JAPANESE SOUFFLE PANCAKES

Summer's almost here!

I can feel the anticipation in the air!

I've been madly testing Japanese Cheesecake recipes the last few weeks and tweaking my recipe for both Matcha and Londog Fog flavoured Japanese cheesecake.  During all this time I haven't actually tasted the Uncle Tetsu cheesecakes that have been selling like crazy (limit of one per customer!) because of the crazy 2 hour lineups.  

So because I lack patience for lining up for things voluntarily and because I have all the equipment and know-how lol--I decided to make my own.  

London Fog Japanese Cheesecake (infused with looseleaf Earl Grey Tea Leaves)


Matcha Japanese Cheesecake 

These cheeesecakes went over really well with my contractor and workers.  I'm currently still under construction over here!

Perhaps in a few more months we'll be done and I can do more posting of my recipes.  Let me know in the comments if you would like these different flavoured cheesecake recipes.  If you would just like to make the vanilla one, you can scroll down and look for it (or search my archives)

If you have all the equipment for these Japanese Souffle Pancakes, it's a breeze.   Okay I admit it's a little bit of an involved process just like any other Japanese dessert!  But if you persevere you will be rewarded with the fluffiest most delicate, delicious light and airy pancakes you've tasted.

I was shocked at how good they were.  Give it a go!

JAPANESE SOUFFLE PANCAKES

4 large eggs

3 tablespoons milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup cake flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

4 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 tablespoons neutral flavoured oil (I use grapeseed or avocado oil) or nonstick spray for the pan

To Serve:

whipping cream (canister or whipped heavy cream)

Powdered sugar

Fresh Berries

Maples Syrup

Special equipment: 6 ring molds (stainless steel); or you can make your own from cleaned out tuna cans and parchment paper (you can make parchment paper rings with strips of parchment); nonstick pan; nonstick spray

Makes 6 souffle pancakes

1. Preheat nonstick frying pan on low heat.  Ensure your pan is large enough to hold your 6 ring molds

2. Separate whites from yolks: Whites will go into electric mixing bowl. Yolks will go into another bowl

3. In the Yolks bowl: add milk, vanilla, cake flour & baking powder.  Whisk well to combine

4. In the electric mixing bowl, whip whites until frothy; gradually add in the 4 tablespoons of sugar.  Continue mixing at med-high speed (speed 8 on KitchenAid) for 6 minutes or until stiff peaks form

5.  Take 1/3 of the meringue and add it to the yolk mixture.  Combine well to lighten the batter.  Then pour the entire yolk mixture back into the whites and using a whisk, gently fold the batter until you do not see clumps of egg white.  Be gentle and don't try to deflate the meringue

6.  Using nonstick spray, spray the insides of the steel ring molds.  Spray the nonstick pan surface. Place the molds on the nonstick pan.  

7. Using a ladle or 1/4 cup measuring scoop, pour the batter into all 6 molds...equally dividing all the batter between the 6 ring molds

8.  Maintain a constant low to med-low temperature for the nonstick pan.  Cover with a lid if you can during the cooking process (mine covered the molds but had a big gap and didn't meet the edge of the pan but it was okay)

9.  Set your timer for 6-7 minutes.  Check the bottoms of one of the pancakes to see if it is turning golden brown.  If it is...good!  If not, turn up the heat a bit and keep an eye on it until the bottoms are set and golden brown.  I used rubber-tipped tongs to help hold/tilt the ring molds to check.  

10.  When you are ready to flip, use either rubberized tongs or heat-resistant gloves/oven mitts to help turn the molds over and upside down onto the pan to cook the other side.

11.  If the cakes don't fall down to rest on the pan to cook and are stuck at the top of your mold, you will need to carefully press them down until they reach the bottom of the pan (I used a special circular press to push them down)

12.  Continue to cook the other side of the pancake until it is golden brown.  Remove the molds (I used my rubberized tongs to remove the rings)

13. Serve with whipping cream, fresh berries, powdered sugar and maple syrup 

Makes 6 souffle pancakes

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Kishimoto Japanese Kitchen and Sushi Bar, Vancouver

Carrot butterflies atop my wasabi. Details are so important

You think all I do is eat out, eh? well, it certainly seems that way these last couple of days.  We had lunch, creme brulee and coffee in the Strathcona area and now we were back on The Drive for dinner. Our plan was to eat at La Mezcaleria.  Our friend tried to get reservations by phone but was told parties under 6 couldn't have reservations. When we arrived at 5:25pm at the restaurant, there was no lineup but the restaurant was full with 2 tables (of 4) receiving their bills and one table readying to leave and the hostess asked us how many people there were in our party and asked if we had a reservation.  Like what? how is this consistent? We are a party of 5 and you said we couldn't book a reservation on the phone and then when we arrived, you seemed to imply we could have gotten a reservation?  And then told us to wait not 15-30 minutes like normal restos but 90? That is so dumb.

