by : Reiko Beans/Lentils, Bread, Breakfast, Vegan, Vegetarian

Matcha Toast
抹茶トースト

A homemade whole wheat toast, Matcha bean paste, melting butter, crunchy walnuts, and sweet maple syrup…

What not to love?!

This is like the king of toast for me.

The bread we eat at home is mostly homemade, simply because it tastes better.

Since we bought the Kitchenaid stand mixer, making bread has become so easy and fun.

My dough is so much smoother than before and this seems to lead to the better result at the end.

This is my 1/3 whole wheat pullman bread, which is usually my go-to flour ratio (1/3 of the flour is whole wheat and 2/3 is bread or all-purpose flour).

This is how to make my Matcha toast.

1. Toast a homemade 1/3 whole wheat bread slice.
2. Spread Matcha flavored sweet bean paste (no recipe).
3. Place pieces of homemade vegan butter and chopped walnuts on top.
4. Drizzle maple syrup (optional).
5. Sprinkle Matcha powder.

This is delicious when the butter is still cold and keeping its shape.

But it’s also delicious when the butter starts melting.

Happy Tuesday evening everyone!

by : Reiko Bread, Breakfast, Vegan, Vegetarian

Bagels
ベーグル

The first time I had a bagel was when I home-stayed in Riverside, California, as part of a summer ESL program organized by my Christian college in Japan.

I was probably 18 years old at that time, and it was my first time to visit the U.S.

The bagle served for breakfast at my host family’s house came with cream cheese and various jams, and I fell in love with this chewy wonderful bread.

It was over 20 years ago and at that time bagels were hard to find in Japan.

When I came home, I told my mother, who was a great baker, and she got quickly interested.

We did some research and found an American style diner in the city and decided to try their bagel.

It was exactly the same as I remembered.

The great thing is that as soon as we came home, my mother somehow got a recipe and made homemade bagels!

A few years later I came back to the U.S., and ended up living in Boston for a few years.

That’s where I began eating bagels more regularly.

My favorite way of eating my bagels was with plain cream cheese and peanut butter.

I know it’s a bit unusual, and as you can guess, it’s definitely sticky, but I really enjoyed it.

Now I live in Minnesota, and I hardly ever eat bagels.

It could be a regional thing, but I think it’s mostly because of the overall national trend of cutting down on carbs.

I don’t see many people eating bagels around me, so I usually don’t think about it.

But I do have to confess.

Whenever I hear or see bagels, it does bring back the pleasant memories.

Just recently I have happened to have several occasions to see or hear about bagels, and I impulsively decided to make some myself.

I found a recipe that says you can make bagels in 30 minutes!

So I followed the recipe, which was not difficult.

I made plain and sesame versions, and they both turned out beautiful!

I was going to make my old favorite (cream cheese x peanut butter), but today I was rather in a mood for something else.

So I spread my homemade lemon cashew cream and World Market’s strawberry-rhubarb jam.

It was delicious!!

It’s almost absurd that I was buying bagels when you can make such delicious bagels so easily at home.

Love the simple ingredients as well (you know how much I hate long lists of ingredients of store-bought baked goods).

Bagels – plain / sesame
I used this recipe (in Japanese).

Lemon Cashew Cream
– 1 cup cashew nuts, soaked in hot water for a few hours
– 120 g soft tofu
– 30g soy milk
– 20g refined coconut oil
– fresh lemon juice from 1/2 lemon
– a pinch of salt

1. Combine all the ingredients. Puree until smooth with a hand blender.

2 Comments
by : Reiko Bread, Sandwich, Vegan, Vegetarian

Avocado Toast with Crunchy Tempeh and Slaw
アボカドトースト、かりかりテンペとコールスローのせ

I love avocado, and avocado toast is one of favorites.


I use my homemade crusty whole wheat bread and toast it lightly.

Creamy avocado on crusty toast is so good as it is, but I decided to go a bit further this time.

I got crunchy teriyaki tempeh strips and fruity slaw prepared for this one.

The slaw got usual suspects, such as cabbage and radish, but I also added fruit like mango and apple and herbs like cilantro and mint to this one, which makes the slaw a bit special and super refreshing.

