musique en francais

Clementine, it's very popular in japan. and Marina, I happened to find this. her directer was concern to one of my favorite band. What a coincidence! Nice music now. It goes together with breath of spring.

risoni

Tonight dinner is risoni. it's a pasta shaped like risotto. I like to using this pasta sometimes with soup. broccoli(stem too), carrot, and pork in it. simmer it for about 30 minutes till soft.
and the wine was a white Anjou wine, Jean Christophe Garnier. nice acidity and smell little honey. Somehow, I wanna eat goat cheese.

levain

levain means wild yeast to bake bread in French. I've bought those breads in my favorite boulangerie, "levain". It's located in Tomigaya in Tokyo. near Yoyogi-kouen st on Chiyoda subway line. The bigger bread is "pain de campagne". and the other bread is pain aux noix et cerise, including many nuts and cherries inside. Basically, the bread made with levain has a slightly sour taste. I love the bread like this!

a stir-fry

I've tried a stir-fry tonight. the ingredients were sprout, chinese cabbage, carrot, shiitake mushroom, squash and pork. I used garlic, ginger, Chinese hot sauce, nam pla(the fish sauce in Thai), mirin, salt and pepper. mirin is a Japanese seasoning made of sake. mirin is used for adding sweetness. I added starch with water to add thickness. and I've served it over rice tonight.

a boiled salad

I've made a boiled salad tonight. just used the leftover of celery, Chinese cabbage, and sprout. the dressing was just olive oil and white vinegar. I think there is better dressing for this salad. anyone can recommend some dressing? The pasta was a bolognese by the way.

molise rosso

a 2003 wine in molise province in Italy. It's made in a winery, "Tenute di giulio". very inexpensive wine. Usually, I buy a french wine in my favorite wine shop, because he is familiar with the wines in loire, alsace, bourgogne and languedoc. but rarely, there are some Italian wines. Of course I like Italian wines too. This wine was nice to drink daily. the fist impression was much fruits like fig, little herb, and a burned barrel. and after flavor was strawberry jam. It's a nice wine.

fukaya negi

Our neighbor brought some fukaya negi. Negi is a kinda welsh onion in Japan. but fukaya negi(shimonita also) is more like poireau onion. it's thicker than usual and the white stem is sweeter too. This time, I've cooked a gratin with them. I also used green stem with crispy bacon and cream. I used it as a sauce, and put sliced smoked cheese on the top. the rest is to just put it in the oven.
I also make a soup with beans and sausage with some leftover vegetables. much ingredients in it, less soup.

tonight dinner

Tonight pasta was fresh tomato and sausage. I added anchovy, caper, green olive, and the leaves of turnips. The soup was potato and turnip milk soup. it's a warming soup in a cold day.

chai

Chai, a spicy milk tea. since this winter, I make it sometimes. I've bought some spices for cooking curry and there are left some yet. I use cardamom, clove, and cinnamon. a little whole black pepper is fine sometimes. I use inexpensive tea leaves. This time was like Ceylon uva. Kenya is also fine, I think. and much milk than water. If you like drink smoothly, add milk as much as, or little less than water.
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sounds!

I've bought 2 CD yesterday. The left CD is The Chris Stamey, and the other is Nicola Kramer. I don't know both. Why did I buy it? well, Chris Stamey is a music producer and he's made some CD of Yo la tengo(that's one of my favorites) before and this album, That Yo la tengo joined with Chris. Just a gamble, but somehow, I smelt it could be a good album, and it didn't let me down at all. that's just as I expected!
and about Nicola Kramer, I didn't know it either. but I've grabbed it as I've listen some sample. Her voice is cool, breezy. something like soulful, but she is a white singer. I thought those fabulous songs I know were sung by black singers. but this is not at least. I caught an old familiar scent of something, old music? but it's not. might be, she knows and like some sounds that I like. a good album!

wine tasting party in January.

We've tasted Gerard Schueller's wine. All were fabulous wines. One of them was a little closed though. We've completely enjoyed the tasting.

a vine mousseux, pino gri. taste dry, but the smell was wonderful. honey and a little nutty.




the Riesling wine that couldn't be allowed to name a AOC. I don't believe that at all. it's not usual Riesling I've known. I can't believe why this fabulous wine wasn't allowed a AOC.


2003, Gewurztraminer Cubée particuliérre. wonderful. it's almost like a perfume. smell flowery.




This wine was unfortunately completely closed. I've been told it was a cause of reduction or something. I caught a burning smell at first, but not bouchonné that I've been told before. That's sorry. we've tasted it after hours and it's little better. I think it's better tomorrow.

superb! That's more like it!! That's what I was waiting for tonight. I liked this particular wine!

