http://www.cerebralsoup.net/index.php en mjd-s@souzouzone.jp Copyright 2010 2010-04-14T06:25:40+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/pelicans http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/pelicans#When:06:33:47Z Testing PicPuller for Instagram! 2012-04-06T06:33:47+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/recipe_sweet_potato_fries http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/recipe_sweet_potato_fries#When:17:15:42Z Based on this recipe. Ingredients Sweet potato Olive oil Seasoning (salt, pepper) Method Peel the outer layer and slice up the sweet potato into either thinner fry lengths or thicker wedges. You can even leave the skin on if you want and just wash the outside - but make sure that you dry it very well. Place directly onto baking trays. Leave some space between the fries to help with cooking. Season with salt and pepper, and then lightly drizzle with olive oil. For thin style like the ones pictured bake at about 230℃ for roughly 30 minutes - these guys can get a little blackened though if you want the insides really soft. Food & Drink, 2011-03-11T17:15:42+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/black_white_and_extremely_lucky http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/black_white_and_extremely_lucky#When:21:50:04Z Just chatted to my stepmother and she told me what she and Maggie have just been through. After being dug out of her pen by a neighbouring dog, Maggie ended up being trapped in a tank until she was rescued by the CFS. She is now at home recovering. The article was penned by my stepmother Julie Dawson-Daniels and printed in the local Riverland paper. However since their web site has a ridiculous policy of forcing you to subscribe for free to read the articles (and effectively reducing the usefulness of the site) I have re-posted the story below. If you are interested to subscribe and read the story can be found at The River News. Black, white and extremely lucky By Julie Dawson-Daniels What is black, white and extremely lucky? That would be Maggie, the 10-year-old border collie rescued by Cadell CFS after being found trapped in a CIT irrigation tank. HOME SWEET HOME: Maggie relaxes at home after being lost for 12 days. She was found trapped in a CIT irrigation tank. Owner Julie Dawson Daniels reported the dog MJD-S Related, 2011-02-20T21:50:04+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/silken_tofu_chocolate_mousse http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/silken_tofu_chocolate_mousse#When:14:45:24Z Ingredients 300g silken tofu (Must be silken! Otherwise you'll get chocolately scrambled tofu instead.) 300g chocolate (Any kind will do depending on whether you want a milk mousse or darker.) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (This really does take the tofu taste edge off - you can substitute peppermint for choc-minty mousse, espresso for mocha mousse etc - go wild!) Method I like to hand whisk the tofu furiously to get it all airy and fluffy and smooth. Then you can melt chocolate in a double boiler (or even nuke it in a microwave) and add to the tofu. Whisk until completely blended and smooth. Pour/spoon into serving cups and chill. Usually sets pretty quickly. Garnish just like you would an ordinary mousse. Serving size - really if you stick to a 1:1 ration of tofu and chocolate you can make as few or many as you like. [Based on this recipe, via.] Food & Drink, 2011-02-14T14:45:24+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/ladder_in_the_round http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/ladder_in_the_round#When:20:43:26Z Japan, Photography, 2011-01-20T20:43:26+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/recipe_pumpkin_cauliflower_soup http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/recipe_pumpkin_cauliflower_soup#When:19:35:22Z Ingredients kabocha, a quarter, chopped cauliflower, head, chopped carrot, one, thinly sliced chicken or vegetable stock, approx 3 cups rice, one cup, uncooked smoked paprika, one teaspoon garllic, minced, 2-3 cloves salt & pepper to taste Method Boil the pumpkin and drain, remove the skin (you can of course peel the kabocha beforehand - I just find it easier this way. You don't want the skin on - it will discolour the soup). Put the chicken/vegetable stock in a pot, add the cauliflower. Simmer until cauliflower starts to soften, add in the pumpkin, carrot and rice. Add in the smoked paprika and garlic. Simmer until the rice is soft but not mush. Remove from the heat and blend. Add back to the pot to season and to warm. Serve warm. Tips If the soup is too thick, thin with more stock. Food & Drink, 2011-01-08T19:35:22+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/recipe_renkon_chips http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/recipe_renkon_chips#When:19:31:44Z Nelumbo nucifera - lotus root - known in Japan as renkon - is the edible rhizome of the lotus flower. It doesn't have a particularly strong taste, and is often prepared in vinegar or simmered with other veggies. It's a very pretty food and you can even stuff the holes. More commonly now it has become a snack - renkon chips are easy to prepare and can be eaten hot or cold. Like most chips they aren't healthy - but they are tasty! Here in Japan you usually buy renkon washed in packs. Ingredients renkon oil salt Method Wash the renkon and with a vegetable peeler peel the outside. Grab a mandoline - it's quicker than using a knife