Am I addicted to garlic????

I know I always love garlic ! Recently, my garlic intake's getting increased. I need to have 2(large) cloves of garlic at least for my dinner. I love garlic in any form. Roasted garlic is really sweet and makes nice risotto or soup also pasta sauce. Thinly sliced and fried really slowly to make them really crunchy, oh, it's yummy as rice topping, or stir(steam) fry dishes as garnish with coriander. But classic use of garlic for me is raw and grated. I remember when I was a child, I used to love grated garlic with my sashimi dipped in soy sauce. To finish the dish, I put soy and grated garlic mix on to my hot sticky (Japanese) rice. That was divine. I'm not sure If it's becoming a part of my "back-to-the-source", I have now really started missing it. I grate garlic and mix into my raw pasta sauce, make garlicky vegan pesto for my salads, garnish for risotto, baked sweet potato etc....I just can't get enough of it. Anyhow, raw grated garlic is good for you. Yes, I did my little research☺This is what I found out:

Garlic is anti-oxidants, anti-fungus and anti-bacterial, decrease blood vassal stiffness, and reduce blood pressure! (My mum need to eat lots of it!!!!), and helps to reduce the overall risk of coronary diseases. When garlic is chopped or grated(crushed), it produces allicin which is major component of garlic. Cooking garlic is apparently as not good as when eaten raw(grated, finely chopped or crushed). O.k, it's not as nutrient as raw but taste good. I use both! Because I'm greedy!☺I love my food to have different texture and taste. Anything in moderation, as long as I don't overdose(easily done), garlic is good for my health. Therefore, being addicted to garlic isn't such a bad thing, in this world, we get addicted to all sorts of things. Marilyn told me Anna-Marie was addicted to chili one point. Oh, chili....it's very addictive. Again, in moderation, it's good for you too. Chili burns calories, possibly prevent ulcers, helps to fight cancer and headaches, relieve pain and has capacity to prevent food-borne bacterial disease. Also, stops feeling sluggish digestion and constipation, and many more advantages including chili into every day diet. When I was a school girl, my mum used to tell me to eat some chill to have beautiful smooth skin like Korean ladies and some Chinese people(mainly Cantonese? who take lots of chili in their diet), maybe because of that, I still have nice skin for my age?????❀❀❀ Well, the most important thing is: whatever works for me(and you). I'm quite happy having garlic breath at moment. Just need to be careful not having hangovers from eating too much garlic!!!!

Azuki bean terrine with roasted kabocha and enoki mushroom

Since I made pumpkin tofu, I've been experimenting a bit. My soya tofu was good, and yummy. So, I thought if I could make azuki bean tofu.... I soaked some haricot beans and azuki beans to make tofu. The following evening, I blitzed with some spring water made milk. I brought up to the boil, tuned it down, added nigari mix. I stirred and stirred and waited , waited for about half hour... then realised it didn't coagulate. Gutted. I soaked some more beans, tried again. But this time, I made terrine using vegan gelling agent. And it wasn't too bad. Very suttle taste, I didn't make it spicy or anything. I was quite pleased how it turned up. After adding gelling agent, I kept mixing very slowly till thickens, this takes about 30mins or so out side fridge. This is how I used to make Panacotta without vanilla beans dropping to the bottom of mould. Every 5-10mins, slowly mix with whisk , then pour into moulds and chill till ready. This is what I cooked on the Sunday for our dinner.

On Saturday evening, I made azuki bean and vegetable burger with steam-fried leek and baked sweet potato. I made azuki bean burger from cooked "okara" from my attempt on azuki tofu on previous night. I didn't want to chuck the okara, so I cooked it. I roasted the burger very slow in the oven. Yes, I made a bit spicy with spices and chili. In Japan, we eat lots of azuki beans. I used to hate azuki rice. But I liked them in sweets. Japanese make their traditional puddings/sweets using azuki beans, quite filling too. I think I'm getting old. I now love the beans.....Just like my granny! She used to love them!

Orange thing on the top is hummus with harrisa. Sprinkled roasted seedies too.  Mmmmm, yum yum. It's going to be porcini mushrooms and chestnut (in my cupboard)something this weekend for our dinner!