Whenever I make these tempeh strips, I make extra as they freeze and thaw well.

These are so tasty and can be a great snack when you want something salty but not fried food.

Avocado Toast with Tempeh and Slaw

crunchy teriyaki tempeh (makes extra)
– 1 package tempeh, sliced
– 1/4 cup soy sauce
– 1/4 cup maple syrup
– canola oil
slaw
– 1 cup julienned cabbage
– 6 radish, julienned
– 1/2 mango, julienned
– 1/2 apple, julienned
– chopped mint leaves
– chopped cilantro
– salt and pepper
– 1 tablespoon sugar
– 1 tablespoon white vinegar
– 1/2 tablespoon canola oil
2 slices crusty bread, toasted
1 avocado sliced
salt
crushed red pepper1. Make crunchy teriyaki tempeh. Marinade tempeh slices in a mixture of soy sauce and maple syrup. Marinade for at least a few hours to overnight. Preheat an oven to 400F. Bake for about 10 to 15 minutes each both sides or until browned while occasionally baste with the marinade.
2. Make slaw. Combine all the ingredients. Mix well. I make it at the last minute as I like it taste fresh on my avocado toast.
3. Place avocado slices on toasts. Lightly mash with a fork. Sprinkle salt and crushed red pepper.
4. Place crunchy teriyaki tempeh and slaw on top.

2 Comments
by : Reiko Beans/Lentils, Bread, Leaf Vegetabes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Bean and Veggie Stuffed Corn Cakes
豆べジ詰めコーンおやき

I liked Eureka Compass Vegan Food’s Corn Masa Cake so much that I decided to make something similar myself.

First I cooked black beans and all different veggies (cabbage, kale, onion, garlic, and green peppers) to make the filling.

I just wanted to take a picture of this black bean can.

Isn’t it cute?

Trader Joe’s often has cool cans but this one is from Fresh Thyme.

I only made five, so our new Breville toaster oven was perfect to bake them.

Although the dough is apparently very different from Eureka Compass’, but mine turned out really good too.

These are perfect for breakfast or a snack.

I like to take these with me to work and I usually eat one in my car.

I also like to grab one when I know we will be out for a while so that I know I’ll have a good healthy snack if I need one.

Veggie Stuffed Corn Cakes – makes about 5

filling
– canola oil
– 2 garlic cloves, chopped
– 1 small onion, chopped
– 1 cup jullienned cabbage
– 1 cup kale
– 1/2 green pepper, chopped
– salt and pepper
– 1 tablespoon sugar
– 1 tablespoon molasses
– Louisiana hot sauce
– Japanese vegetable and fruit sauce (semi-sweet)
cake
– 2 cups Maseca corn flour
– salt
– water
canola oil for flying1. Make filling. Sautee vegetables with oil.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients. Combine well.
3. Make corn cakes. Preheat oven to 400F. Combine corn flour and salt. Add water slowly while mixing well, until the dough achieves your preferred consistency.
4. Divide the dough into 10. Make balls and then flatten them to make a disk. On five disks place the filling, and then cover them with another disk.
5. Fry both sides in a pan until golden brown.
6. Finish cooking them in the oven for 15 minutes or so until cooked through.

These corn cakes can be so versatile.

I already have some other filling ideas including sweet versions!

2 Comments
by : Reiko Bread, Breakfast, Vegan, Vegetarian

Chocolat Bread
ショコラブレッド

This chocolat bread is messy, decadent, and heavenly delicious.

I was watching a show called, “The Best thing I Ever Ate” on Food Network, and Berkshire’s Bread &
Chocolate was being featured as part of their “Messy” best thing episode.

Just looking at the lady eating the bread with her fingers covered with melty chocolate made me almost drool (lol).

So “make my own chocolat bread” got on my to-do list for the weekend.

I wanted to use good quality chocolate for this.

So I went to the rather higher-end grocery store in our neighborhood and found Madecasse chocolate discs.

What the package said was promising, and it turned out that I was very happy with the purchase.

Chocolate is the main player here, so you have to use good quality chocolate.

I tried to put as much chocolate as possible in the dough.

And this was what it looked like before going into the oven.