and you want uniform slices. Slice across the cross section of the renkon. Have enough oil in a pan to do some deep frying. It should be hot! If your oil is too coll to start with you'll just end up with soggy, greasy renkon slices. Add in slices of renkon to the oil, keep them in there until they turned brown - remove and drain. Sprinkle with salt and try not to eat too many as you are cooking them. Tips I like to use super-long chopsticks to cook these, although tongs would be fine. They can be a little bit spitty in the oil. I usually make these and then use the same oil to fry chicken or fish. They fry up pretty cleanly. Food & Drink, 2011-01-04T19:31:44+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/a_trip_to_a_shrine http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/a_trip_to_a_shrine#When:19:19:45Z We went to the most popular shrine in the area - Hachimangu Shrine in Hiratsuka [website - Japanese only]. There is a huge wait to go pray ad make money offerings - we didn't wait but walked around checking things out and eating taiyaki. A few days later when we came back to tie our fortunes to the ropes and boards we made an offering. We are pretty confident that the gods understand that toddlers have no patience - at least half white devil ones. Even if just visiting the first thing to do is wash your hands here. EM wasn't that keen as the water was pretty chilly. I chose this plaque because the Oni (devils) amused me. These came with the omikuji (fortunes) we got from the shrine. Mine is the gold one which means I should be loaded with cash this year! [Maneki Neko] People wait to make an offering. Elliot Mason checks out the big Tor. The queue stretches right around up the street outside the grounds. More queueing! Shrine attendants sell fortunes and keep things in order. A performing monkey entertained the kids. He was a pretty cranky monkey. I guess that shirt would make me cranky too. You fill in one eye of the daruma when you set your goal, and then the other eye in when you achieve it. After reading your fortune you tie it to the ropes here. Wishes are tied to the boards here. Japan, 2011-01-02T19:19:45+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/starting_off_the_year_on_the_right_stomach http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/starting_off_the_year_on_the_right_stomach#When:18:30:41Z Osechi-ryōri (お節料理) are dishes that are served in a special type of box called a jūbako (重箱) on New Year's Day. The idea is that all food is prepared on the last day of the year - and everyone enjoys a relaxing first day of the New Year. Since it needs to keep a lot of the dishes are pickled or cooked in vinegar and sugar. Some of my dishes had to be cooked before serving though - although some of the prep was done earlier. I definitely go for taste over tradition in my version - never will I make gobo tataki again! Also I made a layer mostly of things Elliot Mason likes - the Baikingman onigiri was a big hit! Mochi is a traditional food - and of course being the Year of the Bunny you can't miss an opportunity to cute-ify it! Osechi - Jubako #1 Full of tradition here! Kuromame (sweet black beans) are the one thing I didn't make from scratch - maybe next year. The carrots, shiitake mushrooms and snow peas were simmered in sake and soy sauce. Pickled myoga is not traditional - but it amuses me to add it in to help forget the last year (too much myoga is said to make you forgetful). It's the kind of puny punning that drives a lot of Japanese tradition. Also - might be hard to see - but the lay out is supposed to represent koi swimming through fallen sakura. The head is the bowl of kuromame and the myoga the tail, with the waved scales of the other dishes in between. Osechi - Jubako #2 Embracing the West here. To be honest not many osechi foods are all that mouth watering - so this layer is more about comforting food. Also I go against tradition in that I made some of these things on New Years Day before we ate - the prawns, renkon, tomatoes & camembert cheese I prepared just before serving. I also fried the chicken after the renkon - but this chicken actually takes 2 days to prepare. Prawns (ebi) are usually simmered in sake, but for the boys I grilled them in olive oil and then we ate them with a squeeze of lemon. Osechi - Jubako Layer #3 Various recipes to follow! Happy New Year! Food & Drink, 2011-01-01T18:30:41+00:00 http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/an_experiment_in_pie_crusts http://cerebralsoup.net/index.php/cerebralsoup/pages/an_experiment_in_pie_crusts#When:13:53:35Z Ingredients couscous lemon juice pumpkin, mashed egg, one, beaten Method First off - make some couscous according to the package or how you usually make it. I didn't add in butter - but I flavoured with lemon juice. Most couscous pie crusts end up being crumbles. To counter-act this I boiled pumpkin, mashed it and mixed it into the couscous. For extra sticking measure I also mixed in a beaten egg. Then I blind baked the crust for about 10 minutes, and let the crust cool before adding the quiche style pie and baking until the filling was firm and browned. Worked out well! The crust held together but wasn't tough. Tips A usual one serving of couscous makes a lot of crust! You can freeze - but it's easier to start off making a half or quarter portion of couscous and just enough pumpkin to mash and bind. This of course depends on the pie plates you want to fill. 2010-07-07T13:53:35+00:00