Good Art Is Not What It Looks Like, But What It Does To Us.

Apologies for the spamming of posts – especially to my new daily growing followers (big thank you!!) but I needed to free up the storage on my phone.

Hey Rick, if candy-filled streets aren’t enough to lure you to my homeland, I don’t know what are!

I’ve always said we are so lucky to have Hagley <3


This one’s for you Randy!
Ducks chilaxing cos ’tis the season. 
Bircher bowls from Posh Porridge for breakfast with my darling sister. 
Takeaway healthy salads from BearLion Foods for lunch at home with my annoying parents <3

Takeda Castle Ruins

Here’s a 21st century thing to say: I met my friend Kate through Instagram. I’m not sure who started following who first but we began talking, found out we both live in Japan (though 4 hours apart) and have common interests such as healthy eating and literature. After chatting through the internet for some time, we finally met yesterday, halfway, at Asago’s famous Takeda Castle ruins. Below are the pictorials. The pic of our soba lunch is Kate’s, I actually took it without her permission because my photo  of our lunch really sucked. Hopefully she doesn’t mind. I’m sure she won’t, she’s the sweetest (as well as most beautiful). Check out her Instagram HERE if you like. Also, we packed a healthy picnic. I made my famous date balls.

In the evening, I went to a BBQ. I prepared a simple salad of garden lettuce topped with diced kiwi-fruit, halved cherry tomatoes, chopped dried apricots and pumpkin seeds. I finished it with a little olive oil, juice of half a lemon, sea salt and ground pepper. Whenever I go to a BBQ or the like, this is what I do. Not this specific salad, but I make something healthy to take because if there isn’t anything healthy on offer (which there normally isn’t) then I can always eat my own food hehe.

Click HERE for more info on Takeda and HERE for more info on the restaurant.

This Is What Rural Japan Looks Like

Spring Quinoa Salad 
1 cup Quinoa cooked in 2 cups of water
bunch of asparagus, blanched in hot water for 10 seconds
punnet of green peas, blanched ” ” ” ” ” ”
punnet of snap peas, blanched  ” ” ” ” ” ”
1/2 cup cooked and shelled edamame beans
some red grapes, sliced
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup pistachios
bunch fresh parsley, torn small
bunch fresh mint torn small

Dressing:
juice of half a lemon
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper

Combine all salad ingredients together and gently mix.

Combine all dressing ingredients together in a small jar and shake shake shake then mix through salad.

Refrigerate.

Some People Come To Japan And Turn Japanese

and others retreat to their roots.Because, there’s only so much salt, sugar and seaweed a girl can take. Ah, I feel so ready to move on to my next chapter… though I know how important it is to enjoy the now and how dangerous it is to wait wait wait. Especially when we don’t know what could happen the very next second. So, I have booked my ticket to Spain! For which, as you can imagine, I am crazy excited. I wish it was sooner. And this wish is dangerous. So, I must try to be positive and to continue making the most of my current situation. Because there are a lot of things I (hate is a strong word but still) hate about my job and my place of residence. But, it’s not forever. It’s a learning experience. It HAS been an incredible learning experience and and this too shall pass. So I will continue to actively foster creativity in my everyday at the same time as eagerly awaiting my future adventures.

“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.”
-Viktor E. Frankl

Pictures: my number 1 love, which used to be a pancake but is now a Persian breakfast and my Persian-inspired bento which is actually a big contradiction because Lunch for Iranians is the biggest meal of the day. So, this tiny thing would definitely not be sufficient but alas the flavors are there. Recipe below.

1 cup brown jasmine rice
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 small pumpkin
1 punnet of cherry tomatoes
bunch of fresh parsley (chopped or torn)
1/2 cup raw walnut pieces
1/4 cup raisins
bunch of young radish (sliced thin)

Dressing:
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp water
1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp black pepper

Cook rice as per packet instructions but incorporate the turmeric in the cooking water.
Once done, let cool.

Chop pumpkin small then toss in a bowl with a tbsp of oil (I used olive) and a sprinkle of salt and pepper then bake in a toaster oven or oven oven on high (220C) turning every now and then and keeping a close eye on it for 20 or so minutes or until crispy and golden. Again, let cool.

Mix rice and pumpkin with remaining salad ingredients together.

To make the dressing, combine all ingredients in a small jar and do as T Swift and shake shake shake it IN TO the salad.

Refrigerate before nomnom for best results or  bon appétit if you just can’t wait!

Skinny Slaw

A year or so ago, I was in the best shape of my life. I started boxing with my good friend Wally and eating really well. Around that time, my father also happened to be on a diet though his “life-style change” was entirely forced by my mother. So, every morning when I made my “clean” lunch to take with me to college, I prepared dad’s as well. This slaw which I’ve named “Skinny Slaw” merely to grab your attention so you click the link but also because I actually believe in its powers, is what my father and I ate for 2 months straight and it worked, we lost weight. Which is why you should totally try it. But for the record, your ass looks great in those jeans anyway xx

Salad
1 packet of chopped cabbage or one cabbage, chopped.
1 large carrot, grated.
1 apple, diced
1/2 cup raw walnut pieces
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds

Dressing
juice of one lemon
zest of one lemon
1 tsp seeded mustard
1 tbsp olive oil

Place all salad ingredients in a large bowl.

Combine dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake like a Polaroid picture.

Add dressing to salad.

Mix.

Das it.

Keeps (refrigerated) for a week.

He’s stolen a pizza my heart

This weekend I had one of the best Saturday nights of my life. Thank you Lifa, Akiko and Oz for having me over and feeding me delicious home-made pizza. Aki, after your adorable son (click HERE to see the little man in action), for me, the highlight of the night was your “kiwi for a kiwi” salad. It left such an impression on me that I cannot wait to recreate it myself.