You can see some chocolate disks are peeking out at some spots.

(The one in the back is cranberry walnut bread.)

Very exciting moment.

Just out of the oven, and looks really good.

This messiness was exactly what I was hoping for!

I usually wait to cut my bread until it cools down, but this one, you don’t want to wait too long.

Slice and taste it when it’s still warm.

Who can resist this, right?!

This turned out to be an awesome breakfast bread.

Who said you can’t have chocolate for breakfast.

For some reason it seemed very appropriate, especially when served with a cup of black coffee.

Chocolat Bread – makes 2

*This is NOT Berkshire’s recipe. Their Bread & Chocolate is sourdough based, and this recipe is NOT.

about 100 ml lukewarm water
1/2~3/4 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 tablespoon dry yeast
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
about 1~2 cups good quality chocolate disks or chips
1 cup boiling water

1. In a tall container combine water, salt, and yeast. Mix well until the salt and yeast dissolve.
2. Add flour. Mix well with a wooden spoon or a hand. The dough should be rather loose.
3. Cover and let rise until doubled for about 2 hours.
4. Refrigerate the dough overnight; easier to form.
5. Divide the dough into two. Roll them flat. Place chocolate chips/discs. Make flat balls.
6. Place a pizza stone in the middle of the oven and a small oven(high temperature)-safe dish on another rack. Preheat the oven to 450F. Wait for 20 minutes.
7. Place the dough on the pizza stone. Pour 1 cup boiling water into the small dish; be careful, the water will splash.
8. Bake for 25~30 minutes.

Have an awesome Sunday everyone!

by : Reiko Bread, Mushroom, Vegan, Vegetarian

No-Meat Pepperoni
肉じゃないペパロニ

This is probably one of my best culinary creations.

No-meat pepperoni!

Doesn’t this look like real pepperoni?

But there is absolutely no animal meat in this one.

Interested in finding out how to make this?

Well, it’s actually quite simple to make it.

What you need is king mushrooms.

Slice them thin.

You marinate them overnight.

When cooked in the oven, it’s like magic.

They turn into no-meat pepperoni, or PB (plant-based; which I probably prefer) pepperoni.

King mushrooms are one of my favorite ingredients, mainly because of its texture.

Because of the unusually strong “meaty” texture for a vegetable, it adds so much interest to any dish, whatever you are making.

It’s one of my go-to ingredients, especially now we don’t eat meat.

This king mushroom “pepperoni” not only has a great texture but also is absolutely delicious, too!

I honestly like this so much better than real pepperoni which I was never a big fan of even when I was still eating meat.

So it was almost necessary to make pizza when you have such awesome “pepperoni”.

Don’t you think?

We just used the vegetables we had that day (onion, green onion, black olives) and the PB pepperoni.

We first spread red sauce, put the vegetables (and the “pepperoni”), baked the pizza, and then we drizzled my cashew “cheese” right before serving.

I also sprinkled chopped Japanese basil leaves on top.

It was so delicious!!

I would order pepperoni pizza if they had my pepperoni on it (lol).

I just made a second batch of PB pepperoni.

This time I decided to put them in the freezer because I want to see how they will turn out when I use the frozen version for pizza.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

PB (No-Meat) Pepperoni

5~6 large king mushrooms, sliced
marinade
– 75ml soy sauce
– 75ml maple syrup
– 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
– 1/4~1/2 teaspoon paprika
– 1/2~1 teaspoon ground fennel seeds
– 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
– salt and pepper
canola oil

1. Slice king mushrooms. Put them in a large glass container. Add the marinade ingredients to the container. Mix well using a spoon until all the mushroom slices are coated with the marinade. Let them marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 400F.
3. Remove the slices from the marinade. Pat them dry with paper towel to remove the excess liquid.
4. Line two sheet pans with aluminum foil. Thinly coat the foil with oil; use a brush. Place the mushroom slices on the foil in a single layer. Lightly brush the top of the slices with oil. Salt and pepper.
5. Bake for about 10~15 minutes. Check frequently. Depending on the thickness of the mushroom slice and the location inside the oven, some of them cook faster than others.

These are kind of addictive, and I have a hard time stopping eating!

2 Comments