Spelt and hemp bread with 3seeds

I had this sentence in my head the rest of weekend and  on Monday all day, all I could hear in my head was : " I had the leek and potato soup and nice bread dipped in it, that was what I had last night for my dinner". That was said by Marilyn on the Sunday. I think I was imagining how she was dipping the bread into the hot soup, just came off the stove into the soup bowl. And it looked really delicious in my head. So, I baked a spelt and hemp bread, made some butternut squash and canellini bean soup with vegan pesto. Can you guess how I had my soup? Yes, I dipped them right in it! ☺Oh, I felt happy and satisfied, sounds a bit like drama queen, but that's how I feel when I have something in my head and can't get it out. But it's not cravings. I know too well what cravings feel like. Well, at least how I was feeling wasn't harmful to myself. ✿ Anyway, I had a bag of spelt flour and some hemp flour left in my cupboard, also, I had some dried yeast in my fridge. I usually make my spelt bread with half white strong flour, but this time I used all spelt and add some hemp flour, add some seeds(sesame, poppy seeds, and kia seeds). I proved it really slowly, oiled the top with extra virgin olive oil, cling filmed it. When done, I shaped it, placed on non-stick baking sheet with some flour. Again, topped with more E.V olive oil, proved it till ready. (it's dense bread, doesn't raise like a white bread.) Then baked at 220 degree for 30 mins or so, when tapped, hear hollow noise, that's ready.  Here's my spelt bread.

And this is sliced, ready for dipping!

And my soup!

I wasn't feeling board but I felt I needed some sweets, so while the bread was being proved, I baked "Anzac biscuits" with no sugar, golden syrup, no oats, and vegan. Instead I used gluten free muesli, coconut butter and honey. I baked them till brown. Now they are still in my kitchen, still crispy and ideal with my mug of tea! At moment, I'm into Tulsi Green tea. Taste far far different from Japanese ones. Oh, I do love my green teas♥ Ah! I just remembered, I got a Japanese sweets book, I might try to make some soon.....But first, I need to get myself a electric scale...............

By the way, this is the biscuits. look very similar to last ones I made. But this one's much better! It's crunchy and coconutty!!! loooooove them❀❀❀

sunday lunch

Cor, blimey! It's November already. I don't wanna hear anymore "soon be Christmas!" Fxxk Christmas ( sorry, if you like christmas), I'm working cooking massive turkey for the residents just like last year. It's fun in some way, and just being nice being with some old folks there. I don't do very much anyway. And, I don't mind really, pay is good. Since I don't eat meats anymore, I don't have any interests to cook them. My meat eating days are over. I had enough. I'm not complaining, but everywhere I go, menu is shit (for veggie option, and here in Suffolk not many nice veggie cafe or take away shops! ☹), and quite often I say to myself " I can do better than this!" One of my colleague, Denice the gardener ( I hear she's very good home cook/ house wife) agreed with me too. That's why when I get invited nice veggie lunch etc, I get excited! on Sunday(6th/Nov), me and Marcus went to see Marilyn (have I got it right??). It was lovely to see her! And I met Marcus sister, "Anna-Marie" (is it right spelling???). She was lovely. We had really chilled out afternoon in front of fire. Marilyn's cat was enjoying herself by the fire too. Here in England, it's already really dark 4-5pm. anyway, here's our lovely veggie lunch♥

Lovely home made leek and potato soup from Anna-Marie's garden with watercress and soya yogurt.

some salady things on the table. they were all yummy. She made carrot in ginger juice. Purple haze and orange carrot, lovely colours. Again, purple haze were from Anna-Marie's garden. I love the simplicity of foods like this, no need to add anything on fab quality of ingredients. Sometimes I see in cafes/restaurants here (locally), they make foods too complicate. That's how I feel anyway.As usual, I ate quite a bit. When Marilyn asked us If we were hungry or not, I really wanted to say "yes" straight away. But I didn't. I didn't want her to think I was a greedy cow (excuse for my language☺)........ I'm always hungry!!!!! And I can eat anytime good foods and cakes!!!! Then that evening, we were hungry again, so I cooked "Quinoa and bean burger and tofu sausages with "sweet potato and chill puree". it was sweet and spicy. I made sweet potato and chili puree by cooking in water first ( I usually bake them but there were no baking tin in Marcus's house so, I cooked in water), then blitz with good harrisa and extra grated garlic and extra virgin olive oil. When sweet potato are cooked, it's quite watery anyway, no need to add anything runny. For quinoa burger, I chopped garlic, very lightly blanched fresh broad beans, cooked quinoa, blanched spinach, then,  i kind of blitzed it half way, add chopped butternut squash and broad beans (they both raw), some herbs, seasoning. Made shape. If I had dehydrator, I would defo put them in the machine for some time, but I don't. So, We ate them how they were. (I would bake slowly @ 100 degree for 1 hour or so, turning once to make outside crispy)

 Basically, our dinner was my left over vegetables in my fridge and Anna-Marie's fresh products. Not bad result!!!

