Pumpkin Pudding Kit Kats

It took forever, but it is finally, really fall!  The weather is getting cool, the humidity is dropping, the first hints of changing leaves are starting to show up, and when it isn't raining the sky is turning that wonderful deep autumn blue. We've been sleeping with our windows open for the last couple weeks and really enjoying the fresh cool air.

It's been a while since I've posted any interesting kit kat flavors, I think there are less available in the summer (and I also hate every fruit flavor I've ever tried, so I've gotten lazy about buying those) but I recently came across some pumpkin pudding flavored kit kats in the grocery store. It seems like pumpkin spice is taking over everything back in the US, but it's different here. In the US it seems pumpkin spice actually means cinnamon and nutmeg flavor, and here they mean the real pumpkin, and actually they mean kabocha which is a squash shaped like a pumpkin with green skin and orange flesh.

The kabocha makes for a pretty terrifying looking jack-o-lantern on the packaging, made creepier by the pudding filling, which to me looks more like a lot of melted cheese. Ick. But the kit kats taste pretty good - the creamy flavors are always better than the fruit flavors. The pumpkin flavor isn't very discernible, it honestly tastes more like vanilla pudding, but I like them.

Omurice from Japanese Soul Cooking

On Friday night I tried another recipe from Japanese Soul Cooking. This one was for Omurice, an omelet filled with fried rice. I'd never eaten omurice before, so I needed more knowledgable reviewers, luckily Raku and Leo came to the rescue.

To make the fried rice you start out by frying carrots, onions, and chicken, and then simmering them in a sauce made of chicken broth and ketchup. This recipe called for half a cup of ketchup, and I have to admit I was a little grossed out when I measured it. Once it thickens you mix in the rice and peas. Then it's just a matter of making the omelets. The recipe itself was very simple and easy to follow and I didn't have to buy any unfamiliar ingredients.

So here are my thoughts. It was hard to get all the filling inside the omelet neatly! When I put 1/4 of the filling into an individual omelet it seemed impossible, and the results aren't that pretty. Additionally, the consensus seemed to be that there was too much rice to egg in the ratio. I wonder if a) American eggs are larger than Japanese eggs (probably, yes) b) a larger frying pan would have given me more surface area to fill with rice without making the egg too thin (again, probably yes.) If you're concerned about presentation than be aware that trying to do any cutesy decorations can take an ominous turn when your medium is ketchup. I tried to draw a stick figure girl on Raku's omelet, and it seriously looked like a murder victim. (Note: the recipe did not recommend ketchup art, it's just something I have seen before and wanted to try)

Raku and Leo were very kind and said they liked the omurice, but they might have just been being nice. Everyone did agree that the egg to rice ratio was off. John was conspicuously silent, but he doesn't like omurice. And I thought the filling was too sweet. I like ketchup on my eggs, but this was just too much. I think a little less ketchup and a little more salt (maybe garlic salt?) would be more to my liking.

Read about other JSC recipes:
Oyakodon/Gyudon/Shiso Pasta
Yakiudon
Mabo Dofu
Sapporo Soup Curry
Sesame Karaage
Tan Tan Men
Pork Gyoza
Ebi Chili
Japanese Soul Cooking Review

Showing off my new apron from Karuizawa  

That's a lot of ketchup!

Mixing in the rice

Overstuffed omelets

I'm no artist, but why do these look so evil?

Karuizawa a.k.a. Heaven

A couple of weekends ago John and I went to Karuizawa with Raku and Leo for a little weekend escape. Karuizawa is a small mountain town in Nagano prefecture, popular for escaping the Tokyo heat in summer and skiing in the winter. Only a little more than an hour away from Tokyo by bullet train, it feels like a completely different world. John and I were surprised by how much it reminded us of the town we grew up in, in North Carolina and Leo said the same about his New England hometown. I think we must all be starved for nature.

I had high hopes for the trip, and I was worried they were so high I would end up being disappointed, but instead they were far exceeded! Karuizawa is lush and green with fresh smelling mountain air, full of adorable shops and delicious restaurants.  Our first morning there it was so cold we could see our breath as we wandered up and down the main shopping street, and there were already a few leaves turning colors!

During the days we walked up and down Ginza Dori, the main shopping street, munching on snacks, stopping for hot drinks, and picking up souvenirs. Just past the end of Ginza Dori is the Shaw Memorial Church built in the 1800's by a missionary. From there we had planned to rent bikes and go to Shiraito Falls, but then we discovered it was nearly 20 kilometers away, so we changed our plans. Instead we went to Kumoba Lake which is a about a twenty minute walk from the main street, mostly down gravel roads. The lake is small, but there is beautiful foliage,  ducks swimming, and a pleasant path to stroll around. As a note, the path is much too narrow for bicycles. It was so refreshing to walk past giant trees and enjoy the stillness of the forest! 