I should have really checked the salad recipe with Aki first, but alas, this is what I imagine it is:

Garden greens, diced kiwi-fruit, diced apple, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and raw walnut pieces mixed together and dressed with: a little olive oil, lemon juice, soy sauce and maple syrup.

I can’t rave enough about it.

I especially liked the delicateness of the salad. Both the kiwi-fruit and apple pieces were diced small so everything (seeds, nuts and fruit) were the same in proportion. It was just divine. ARI GA TO!

Vegan curried couscous salad

My adaptation from The Daring Gourmet food blog.

Told ya I was gonna spice things up this New Year (literally). So, without further adieu I introduce you curried couscous.

2 cups uncooked wholewheat couscous
2-3 small wild carrots, finely shredded (I used one orange, one white and one yellow)
3 spring onions, sliced small
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 cup canned chickpeas, rinsed
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup raw walnuts

Dressing:
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp water
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp black pepper

Cook couscous according to packet instructions then set aside – usually it’s just adding hot water, covering with a plate, waiting then fluffing with a fork.

Prepare dressing by whisking all dressing ingredients together until well combined.

Add carrots, spring onion, parsley, chickpeas, raisins and walnuts to cooked couscous and mix together with a wooden spoon.

To finish, add the  dressing, a little at a time, stirring to combine between additions. For best results, cover and refrigerate overnight so the flavours have time to meld.

Broccoli, pecan and raisin salad

Last night we celebrated the birthday of the three youngest boys in our village ;). Well, the neighboring village to my village which I have forcefully entered myself. As usual, much tasty food was had but for me, the star of the night was Aki-chan’s Broccoli salad. It was proof that something so simple has the potential to be so delicious. I do not have the exact recipe but this is what I imagine it is according to the details Aki gave.

One head of broccoli, steamed
Raw pecans, chopped
Raisins, as is
1 tbsp grape-seed oil
1 tsp soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Simply mix everything together.
Yum, vegan and nutritious!

Images (from top to bottom): broccoli salad, ginger chicken, okara banana cake and chocolate chickpea cake.

So you want to throw a dinner party?

I love throwing dinner parties. Lurve it. I think whatever problems you’re having can almost always be forgotten for an hour or two when you’re surrounded by good food, family and friends. Unless the family and friends ARE the problem in which case, abort mission!

Here are my top tips for hosting a dinner party:

Provide bread:
Two thing always worry me. One, and perhaps the most obvious worry, if my guests will like what i’m serving, if it will be tasty. And two, if there will be enough of it. Bread solves both problems. Everybody loves bread and not just any bread but artisan bread. For me, Olivier’s is it, it has become my good luck charm and if all goes to shit, I know my guests can fill up on it. As the great Mr. Saavedra once said, “all sorrows are less with bread”.

Make salad:
Oi! I heard that! “Salad shmalad”. Be quiet! It’s important. It’s needed and it’s not just for the dieters. It brings freshness and balance. Just do it, okay? No dinner table is complete without a BIG bowl of salad. Throw in some fresh fruit (the fancier the better: strawberry, watermelon, pineapple, peach, pomegranate) and some nuts and/or seeds, and voila! Your salad is officially pimped. Just make sure not to over do it.
Tip: dry roast your nuts and seeds in a pan or toaster oven for extra flavour.

Colour me in:
Apparently Ed Sheeran sings “cover me up, cuddle me in” but I’ve been singing “cover me up, colour me in” for the past year, or for however long he’s been singing it. My ex used to find it cute when I messed up the lyrics but now, it’s just pathetic. Anyways, colour is important – another reason to prepare salad. Put some thought into your menu so you don’t end up serving everything red, yellow or orange.
Note: this can be as simple as adding some greenry (parsley, basil etc) to the top of your soup or pasta.

Where is the sauce?
Remember Manu, from My Kitchen Rules’ catch phrase? Don’t serve dry food. Make sure your pasta, curry or stir-fry has enough sauce, that your salad is served with dressing, your bread with butter, your meat with gravy and your basmati rice with yoghurt.

Tonights recipes:
Salad:
Lettuce, diced roasted sweet potato, pomegranate seeds and dry roasted walnuts
dressed with: lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper

White bean dip:
in a food processor, blitz together: 1 can cannellini beans (drained and rinsed), 1 garlic clove, 1/4 cup olive oil, zest of one lemon,  juice of half a lemon, bunch of fresh parsley, salt and pepper.

Skewers:
Pretty self explanatory, you can use pretty much anything for these…various cheeses, meats, vegetables (artichokes, peppers, olives etc) and pastas, too (tortellini and gnocchi rubbed in pesto are excellent).

Pasta:
Fettuccine, sliced button mushrooms, spring onion, canned tomato and cream – das it.

 

 

How to pimp your rice paper rolls

Last night my friend Mina and I cooked for our other friend, Mr O, who by the way, is a magician. Anyways, we prepared an Asian meal of green curry and fresh spring rolls. Thankfully, O-san approved.

Fresh spring rolls, AKA the easiest and most exciting way of consuming raw vegetables have featured on iaccidentlyatethewholething before. However; today I wanted to teach you a perhaps obvious skill for pimping them via the amateur illustration below.

Basically, you roll 3/4 of the way then add your desired toppings in the form of a neat line to the last quarter, then close. Congrats! You’re officially pimping on level pro.

Toppings can include:

prawns
individual corn pieces
green peas

and if you’re feeling really creative:
loveheart and/or flower shaped carrots (done using a small cookie cutter)

Eee! Turns out I’m more Japanese than I thought! #kawaii #foodart