I don't eat tofu sausages all the time. I do eat something else. Just when I take photos what I cook, it tends to have them on our dinner menu! Well, I will cook something else next time!

home made tofu

Last week I made pumpkin seeds "tofu". Following day, I soaked some soya beans for a day, I made a tofu. I didn't think I put enough nigari mix to my tofu, it was soft. I love soft tofu too. so I'm not complaining. When I just made tofu, I could taste nigari. I didn't add too much. So, I soaked it for over night. I had my tofu following evening with Miso dressing Japanesey style. Oh, reminded me of home. Felt a bit melancholy.... So, it says all. Home made tofu is nicer that shop bought and easy to make. I also cooked all okara and had them in my salad for 3days dinner and lunch. Cor blimey, I farted a lot☹. I told Sam and Rachel on Tuesday evening (at the core training). They didn't think much though. Because of how soya bean processed and everything, they don't eat soya and soya products full stop (apart from tempei.) Sam asked me If I made tempei yet, well, that's my next mission anyway. But I would like to explore more about tofu making(not with soya beans, but other nuts and seeds or even mix!). And I think I know what to make with okara next time. I got an idea! Make something different and interesting so that I don't get bord eating the same shit. (well, good shit☺) Anyway, this is my soya tofu♥♥♥.

Not bad, don't you think??? 

This is cooked okara. Ready for another use. Making foods from scratch is always fun. Like jam making, chutney making, mustard making...etc, I can make them  how I like. I do miss making them, but I don't eat them anymore, so can't be bothered. Today I went to see my tattooist, he is strictly and politically vegan . and he told me some good vegan pie cooking book would be out soon, and he was very excited. Arr, bless. I think time for cuppa and biscuits......

three seeds biscuits

 Just finished my 11days stretch. And I enjoyed my days off. Last week, my best mate Tony came back from Brighton(he moved there for 3 months) for a few days till he was off to Morocco. It was lovely to see him, I hadn't seen him since he went down in Brighton. We had lovely cups of coffee. This week, I had 3 days off. I did meet up with my friends, had good chat about life...as we do, and gossipping......a little☺. We are sooooo nosy, I wanna know what some people are up to. My "nosiness" isn't as bad as one of domestics at work. She's really nosy, and she knows it. She wants to know everything going on there and when she asks me who's car it is parked up outside for example, I always tell her, if she doesn't know, how come I know???? She's really funny though.  anyway, that day my friend Emma came round mine and had light lunch and chat, I was reminded following day, I was supposed to be at work for some refresher course. I completely forgot about it. But it turned up to be far better day than sitting in the conservatory room at work listening to boring lecture(I always fall asleep anyway). I had very productive day that day. 10 out of 10 for week days off(weekend off are always fantastic)☺. What happen to the course??? Apparently my boss is arranging 1 to 1 session...oh dear...with her!!! Damn it☹!!!! Anyway, these were one of few things I did during my days off.  I had sudden urge to eat some savory cookies. So I baked "3 seeds buckwheat cookies". I gave Emma with our little lunch, and she liked them too. 

We had them with cannellini bean paste I made for our lunch. I made "quinoa and cashew burger with salad and bean paste" I made 6 small burgers and slowly baked them in the oven. Crunchy outside, and moist inside. Yum Yum. I've been having it at work for my lunch(leftovers) too. Also I made oaty buckwheat honey cookies too. They didn't get crunchy due to fat I used. Butter usually make those cookies crunchy, I think taste nicer than butter though. 

3seeds biscuits, here's recipe if u wanna try. 

50g fat ( I used organic sunflower merg)

40g buckwheat flour

40g gluten free flour

20g oatmeal

20g linseeds

20g kia seeds(not sure how to spell, sorry...)

20g sesame seeds

mix all together, add milk(I used hemp milk I had in my fridge) to bine, make a dough. Roll out very carefully(very crumbly). then cut out, put them on baking tray. bake for 15mins or so. Let cool on the tray for 5mins before moving them to cooling rack.

they are nice with vegan yeast extract, pumpkin butter etc. I love them with hummus or bean paste.