Homemade Ravioli

In my last post I mentioned that I made some ricotta cheese.  Once I knew how easy it was I started to wonder what other uses there might be for it.  Then I heard about a shortcut version of homemade ravioli, and knew I had to try it.  Instead of making the pasta dough you use pre-made wonton wrappers.  I was a little skeptical, but thought it was worth a try.  I mixed up some ricotta, parmesan, egg yolk, garlic, nutmeg, and fresh basil for the filling at got to work.

The first step it to outline a sheet with egg wash, and then place a spoonful of filling in the center.  I used the smallest size wrapper, so my spoonfuls were about 1 teaspoon.

Place a second sheet on top, gently squeezing out all the air, then fold the corners over.  The egg wash should make it stick but if you need to, dab a little more on to seal it tightly.

Keep the unused wrappers covered while you're working so they don't dry out.

Once you've made as many as you want, boil them for 1-2 minutes.  I did closer to three minutes, and one of mine exploded.

Drain them and top with sauce and more parmesan if you like.

We both thought they were good, though more delicate than regular ravioli.  The wonton skins are thinner so a fork will tear them pretty easily, and they have a tendency to stick together.  I was worried about that so I put a little oil in the cooking water but it wasn't enough.  You might trying spraying them lightly with cooking spray for a better result.

More Rice Cooker Baking

I've continued my experiments with baking in a rice cooker.  So far my results have been mixed, but I wanted to share a couple of successes.  The first was a tarte tatin where the apples caramelized very lightly.  The presentation was also really beautiful, and it tasted even better the next day.

Tarte Tatin

I also baked a loaf of rosemary bread!  So exciting!  Real yeast bread with a wonderful chewy texture made right in my own kitchen.  This one had to cook on each side, but luckily there were no disasters when it came time to flip it over.

It's just begging for butter, isn't it?

And speaking of cooking, I recently made my own ricotta cheese.  Imported food can be so expensive here, a small container is about $9.  I'll even admit that I splurged for some when I figured out how to make a stovetop lasagna.  But, $9 for ricotta just isn't sustainable.  Little did I know that it's unbelievably easy to make your own!  You basically scald some milk, add a little salt, dump some lemon juice in, let it curdle, and then strain it.  Awesome!  Homemade and a quarter of the cost.

It's so easy!

Coping With Summer Heat and Humidity in Japan

It's been so hot and humid lately!  I've put my weather app in celsius to teach myself the metric system and for the most part it's working, but some days I still have to convert it before I can decide what to wear.  For the past week it's been in the 90's, but the heat index got up to 115 on Saturday and Sunday.  I miss central air constantly, but I think that's actually only a small part of why the heat bothers me more here.  Not having a car, I spend a lot more time outdoors walking (and let me tell you, dragging home heavy bags of groceries when I'm dripping sweat is my new least favorite activity).  Trains are better, but especially when they're crowded it's hard to keep them cool, and though underground platforms are cooler, the outdoor ones can be pretty bad.  Coming from the south-eastern US I think I'm also just used to a much higher level of air conditioning.

Luckily, Japan actually has a lot of useful coping mechanisms for dealing with the heat and humidity.  My favorite discovery (thank you Raku) would be powder sheets, or shower sheets.  These are essentially wet wipes with rubbing alcohol and baby powder in them, that make you instantly feel clean, cool, and dry.  They come in a million different versions with different scents and additions like deodorant, antiperspirant, or menthol for a tingly cool feeling.   There is nothing so refreshing when you've walked a long way and feel gross but want to look and feel presentable.  My favorite are the soap scented Biore powder sheets in the pink package.

Besides powder sheets a lot of people carry a small sweat towel, essentially a wash cloth, around with them to mop up all the sweat.  I'm not as big a fan of this method, though they're also useful for drying your hands in public restrooms.  It might seem strange, but there are many cute sweat towels and I frequently see women using them.

I got a free one with some cranberry juice

Lots of women here use parasols.  At first I thought they were just trying to keep their skin as pale as possible (and that's probably still a big part of their motivation), but wouldn't you rather walk around in your personal spot of shade rather than in scorching direct sunlight?  Look for the cloth umbrellas that mention UV protection (and don't make the mistake of using them in the rain - unless yours does double duty).

