Book Review: Fun & Fancy Sushi

Eye candy alert!! This is one
of my favourite bedside table
books, packed with photos
that make you drool and
inspire you to make a
beautiful bento or party
platter. Fun & Fancy Sushi
by Seiko Ogawa & Ine Mizuno
is one of the best idea books
out there in my opinion.

This is not a vegetarian
cookbook, but there are plenty of vegetarian items and recipes, and many more that are easily veganizable. If you want to learn to cook proper sushi rice, form, fill or top some delicious rice triangles or onigiri, or roll some fabulous looking maki sushi, then this book is a must have.

I have the first edition (1999)
of this cookbook, but there is
a more recent edition as well
(2008). I am highlighting the
1999 edition, but they appear
to use most of the same photos.

There are few actual bento
photos in the book, but most
of the food obviously lends
itself to bento presentation.

I think the best part of this
cookbook is its copious array
of rice triangles & onigiri.
There are full colour photos
of every type, along with a
recipe for each.

For example, this page is
packed with mouth-
watering rice shapes, two-
third of which are vegan:
cowpeas, mushrooms,
shiso, chrysanthemum &
gingko nuts.

Or check out this page
with its barley & seaweed,
molasses & soybean flour,
or delicious kurumi-miso
topping, amazing when grilled.

There are just so many
ideas that I never would
have thought to pair with
onigiri, such as tea leaves
& peanuts, bracken, bamboo
& wild mushrooms, even
pumpkin, carrot & onion.






Rice is used a lot in Japan
for party food, in place of
sugary treats, just made to
look extra fancy & cute.
Rice ball cones! And the
tiny bite in the front almost
look like rice petit fours to me.
There are recipes for rice "cakes", wrapped onigiri party favours, rice & nori finger sandwiches, and of course inari-zushi. In addition to the recipes, there are blurbs about the traditions and customs surrounding the preparation and eating of these foods.

This it all looks too complicated? There are many extremely detailed photo directions, like this spread on how to make this party panda sushi:
There are directions for many of the seasonal sushi:
One of the things I really appreciate about this book is the attention to seasonal ingredients used in the different regions of Japan. Each district of the country has its own unique types of traditional onigiri, often using crops specific to that area.

From basics to ultra-fancy party food, this cookbook will help make your sushi impressive and delicious.

Imperial shuttle

Half way through making this bento I realized I shouldn't have! Ryan has not seen Return of the Jedi yet...I'm making him wait until he's closer to the age I was when I saw it...because I'm mean and evil that way, hahaha. Oh well...
Ryan's lunch: Tofurky sandwich w/ lettuce & soy cheese; carrots; cucumber wontons; green mini gel cup (you can pretend it's the forest moon of Endor if you'd like).

I was running short on time and went to get out the food markers to finish the details on the shuttle...and I couldn't find my set with the black marker in it! Did I throw them away?? Who knows. So maybe it looks stupid with blue, but whatever.

Hey, do you wanna lower my odds of winning a cool bento cookbook? Of course you do! Go visit Happy Little Bento by tomorrow and you too can comment for a chance to will a copy of Hawai'i's Bento Box Cookbook (second course), by Susan Yuen of Hawai'i's Bento Box Cookbook: Bentos and More for Kids.

cookbook challenge, week 5

More recipes this week from Tomato Blessings and Radish Teachings.

First up was Focaccia:
Olive Oil Bread with
Fresh Rosemary. The
recipe said it would also
be great as round loaves,
but in the future I think
I'd prefer it flat. It was
tasty though.


Next was a most intense concoction, Baked Beets with Dried Cranberries and Sun-Dried Tomatoes. Whoa! Strangely yummy, but no one else would touch it.

Finally, Macaroni Salad
with Tomatoes, Bell
Pepper, and Red Onion.
This was a good idea, but
rather bland. The capers
saved it. But I must admit
that after trying a few bites
I globbed on a bunch of my
own pesto, and then it was fantastic! LOL.

Only problem with my new camera-download-to-laptop situation is the lack of photo editing software. I'll have to try to remedy that soon, because dark pics and red eye are annoying!!

cookbook challenge, week 4

Procrastinating a bit here...only made 2 recipes from Tomato Blessings and Radish Teachings last week...

Potato Salad with Corn and Red Pepper

Really tasty, simple, and
most of the kids liked it.
My husband really enjoyed
it and even mentioned it
later, which is saying something!