There is also a huge outlet mall in Karuizawa right across from the train station, and about a 20 minute walk from Kyu-Karuizawa, the heart of the town. We found some surprisingly good deals there, bought some warmer clothes since the weather was so cool, and had the best soft-serve ice cream of our lives at the Godiva outlet.

In fact, all the food we ate that weekend was delicious too. Raku and I went up early on Friday with the luggage and John and Leo joined us after work, eating dinner on the train. On our first night Raku and I went to Kastanie Rotisserie, which is not far from the station and the outlets, and shared a ton of delicious food including a salad with mustard vinaigrette, roast chicken, and chocolate and apple tarts. For dinner on Saturday night we made reservations for dinner at the Mampei Hotel, the fanciest hotel in town where John Lennon and Yoko Ono used to stay. The meal was a splurge, but we had the multi-course set menu and enjoyed it immensely. The dining room is enormous with very high ceilings, and an old-school glamour that reminded me of summer camp for very rich adults (and maybe Dirty Dancing.)

In the mornings we stopped at Asanoya, a bakery on Ginza Dori for wonderful treats. I particularly recommend their bacon bread, but you probably can't go wrong no matter what you order. On Saturday we had lunch at Wakadori, a yakitori place just off of Ginza dori. Their yakitori don (grilled chicken on a bowl of rice) was fantastic, and their chicken katsudon (fried chicken cutlet on rice) was also good. For our final meal before leaving we ate at Kawakami-an, a modern soba restaurant. The tempura soba comes with the biggest shrimp I have ever seen (heads and tails still on!), the hot and cold soba were both delicious, and Leo ordered soba with a walnut dipping sauce that was unusual but delicious as well - sort of like a very mild peanut sauce. I would wholeheartedly recommend each of these restaurants to anyone visiting Karuizawa.

We stayed at the Art Hotel Folon in Kyu-Karuizawa, which was a convenient three minute walk from Ginza dori. By "art hotel" they seem to mean interesting wall paper and tiled kitchens, but we found the rooms to be clean and very acceptable, and the owner was quite friendly. Some rooms allow pets, and there are vending machines that dispense water, tea, and also alcohol! The rooms include kitchens (mini-fridge, microwave, stove, sink) but only coffee cups are provided, so if you intend to use them you would need to bring dishes. There is also a 5% discount for paying in cash. If you find yourself needing an ATM, there is a post office on Ginza Dori that is open even on Saturdays and Sundays.

The whole trip was magical, and I can't say enough good things about Karuizawa. If you need an escape from city living this is the perfect place for fresh air, lots of trees, beautiful mountains, good shopping, and delicious food!  Now brace yourself for way too many pictures.

Mountain Sunset

Shaw Memorial Church

Kumoba Lake

First Fall Leaves

Ginza Dori

Yummy Eats!

Ivan Ramen

It's been so long since I've blogged about anything! I can't believe how lazy I've been. Sometimes you just need a little break when life get to be too much of a routine. Luckily lots of exciting things are coming up. Next week John's brother will be here visiting, and right now I'm helping Raku book her long-delayed honeymoon!

Over the weekend we trekked out to the suburbs of Tokyo to visit Ivan Ramen, a ramen shop famous for being started by a foreigner. He achieved great success here, and has now moved to New York and opened a couple ramen shops there as well.  After doing our research we were prepared for a wildly popular place with a long line wrapping about the building, but when we arrived we were the only people there. To be fair, it was a little early - about 6:45 on a Saturday evening, but only two other people showed up while we ate, so there was no wait or rush to slurp up the hot noodles. I wonder if fewer people are interested now that Ivan isn't actually working in the shop?

I tried Shio ramen for the first time, which is a light salty broth composed of a mixture of chicken broth and dashi (a light fish broth). I think shio ramen is not my favorite style, but Raku assured me that it was a very good and very classical example of the dish. The noodles were wonderfully springing, but grew soggy faster than we were used to. Raku added bamboo shoots to her bowl and said they were "delicious and rugged." My soft boiled egg was absolutely perfect - the best part of the bowl. John got the spicy garlic ramen, which comes with a much smaller amount of broth, but he really enjoyed it. He thought the chashu (pork belly) was very good quality too.

