Banana Bread Recipe with Choco Chips from Georgia

Banana Bread Recipe with Choco Chips from Georgia

My daughter and I have been making this banana bread recipe with chocolate chips for what feels like years now. It’s a recipe that was shared by my sister-in-law’s stepmom who either baked the bread for us as a gift, or perhaps she brought it to a potluck, or maybe it was featured in her dessert bar at her annual Christmas dinner. Wherever we first tried it, it made such an impression that we’ve been using this recipe as...

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My Moms Daikon Pickles

My Moms Daikon Pickles

To this day, I do not like the smell of daikon radish in my fridge, or my home, but regardless of this tiny “problem”, I still enjoy eating it. Perhaps its because it happens to be one of the traditional Japanese vegetables that regularly appeared in my mom’s dinner repertoire, including oden, a favorite winter stew where the daikon is simmered over a long period of time. Or more commonly, daikon appeared in sunomono style...

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Happy Girls Day! Hinamatsuri Party Ideas 2015

Happy Girls Day! Hinamatsuri Party Ideas 2015

  Happy Japanese Girls’ Day! Today, March 3rd, is Hinamatsuri, also known as Girls’ Day or Doll Festival. Since Bebe was born, this Japanese holiday is one that we celebrate annually in my family, and is something my daughter looks forward to each year. Many years in my childhood, my Mom would host Hinamatsuri parties for me and a handful of my friends, and now I in turn have the pleasure of doing the same for my...

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Mini Katsudon

Mini Katsudon

Mini katsudon is the epitome of a quick weeknight meal that will fool everyone into thinking you slaved over your stove for at least an hour or two. I like to let my family think I’ve slaved over a beautiful Japanese meal once in awhile, even though I really haven’t. But they’re starting to catch on. I guess you could say I’ve been having a hard time finding time to blog, writing for work, consulting for a new client, and...

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Shio Koji Salmon

Shio Koji Salmon

Here’s a super easy and quick shio koji recipe that’s great on a busy weeknight, and perhaps better than getting take-out. These days I’ve been so busy fully engrossed in our summer that I haven’t had much time for “fancy” cooking (or blogging – boo). Thankfully, shio koji seems “fancy” but it’s actually a super-easy short cut for “fanci-fying” any meal. If you missed my...

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Kyuri Su Shoyuzuke (Soy Sauce & Vinegar Pickled Cucumbers)

Kyuri Su Shoyuzuke (Soy Sauce & Vinegar Pickled Cucumbers)

  Su shoyuzuke Japanese style tsukemono, or pickles, marinated in a vinegar (su) and soy sauce (shoyuzuke) mixture is one of Bebe’s favorites. She wouldn’t complain if all she found on our dinner table were a huge bowl of these pickled cucumbers for a one-dish (unbalanced) meal. Whenever we visit my parents, my Mom is certain to make a batch of these delicious kyuri (cucumber) tsukemono a day ahead of our arrival, or on the morning...

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Korokke (Japanese Beef Croquette)

Korokke  (Japanese Beef Croquette)

  Every culture has it’s own version of a meat-and-potatoes meal, and the Japanese are no different. (Photo credit: Hideki Ueha) In Japanese cuisine, a meat-and-potatoes meal just might present itself in the form of a beautiful round croquette filled with a mixture of mashed potatoes, ground beef, and onions. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the most basic of Japanese-style croquette that you will find in most Japanese homes, and ours...

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My Moms Easy Soba Broth & Kakiage (Vegetable, Shrimp) Tempura Soba

My Moms Easy Soba Broth & Kakiage (Vegetable, Shrimp) Tempura Soba

It’s been one of those (two and a half) weeks for us at home. Two weeks ago Bebe was ill with bronchitis and last week, yours truly caught the dreaded illness from Bebe. It’s probably not the kind of blog post you want to continue to read when the opener includes “bronchitis”, but that’s just how real life is sometimes. I’m finally functional and regaining my energy but Bebe and I are both still coughing. Not...

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