I served this potato salad
along with some spicy baked
tofu and sauteed pea shoots
with garlic and white wine.

I'm sure I'll be making this
again. It seems to be a good
recipe to empty out the pantry
with!

Drunken Cabbage

A ludicrously simple recipe,
drowning in white wine. Even
cabbage has to taste decent
with wine and salt!

I paired this with a simple
but elegant bowl of mixed
rice with a bit of goma shio
seasoning.

After a month of the cookbook
challenge, I really feel like I
am getting a feel for the style of
food this author has to offer.
I chose it because it would be a
good fit during the bountiful
months of summer, utilizing our farm share food and forcing me to use my usual ingredients differently. I'm looking forward to another cookbook challenge in the fall. I think it's a great way to make use of lesser-used cookbooks and expand our family's everyday menu.

cookbook challenge, week 3

Moving right along...I made 3 more recipes from Tomato Blessings and Radish Teachings this week. But I didn't stay absolutely true to all of them. I cut back the heat on the chili, and it still ended up too spicy for the kids. And I used 1/2 regular flour in place of all whole wheat in the bread.

First up is the Black Bean Chili. Simple, hot, and my
husband and I liked it. If
it hadn't been too spicy, then
it wouldn't have made enough,
so in a way we got lucky. I
served it with grilled chreez
and tomato sandwiches.


Asparagus is hands down my
husband's favourite vegetable.
But everyone in the family
thought this Ginger Asparagus
recipe was fantastic. We usually
steam asparagus, sometimes
grilledor roast it, often stir-fry
it chinese style in a salty sauce...
but this was very simple, and
I absolutely will be making it
this way again!

I served the asparagus with
my baked bbq tempeh (recipe
being tweaked, but coming
soon!) and some Moo Potatoes
as AJ called them because Maia
liked them so much, but
basically just roasted red
potatoes with rosemary and
other herbs.

Last but not least, the
Overnight Wheat Bread.
I have never baked a
successful loaf of bread
myself from scratch. This
recipe looked so simple I
thought I couldn't screw it
up...and I was right! Yahoo!

It was a bit sour and wheaty,
even after replacing half the
whole wheat flour with
regular unbleached flour,
but Ryan and I still loved it.
My husband and Nate liked it
well enough. AJ ate it, but said
it wasn't his favourite.

The recipe made 2 loaves, so
I made one on a sheet pan
and one in a loaf pan.






The loaves didn't come out of
the oven until early afternoon,
but the first loaf was 2/3 gone
by evening. The second loaf I
am enjoying torn in chunks to
accompany a hearty soup.

cookbook challenge, week 2

So last week I started a personal cookbook challenge. During the past week I've made 3 more recipes from Tomato Blessings and Radish Teachings.

First was the Garbanzo
Bean Stew with Spinach
and Saffron. Not so good.
It was not stew-like at all,
but more like a soup made
with water. My soup-adoring
oldest son couldn't even
choke this down. I didn't mind
it, but I won't be making it
again. I could tell from the ingredients that this wasn't going to be a hit, but I didn't want to go changing a recipe I'd never made before. Ironically, AJ loved it, and Maia enjoyed it too.

As a side dish I made the
White Bean Salad with Olives
and Zucchini. The kids weren't
fans, except Maia who loved
it, but my husband and I
thought it was excellent. With
zucchini about to arrive en
masse any day, this is a good
one to remember.

I was skeptical about this Lentil
Soup with Cumin, Coriander and
Lemon. I'm so stuck in my ways
about lentil soup needing a leafy
green. I was very pleasantly
surprised. This was a really tasty
lentil soup. Everyone liked it.
Hooray!

Can't wait to try something new
again this week! What cookbook
are you using right now?

cookbook challenge

So a bunch of online friends of mine are doing the cookbook challenge where you vow to make at least one recipe per week from one of your lesser-used cookbooks. I've read Tomato Blessings and Radish Teachings, by Edward Espe Brown cover to cover, but made maybe one recipe. It's a great read, but now time to taste it! I vow to make one recipe per week through the end of the summer.

My first recipe is: Beet Salad with Watercress

I was feeding this to the kids too, so I opted to use some mixed greens from the farm instead of the watercress. Ryan especially loved the beets, which I was pleasantly surprised about, considering they're seasoned heavily with balsamic vinegar and allspice...

