. I usually take trains because my house and bussiness area are on the diagonal position.
I recommend to go Osaka castle park when my friends comes to Osaka. This is nice to walk around here.

http://osakacastlepark.jp/foreinger/english.html


There are some other photos when I visited.

Plum blooming season in early March.



Budding green leaves season in early May. From the restraunt at the top of TWIN21in Kyobashi.




Lovely season in autumn leaves in the end of November.

 


I want to take Aqua Bus. looking nice☆
http://suijo-bus.osaka/

Avocado Chocolate Nut Squares - vegan-

I got lot of avocados today.
I cooked avocado creamy spaghetti for dinner, and still there were leftover.

Avocado chocolate tart could be nice for tomorrow's treat. It takes a night to make but easy to make!





**Avocado Chocolate Nut Squares recipe**
used 18cm cake pan

<the base>
60g almond
60g cashew
60g oats
50g coconut oil
50g agave syrup

<the filling>
250g avocado
20g vegetable oil
50g agave syrup
20g cocoa powder

pistachios for decoration

Blend all ingredients for the base in a food processor.
Press the mixture into bottom of a cake pan firmly.
Bake it in preheated 180° oven for 12-15 minutes.
Blend all ingredients for the filling in a food processor until it gets smooth.
Pour the filling mixture into the cake pan.
Place in a freezer for one night.
Transfer into a fridge a couple of hours before you eat.

I like eat in half cold, but if you like completely defrosted, OK. Even if you eat in frozen, not bad in hot summer. It is up to you.

"Lost in Translation"

This is my favorite movie, which is on TV quite often, every time I watch it, I enjoy the difference of understanding between Japanese and Americans.


** story**
An American movie star Bob Harris(Bill Murray) in Tokyo for filming of Suntory whiskey. He was feeling lonely because he was not comfortable in Japan for a little difficulties of translation Japanese and English. He also had a loneliness about family life. In the same time, young woman Charlotte(Scarlett Johansson) was in Tokyo, and she was also feeling lonely because she just came with her husband on business as a photographer. They stayed in same hotel and had feeling of same cultural barrier, so got into close....





For the first time I watched this movie, Canadian friend recommended me. He said "This is funny movie because we can find the difference between your country and me."
It was true. Misunderstanding for translation in this movie is so funny to watch even if I watch many times, maybe some Japanese feel uncomfortable to watch the way the producer filmed, which is I was', though.

Now I enjoy this movie about both character's feelings more than those funny parts of "lost in translation".  I think I could understand their true feelings of complicated, loneliness. Furthermore, I understand the irritation which they couldn't tell someone what they wanted to say. I don't think this is a romance, this is a friendship story.
We have to imagine by ourselves about last scene, there are lots of imagination.

As much as we can, we should watch this movie in English and Japanese. The pleasure becomes twice.