Even just having a fan can be a huge help.  They're so small and light it's no problem to slip one in a purse.

This was a gift from Ellie's exchange student

But if you don't carry a purse, or you happen to forget your fan, don't worry - lots of businesses hand out plastic fans as advertisements.

Humidity can also be a major problem.  Since we only run the air conditioning when we're in a specific room the humidity levels soar in the apartment when we're out.  John noticed that his shirts were starting to smell a little musty, so I started looking for a solution.  Turns out, you can buy little sheets of desiccant packets meant for closets, drawers, and even to put under futon mattresses.  I got these at a 100 yen store.

Besides fighting dampness in our drawers I've been waging a war with mildew growing around the sink and bathtub drains from the higher temperatures and humidity indoors.  Sadly the only solution for that seems to be more scrubbing. 

Japanese Facebook Advertisements

One of the things about being in Japan is that the internet assumes I read/speak Japanese.  I completely understand why, and I'm not complaining.  It's just funny to watch a youtube video preceded by an advertisement that I can't understand, or to have Japanese ads show up in my facebook news feed.  With all the news about how much tracking and individualized marketing there is on the internet it makes me smile that at least some of them haven't even figured out in which language to target me.  Sometimes the ads are really weird, and I can really only guess what they're selling, so I've taken some screen shots of the funniest ones to share with you.

I'm pretty sure this is for a drink that has placenta in it.  Yuck!

I have no idea what this is about, but it sure looks creepy.

I like to imagine that 96.4% of witches endorse whatever this is selling.

No idea.  Is the cat begging for her food?  Why does she have so much green tea?  Why are a book and some unidentified object floating behind her?  And what is that disembodied face saying?

I can actually read this enough to tell you that it's advertising laser hair removal...in intimate areas.

Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt

UPDATE: I've just discovered that Golden Spoon has closed, which is super disappointing. Frozen yogurt just can't seem to make it in Tokyo. Try Party Land Frozen Yogurt or Red Mango

Back in March I wrote about Partyland Frozen Yogurt.  When John and I were here a few summers ago we had found a frozen yogurt place called Golden Spoon near Tokyo Midtown, but alas it closed. Just last week Raku and I were in the Marunouchi area when we stumbled across another Golden Spoon!  So exciting!

Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt

It's just a little spot in the basement of the Oazo building across from Tokyo Station.  There isn't anywhere to sit, which is sort of a drawback.  But Raku and I were perfectly happy to walk around eating our delicious frozen yogurt.

Golden Spoon is a different style than Partyland, it's not self-serve, more in the style of a Pink Berry or Red Mango.  A regular size of one or two flavors is 400 yen, and toppings are 50 yen each.  They had Tart, Vanilla, and Chocolate, plus seasonal flavors of Blueberry, Raspberry, and Pineapple.

Pineapple and Chocolate with Cookies

We were really impressed with the quality.  All of the flavors were really enjoyable, and I would say the frozen yogurt itself was much better quality than Partyland.  It was really creamy - not icy at all, and the perfect frozen texture, not too soft and melty.

Tart with Sprinkles

Be advised however, that while they offer both wafer cones and waffle cones they will only put toppings on the waffle cones.  Apparently they might be too messy on the wafer cones.

Tiny Case of Beer

Back in North Carolina it was pretty normal for us to buy a case of beer and just have it sitting around in the fridge.  Not so much in Japan.  Beer is almost exclusively sold individually, and on the rare occasions that I do see a case it's only ever a six pack (and roughly $2 per beer).  Can you imagine buying a 24-pack for $48?  Me neither.

Yesterday John and I found this hilarious little case of beer which was unusual both because it was a case and because it was Budweiser - which we don't see much of.  We bought it for novelty's sake.

It's so tiny!

What?  You were expecting 4?

The 4th was a coozie!

Happy August

It's been a great start to the month!  Yesterday my sister bought a plane ticket to come visit at the end of August.  I'm so excited to see her and show her all the fun around here.  Look forward to some guest blogs from here while she's here.

In the mean time, here are a few pictures I've taken in the last couple of weeks:

Naive Lady Brand Toilet Paper

Weird Burger King Advertisement

Just a couple of bunnies at work

Thunderstorm Rolling In