It's the first time to eat out in 2007.

I've forgotten to take some pictures of all. I've enjoyed the fabulous dinner. The wine was also nice!　This pasta was a ragu of calamary, a sea food meat sauce.

a pasta with Japanese ingredients part2

I used salted salmon, Japanese onion(naga-negi) shaped like Welsh onion, Shimeji mushroom. the pasta was De Cecco trivelli. and butter, black pepper, some white wine and some dill. The salted salmon was imported from Russia. Japan import it from Russia before Shouwa era.

tonight dinner

I've cooked salmon by steam and roast, casserole? whatever. and a chicken soup with a whole tomato.

a wine on the second day

a wine on the second day. sometimes, a wine shows a different nice face. This wine was that. I can't describe the smell though..., after flavor was like.., like something burn, not a toast flavor from a oak barrel. more like.., hmm, I can't describe. not the burning smell like Pouilly Fume. and acidity got soften. There are many flavors I can't describe. fabulous!!
I've cooked a kinda potee tonight. This time, I used a Boston butt. I prefer it to pork belly. less fatty.

punch punch

punch punch, one of the punch cigars. It needs time and nice condition to enjoy with it. I haven't tried all, but I seem like the punch series.

napoletana

Napoletana, a old coffee machine in Italy. people used to brew coffee somewhere in Italy. It's made of alumium. I've been looking for this nice lovely cute machine for a while. and found it. it's very simple. I used to Bialetti, but I'm gonna like Napoletana too.


Pour water into the pot with no spout, and put the filter on it. add fine grind coffee beans into the filter, and put on the lid. then, unite the other pot with spout.

As boiling water, reverse the napoletana. the boiling water dripping through the filter little by little. It will take about 6 or 7 min.


This is the way to make espresso crema. Pour little coffee liquid you've brew into some sugar, and mixing well with spoon till look like the picture. you can make a kind of crema with the paste. Someone told me that way. After all, if you like, just add some milk. I like add little milk when I make coffee with napoletana.

There is a lid. you can keep the rest and heat up again. convenience, huh?

bath relaxing

for relax and relieving fatigue. I've got the stiffness of everywhere in my body, neck, head, eyes, shoulders, back, legs. Over 2 years has already pasted and didn't get rid of it yet. So that, I usually take a bath to relieve fatigue. Those goods are useful for that. nice smell too.

Sous Fretille

Domaine Pavelot, 2004. I've tasted his red wine before and I loved it. I was looking forward to tasting his white wine too. and It didn't disappoint me at all. nice acidity, nice smell, it makes me happy. somehow, It reminds me a Cienin Blanc wine in Loire. It's just little though. anyway, I like his wines.
I've cooked the same pasta as I've cooked 2 days ago. but this time, I dispersed chopped Chivee. It's the fist time to use this herb. Chivee smell sweet. it's said it goes together with fish. I will try to use Chivee to some cooking next time.

the breath of Spring.

I can smell the breath of Spring in yokohama day by day. You can see ume blossom(the photo on the right). Ume is a Japanese apricot and it blooms earlier than sakura. I can see wild vegetabel, "fuku no tou" in the front of my apartment(the photos on the middle and left). Fuki no tou is called butterbur sprout in English. I don't know people eat it in the other countries though. I like them, little bitter and smell nice. some people eat it by Tempura.
This winter is a bit warmer than average. and I've oddly found green wild weeds and leaves here or there. It's really odd. So that, There seems to be less wild vegetables this year.

gratin with Japanese ingredients.

I've cooked a gratin with Japanese ingredients,renkon, gobo, maitake mushroom, and 2 sliced buri fish. it's based tomato sauce. It took about 1hour to cook it.
renkon is a kinda lotus root, gobo is a eatable burdock root, and buri is a yellow tail. All ingredient is popular in winter of Japan.

First of all, I've cut gobo into vertically long hangetsu-giri, which means cut into the form of 5 or 6 cm cylinder at first and cut into half lengthwise. you can see like half moon, you know.and cut renkon the same shape as gobo. here are ways to cutting vegetables in Japanese.

Next, I grilled them with a saute pan. pour little olive oil and brown them. salt and pepper surely. and put them aside.

Next, cut buri fish into chunks, salt and pepper, and brown them as well. and put them aside.

then, fry up maitake mushroom and add gobo and renkon back. add some white wine and fry up till dry off fluid.

After that, Just spread renkon and gobo to cover the gratin dish, don't forget coat butter, pour tomato sauce. layer the fish and the mushroom and pour tomato sauce again. and cover sliced Mozzarella and grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano on it. Then put it into the oven. grill it about 20min or so. it's done! nice cozy meal.
Bon appetit!