Furthermore, she said we were 2nd on the list.  By the time I asked her to cross my name off the wait list of 2, the two tables were empty and one table was about to leave.  I repeated: is it still a 1 1/2 hour wait?  Yes she replied without scanning the room.  No smiles, no welcoming friendly attitude, not apologetic, mixed messages concerning the reservations policy and you're a HOSTESS! That was over the top. I don't care how great you're purported to be or how delicious your enticing hot stone bowls and their oozy melted Mexican cheese fondue are and how much I love your sister restaurant La Taqueria.  If you're going to give me such a friggin' confusing message about taking reservations then forget it. Not coming back.  Ever.  My old 'hood has gone all trendy and gentrified my a$$ out of there.   Such arbitrary snobbery is so short-sighted.  They obviously don't need my business.  Like when did this happen that we get such attitude from the service industry on the East side?  I get more respect as a customer on the Westside for gawdsake.  So on we walked.  Fortunately for us, our friend recommended Kishimoto a few blocks away.  It was his birthday and heck he should get whatever he wants for dinner.  We got there in time and only waited a few minutes for a table and all was well.  And the service here was welcoming and friendly...and the food rocked.

Salmon Oshisushi: a signature dish that you have to try first to gauge all other oshisushi.  This was very good.

We were lucky that our Japanese friend knew what to order.  He recommended the Salmon Oshisushi because it was the sushi chef's take on a famous dish and his version was purported to be very good.  Oshisushi is pressed sushi rice topped with seared fish and toppings.  The Salmon was topped with a mayonnaise based sauce and a jalapeno pepper.  It was indeed very delicious.  The flavours were at once smoky, creamy and spicy and the salmon rang through well.

Spicy Tuna Oishisushi

My Japanese friend told me that the chef was the same one who opened up the original Zipang on Main street but had moved on to this restaurant a while ago.  I knew that he had moved but didn't realize he was at Kishimoto.  Now that I saw his signature daikon votive lanterns on his sushi platters it all made sense.

Daikon pinwheel flower decorations on my plate. Everything is edible.

I decided to order a different oshisushi dish.  I tried the spicy tuna.  It was good; but I think the salmon was a better dish and I enjoyed it better.  I am glad I sampled the salmon before I had the tuna.

The pink liquid is Gatorade with shredded daikon.  

Upon presenting us the oshisushi, the waitress took the time to point out that all the elements on the platter were edible (except of course for the votive candle inside the thinly sliced daikon shade. haha.)

Presentation is everything here. 

My Spicy tuna oshisushi was good but I don't think I'd order it again having tried the salmon one. The spicy tuna was yummy and it sat atop crispy rice.  I think the pressed rice roll was deep fried for textural contrast.  So it was chewy and crunchy and smoky.  I didn't like the chewy element of the dish.  However I know many people who love the crunchy burnt rice from stone bowls and this would be similar.

Though the pink Gatorade looks pretty and is edible, I tried it. bleh. infused with a daikon flavour from the shredded fresh daikon.  I would have liked a sweet koolaid because that was what I was expecting from the colour. lol

The daikon lantern is so cute

The waitress was quite apologetic about the late arrival of our oshisushi orders.  She came back to tell us our dishes were coming up soon.  We hadn't actually asked but it was very nice to have her check up on this for us a few times.  As it was it wasn't too painful a wait and when the sushi platters arrived I saw why they took more time.  There was much time spent on the details of presentation. wow.  I was blown away by all the stuff going on up at the top and when I started to eat after all those aerial shots (yah, I wait to eat so I can take pics for you!) I realized I had not even noticed the things going on down on the bottom.  There were absolutely adorable thinly sliced carrots cut into the shape of butterflies.  I had two little mounds of wasabi on opposite corners of my platter and each had a butterfly perched atop it.  I felt so special.   The kids insisted on eating all the edamame beans from the daikon flowers and they even took my lotus chip.  This is what happens when you love your kids.  You give them all the frilly good stuff.