It takes a really long time to get out there, about twenty minutes past Shinjuku, so I wouldn't go on a regular basis, but it was fun to go once. The shop is small, with about ten seats and it's in a little neighborhood that feels very removed from the bustle of Tokyo.

Ivan Ramen

Hours: M-F 11:30-2:00, 6:00-9:30, Weekends 11:30-8:00, Closed Wed and 4th Tues of the month

Phone: 03-7650-5540

Address: 3-24-7 Minamikarasuyama, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo

Map

The Neighborhood

Ivan Ramen - vending machine in Japanese and English!

Our chef hard at work

Just look at that egg. Yum!

Japanese Season Dates

Did you know that Japanese seasons have different dates than the ones North America recognizes? Mind. Blown. I've been talking about how early seasonal decorations come out here for almost two years, and now I finally know why. Because they're exactly on schedule. I just didn't know the schedule.

The weather is starting to cool off, the humidity is dropping a little, and the cicadas are being replaced by crickets. John and I were talking about seasons last night, and for some reason we decided to google whether Japan actual follows the same seasonal calendar we do. Thanks to wikipedia, we are now a lot wiser.

In Japan fall is August 9 - November 7, winter is November 8 - February 4, spring is February 5 - May 6, and summer is May 7 - August 8. I have to say the weather does not really match these dates, but it seems that they are based on an ancient lunar calendar that had 24 months.

No matter what season it technically is, I'm looking forward to cooler weather and a long beautiful autumn.

New Fall Tenugui

Fancy Nighttime Drinks

Tan Tan Men from Japanese Soul Cooking

I tried another recipe from Japanese Soul Cooking, and again it was a delicious success. The noodles were not the best, but the blame for that goes either to me or the manufacturer - the recipe itself is great.

Tan tan men is a Japanese take on a spicy Chinese noodle soup quite similar to ramen. The more recipes I try the fewer new ingredients there are for me buy and learn about. This time the only new ones were fresh ramen noodles (not exactly an unfamiliar product, but not something I've ever purchased before) and Japanese sesame paste. Japanese sesame paste or Neri Goma comes in black and white versions. I bought the white because the photo in the book didn't look like there was anything black in it, but I suspect either would be fine. I already had some tahini in the fridge and wondered how the two products would differ, so I gave them a quick taste test before I started cooking.  The neri goma is a lot thinner and liquidy, has a smoother consistency, and tastes a little sweeter. It could be drizzled from a spoon while the tahini was thicker and "gloopy" for lack of a better word. The tahini was grittier in my mouth and tasted a little bitter. If you can't find neri goma I think tahini would definitely work, but I'd thin it out by about 50% with water and add a pinch of sugar or honey.

The broth was really flavorful and so fragrant, John could barely wait to eat it. Luckily the whole recipe comes together in just a few minutes. The pork and green onions were perfect toppings, minimal but not lacking anything. The noodles however were kind of a disappointment. They were already cooked, I just needed to warm them up, but they had an oiliness to them that kept them from soaking up the yummy broth flavor, or really even from letting the soup cling to them as we slurped them up. Raku says this can be a problem with store bought noodles, but John inspected the packaging and says I bought yakisoba noodles. (Yakisoba is a stir-fried noodle dish made from ramen noodles) I argued that since it's made from ramen noodles these must be ramen noodles, but he was not at all convinced. Maybe the oil is a special thing for frying, or maybe there are other differences I just don't know about. I guess I'll have to try again and look for better noodles. Our final review was that the recipe is fantastic, but good noodles are essential.

I only made half the recipe, but there was some left over which I had for lunch the next day. When the broth cooled a layer of fat congealed on the top. I scraped this off and threw it away in an attempt to be more healthy. It still tasted really good, but most of the spiciness disappeared with the fat, so be aware if you try something similar.

Read about other JSC Recipes:
Oyakodon/Guydon/Shiso Pasta
Yakiudon
Mabo Dofu
Sapporo Soup Curry
Sesame Karaage
Omurice

Pork Gyoza

Ebi Chili

Japanese Soul Cooking Review

Ramen (yakisoba?) Noodles and Neri Goma

Delicious Tan Tan Men

How jealous are you right now?

Guess What?

Raku and I signed up to run a 5k! That might not sound super impressive to you, but this is coming from the girl whose favorite PE activity was sitting in the grass making clover necklaces when she was a kid. Raku is not as ridiculously un-athletic as me, but it will be her first race too! So look forward to pictures in November from the Tokyo Run for the Cure (xoxo Cindy).

In other fun news here is a picture of Raku sitting in the lap of a giant teddy bear.  Gotta love Costco.