So what are you waiting
for??! You know you've
got a pile of cookbooks
just waiting to be used.
Join the challenge! What
new meal will you be
trying this week?

Book Review: Vegetarian Sushi Made Easy

Vegetarian Sushi Made Easy, by Hiroko Fukuhara & Yasuko Takahata

Have you always wanted to make more than just your basic maki sushi, but not anything TOO complicated? Are you looking for some more ingredients in your vegetarian sushi besides cucumber and avocado? Want to make some easy eye-catching sushi for your next party?
Time to check out this cookbook.

Vegetarian Sushi Made Easy
is packed with full color photos
of healthy sushi. There are
many simple styles of sushi to
choose from: finger sushi, sushi
rolls, tossed sushi, sushi balls,
sushi pockets & pressed sushi.

A great ingredient glossary
introduces an array of healthy
Japanese foods that can be
incorporated into your sushi.

If you're looking for a beautiful approach to vegan sushi, this is it. What a wonderful resource for veggie bento recipes! And if you want all the taste but don't have the time, a tossed sushi 'salad' is super quick. This book will inspire you to create gorgeous, healthy sushi no matter what your skill level.

Book Review: Bento Boxes

Bento Boxes: Japanese Meals on the Go, by Naomi Kijima

I got this cookbook for my
birthday. I was so excited.
Not sure how many vegan
recipes would be inside, I
kept my expectations low.

While every recipe has a full
color photo, I was more
impressed by the variety of
vegetable side dishes. Usually
when I look at bento photos I
am looking for "eye candy".
But while the photos are nice,
the simple recipes are even better. Plenty of vegan fare, and lots that is easily veganizable. I'd say 1/2-2/3 of the recipes in the book can be animal-free with simple substitutions or omissions. Pretty good for a Japanese cookbook printed in Japan. Even the English grammar and spelling are good!

The first section is heavy on meat and seafood. But later sections contain easy donburi, rice casserole, rice ball, fried rice & noodle recipes that often use tofu or can do just as well with the meat elements omitted. I chose to make substitutions in most cases such as tofu, tempeh, mushrooms, or soy meat analogs. I especially appreciated a few recipes designed for a rice cooker (my favourite kitchen gadget). The bento helpers section in the back of the book has over a dozen vegan ideas using various beans, seaweed, vegetables...even peanuts.

This cookbook is strictly about recipes. There is minimal introduction or other text, no bento making tips, no kyaraben (charcter bentos). What it contains is traditional Japanese bento fare.
There is a very brief blurb about measurement conversion in the beginning, and 3 simple soup recipes on the last page.

If you're vegan or vegetarian and not confident changing recipes a bit on your own, then this may not be the bento cookbook for you. But I am very pleased to add it to my collection.

Cookbook Review: Gourmet's Fresh

I think it's strange that the first cookbook I choose to review isn't even vegetarian! But during the local CSA and farmer's market season, I find myself using it all the time. Gourmet's Fresh: From the Farmer's Market to Your Kitchen Table was published almost 9 years ago, but I find I use it even more than our own CSA's recipe collection when it comes to finding recipes for unique local ingredients.
The recipes are organized in 4 segments, 1 for each season. Since I live in New England, even though it is technically summer, I am still using recipes mostly from the Spring section. There are wonderful (and easily vegan-izable) recipes for asparagus, peas & pea shoots, strawberries, rhubarb, radishes, young asian cabbages, mushrooms, spring herbs, and even one for purslane (commonly thought of as a weed that typical grows like crazy in between rows of vegetables).
Summer obviously concentrates heavily on tomato dishes, along with basil, zucchini, peppers, eggplant, green beans, corn, melons, cherries, peaches & plums.
Fall features the typical apples & squash, potatoes, cranberries, pears, nuts, & onions.
Winter includes heartier fare like soups & chowders, sweet potatoes and other root vegetables, conserves & cakes, & cool weather greens.
Each section ends with a good assortment of drinks and desserts, and there are menu suggestions for assembling multi-course meals.
Chances are your local state agriculture website has a comprehensive list of farmer's markets in your area. Here are the Massachusetts listings. And here is a list of CSAs and similar farms in the United States. Both farmer's markets and CSAs/food coops are great ways to reduce your carbon footprint and purchase locally grown foods.