There are so many elements on the plate that I had to take it all in slowly. 

I ordered a negitoro roll too because for every new Japanese restaurant I try, I try to order a benchmark dish so I can compare/contrast quality.  For me, some of those Japanese dishes might include: assorted tempura,  spinach gomae, negitoro roll and a specialty roll of some sort. Stomach's benchmark staples are salmon and tuna nigiri and assorted sashimi and the kiddies order california rolls, chicken karaage and udon noodle soup. With our whole family we figure we have most bases covered.

Negitoro Roll

Wowee. That's height! Lotus chip and deep fried noodle flag speared atop my negitoro roll

Assorted tempura

When I contemplated the negitoro maki, oshisushi and oyster motoyaki I ordered and all the other's dishes I sampled, I'd say the salmon oshisushi was a hit but probably not my spicy tuna oshisushi. I'd go for the salmon one again.  And I generally don't order salmon sushi.  I don't even like raw salmon.  I always order tuna.  Go figure.  The tempura was a fave too.  The batter was light and the veggies were choice: specialty mushrooms (little oyster mushrooms maybe?), squash, prawns and yam were nicely fried, light and not greasy.  I enjoyed that very much. I hate it when some restos use peppers, onion or potato in tempura and so glad Kishimoto uses unique veggies in theirs.  Score. I'd order the negitoro maki again.

Oyster motoyaki

My oyster motoyaki comes with 2 oysters on the half shell for one order.  When I was trying to decide what to order I asked if Stomach would have one of the oysters.  In the process of dining, I forgot I had promised him one and had eaten both. oops.  They were smaller oysters and quite sweet.  The motoyaki sauce was similar to the one atop the salmon oshisushi and was a little spicy. I really enjoyed the motoyaki obviously.  Each oyster lay atop a bit of cooked spinach.  I'd order this one again.  I got grief from him later on about eating his but hey, he had two Asahi beers and his big ol' plate of chicken teriyaki on rice.  You snooze ya lose.

Chicken Teriyaki on Rice

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Basho Cafe & Sweets, Vancouver

Matcha Latte Afternoon Tea special ($5)

Upon entering Basho Cafe on East Hastings (my old teenage stomping grounds!) you are immediately taken aback by the fine details evident in the decor and the food.  By gosh, even the door handle at the front has a knitted warmer wrapped around it!

Hand knitted succulent cozy. Details, people!

Down to the handcrafted pottery and dishes, the reclaimed, handmade furniture, the retro trays, hand sewn coasters and placemats I am oh so impressed.  The family that runs this cafe is very much detail-oriented and passionate about what they do.

Matcha Latte

The cafe is extaordinarily tiny and some patrons pretty much squat there with an open laptop while sipping their matcha lattes and nibbling on their cookies a la Starbucks lounge.  I don't know.  I would feel awkward personally what with the huge lineups out the door to do that.  Sure, chatting and leisurely eating and drinking is apropros but alone with a laptop and all your work out? come on. You're not gonna study for hours nursing your $5 afternoon tea set are ya?  I would feel bad that the owners weren't getting enough turnover and would go out of business with you doing that, laptop-squatter.  Just sayin.

Matcha Latte & Sweets

I have already been here twice; this post consists of pics snagged on my Instagram account during a gal-pal get together and with my family.  I think this cafe is a good meet-me-for-tea-I-haven't-seen-you-in-a-while sort of place.  Because of the limited seating, large parties aren't really doable. This is a good two-person meeting venue.  Don't come here with your party of 8.  I've seen this.  It's not pretty and it's not a bubble tea joint.  My husband took off and went next door to the A&W next door because it was all too much girlie stuff.  lol.  It was too frou-frou for him here.  Not that guys can't like frou-frou. There were a few guys there eating meals.  It's just Stomach isn't into frou-frou and I was doing the frou-frou afternoon tea.  Let me know how many guys you have seen that can sit through the Secret Garden Tea Company High Tea in Kerrisdale without being highly cognizant of the fact that everyone else is female.  Bull in China Shop comes to mind.  Everything's too darned tiny, delicate and pretty for him I think.

Chocolate Chip Cookie

At Basho, you go to the counter and order your food.  Hopefully if you get there early enough, you get a table and the food is brought to you when it is ready.  This isn't Starbucks so things take a little bit more time. My matcha latte came perfectly adorned with microfoam art and accompanied by my assorted sweets.  If you purchase an afternoon tea set, you get mini sweets.  On my gal-pal visit, my afternoon matcha latte set sweets consisted of: 1/2 a madeleine, a mini brownie bite and a green tea almond cookie.

A pot of Green Tea accompanied by a green tea and almond cookie

Matcha Brownie

The sweets were very yummy and Japanese inspired.  Japanese fusion sweets I guess?  Some of the sweets were gluten free because of the use of Japanese mochiko flour.  There is also an intriguing menu of meals that I'd like to come back to try another day for lunch and dinner.

Sandwich cookie with matcha filling

So the old 'hood sure is gentrifying.  Though Penny's and On Lok are still across the street from Basho, I noticed the whole area simply looks different with the cafes and newer restaurants like the Red Wagon and Yolk's dotted around the area. This is good.  Foodie foot traffic is good.

Matcha latte art

I would totally recommend this little cafe.  I've had several girlfriends who have gone after my recommendation and loved it too.  The environment is eclectic and the food is delicious. If you love matcha lattes and Japanese inspired foods this is the place for you.  I'm a sucker for decor, environment and aesthetic.  Because of its popularity, you may be disappointed because of the long queue.  So long as you find a quiet time to visit you'll enjoy yourself.

Miso Madeleines

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

SANPACHI JAPANESE RESTAURANT, KITSILANO

I needed a drink today.  It’s been an intense start to my Grad Studies and I needed a good stiff…fruity drink.
I saw the Lychee Mojito on the drinks menu at Ramen Sanpachi and declared that it was the drink for me tonight.

The Lychee mojito had tons of fresh  mint and it was muddled well.  However, I would have liked some more lychee flavour.  Perhaps some lychee pieces!  I believe that it was lychee syrup that they used in this drink.

Regardless, after I got home, I promptly fell asleep.  It was a tough week.  All that cerebral stuff, reflection and hours of academic reading (and trying to remember all the new acronyms) put my brain cells into overdrive and they were screaming for a break.  Perhaps the drink was stronger than I thought.   Rating:  5/6

Because we were the 20th customer that evening, we were eligible for a 20% discount on the izakaya dishes.  So we ordered more than we typically would.  Without the discount, the dinner would have been more expensive than I would be comfortable with for what we got.  But, with discount I felt it was a good price for the meal.  Get there early and you may be one of the lucky 20!

Salmon and Tuna Nigiri.  Rating:  5/6

Gyoza.  I didn’t get any of this because my kids scarfed them down and didn’t offer me any.  I will assume it was very good; otherwise they would have let me have some.

Grilled Black Cod.  I thought the piece of fish on the small side.  It was 20% off though.  Hm.  You can’t screw up black cod and it was yummy.  Don’t think I would want to pay full price though.  Rating:  5/6

Chicken Karaage.  Tender crisply fried chunks of dark meat, served with a lemon wedge.  My girls inhaled this appetizer.   It’s safe to say this dish rated 6/6.  Yet again, nary a bite left for mama.

California Roll.  Rating:  5/6

Cha Shu Shoyu Ramen.  Rating:  5/6

Mine…all mine:  Unagi Dragon Roll.  Rating:  5.5/6

Oh.  My daughters...ages 8 and 4, like clean restaurant restrooms.  They went together and came back exclaiming how nice it was to have a clean washroom.  That's saying something, because they rarely ever tell me that a restroom is exceptionally clean.  I myself didn't see it, but I'll trust them.

The restaurant is kind of hip; in the izakaya style.  Lots of mixed drinks, beer and other alcoholic drinks are available.  I liked the menu options and particularly enjoyed the early bird discount for being one of the first 20 customers that day.

The sushi chefs do their work near the front of the restaurant and the bar is across from them.  The restaurant is long and narrow.  We sat near the back, where there were booths.  It was a casual, kind of relaxing atmosphere.  It wasn't particularly busy for the time of day.  We ate early, around 5:30pm on a Saturday.

Metered Parking is on the street and transit is nearby.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad