Party for a Cause

What do you want for your birthday?

The question that, when asked of my husband, never yields a simple answer.   He is one of those people that is just difficult to buy for…he never wants anything. 

But why should I complain about that?  I will instead count my blessings and tell you about what I did for him as a birthday gift. 

Remember back a few months when I was talking a whole lot about our trip to India?  Well that trip left a huge impression on us.  We often think about the people we helped and want to continue helping them.

So, I threw a party.  For Karl.  It was an Indian themed extravaganza.  All of the donations we collected are being sent over to Chevuru to help buy materials so that they may continue building homes.

I threw a similar party last December before leaving as a fundraiser.  It was extremely successful.  So why not do it again, and make it a birthday party?  

Here is what I made:

1)    Saag Paneer-This was a first for me-making cheese!  I was puzzled though, because the finished paneer had virtually no flavor.  It also completely fell apart and basically became a very thick cream when I stirred it into the saag.  But every cloud has it’s silver lining-even though this dish (my ‘experiment’ dish) turned out nothing like I thought it would, it was the favorite!

Find the paneer recipe here, and the saag recipe here.

2)    Butter Chicken-Butter chicken is delicious because, well, it has an obscene amount of butter in it.  I made this for the last Indian themed party I threw and it was a major hit. 

Find the Butter Chicken recipe here.

3)    Dahl Mahkhani-The world of dahl in Indian cuisine is positively daunting.  When we were at a restuarant in Agra, India, I took a chance ordering something I had never heard of before on the menu.  It happened to be dahl makhani, now one of my all-time favorite Indian foods.

Find the Dahl Mahkani recipe here.

4)    Chicken Tikka- If only I had a big enough grill on which to cook these!  I opted for the baking method this time, which turned out well.

Find the Chicken Tikka recipe here.

5)    Saffron Biryani Rice- There is nothing particularly special about the preparation method for this rice.  I used some spices we bought in India, stirred them around in the rice and water before cooking them.  Unfortunately I do not have basmati or jasmine rice, but sushi rice works in a pinch.

6)    Naan-By far one of my most favorite things to make, regardless of the cuisine.  Who doesn’t like bread fried in butter?

I have used this recipe multiple times and it hasn’t failed me yet!  Find the recipe here. 

To bring the whole Indian theme together, Karl, a friend who also went to India on our trip, and I all dressed in our traditional Indian outfits.  Our friend was also kind enough to offer her services drawing henna onto peoples feet and hands.  

In India on New Year's Day.

Our friends who came to the party donated generously.  We will be donating $500 USD to Chevuru as a result of the party.  This was the only present Karl wanted…to help those less fortunate then us.  (This is partly why I love him so much!)

Happy Birthday, Karl!

Note: If you would also like to help the small village of Chevuru, India build sound homes.  Please visit this website.  Go Longitude is an organization that partners with Ravie Kumar and his team the Association ofRelief Volunteers (ARV).  They do amazing things.  Check them out!

A Many Course Meal

After walking only a few blocks, we came upon what we later learned is the biggest temple entrance gate in all of Japan.  It loomed above us.  Careful not to slip on the slick stone steps, we began climbing up to the Chion-in Temple. 

  

We wandered around the temple, taking in the incredible beauty.  

On the way back to Shiraume.  The woman standing in the white and red kimono is either a Geisha or Maiko.

When we returned to Shiraume, they were ready for us to check in.  They showed us our rooms-which were gorgeous-and welcomed us with tea and cakes. 

One of the special things ryokans such as Shiraume offer is a elaborate dinner served to you right in your room.  This is a traditional multi-course Japanese meal called "kaiseki."  This was-without a doubt-one of my favorite parts of the entire trip.  

Ready for dinner-the napkins are provided as gift souvenirs.

The food was amaaaazing. ( I am afraid I can't remember what everything was called...)

Course 1:Eel, shrimp, bamboo shoots, plums, and fish.

Also part of course1: Some type of gelatin with miso (I think) sauce.

Course 2: A clear broth soup with fish, yuzu (a Japanese citrus) and fern garnish.

Course 4: Fish cakes, lotus root, konnyaku, and ginger.

Course 4-single serving.

Course 5 (option 1): Baby octopus, fish and asparagus.

Course 5, part 2, option 1: Delicious sashimi!

Course 5, option 2: Kobe beef. (It virtually melted in your mouth. Melted.)

Course 6: Potato dumpling with eel inside and fresh bamboo shoots. 

Course 7: Tempura.

Cute soy sauce container!

Course 8, part 1: Rice with some type of garnish.  Seaweed, I think.

Course 8, part 2: Japanese pickles.

Course 8, part 3: Miso soup.

Course 9: Dessert.  Fresh fruit, match (green tea) cake with black sesame ice cream.  Otherwise known as heaven.  (It was amazing!)

When we finished our many courses, we decided the best thing to do would be walking.  So out we headed out for some more sight seeing.  There happened to be a lantern festival happening during our stay.  This was especially good for us because that meant the temples and shrines would be open later. 

My favorite place was a Japanese Buddhist Zen Garden ( I am afraid I don't remember the actual name of the place-I am working on finding it) and the pools that perfectly reflected their surroundings.  It was stunning.  

After returning to Shiraume, Karl and I went to our room to relax.  The next day we would explore Nara-Japan’s first (or second) capital city.  

Our beds all ready for us to climb in for the night.

Traditional Japanese wooden bath-they are very deep tubs.  I love them.

Beautiful decor in our room.

Boeuf Bourguignon

A few years ago there was that really popular movie out about Julia Child.  I loved the movie.  Read the book.  It was ok. Read Julia's Memior.  LOVED it.  In fact, I have had a minor obsession with watching her video's on youtube over the past year.



This one has been my most recent obsession.  Yesterday, I took the plunge and made it.

By the end of dinner I was licking my plate.  Face-in-bowl-licking.  Extremely dignified.  As always.

It was really that good.  And so easy to make. 

I am thinking fish next...any ideas where I might find swordfish? 

Tea and Books

There are three terms in the Japanese school year.  The first term begins in April and goes until the July, the second from September to December, and the third from January to March.  We have just finished the school year.

There are two week breaks between the second and third and third and first terms and a six(ish) week break between the second and third.   We are in the break between school years right now.  This break could not have come at a better time.

Last week we had an incredible trip across Japan with visiting family.  Before that I had a terrible cold.  Before that I was doing on online class in addition to work, before that we were in India.  It's been a whirlwind the past few months.

And now...I can breathe.

I am drinking lots of tea (this amazing German fruit tea-so good) and reading lots of books.  Things I feel are good for the soul. 

I also hope to finish writing about India and move onto writing about other adventures.  Photo editing and adventure writing-here I come!

Here is a delicious picture for fun-a salmon salad that Karl made for me a few weeks ago.  (Am I a lucky lady or what!?)

Thanksgiving with a Tiny Oven

First, watch this video.

Who doesn’t have a battle ax, chainsaw and bazooka in their kitchen!?

Ok, now watch this one.

Maybe you don’t care for the Muppets…I think they are hilaaaarious. 

Fortunately, I did not have to skewer my own turkey or deal with talking pumpkins this Thanksgiving.  Also, having been in Japan for over a year now, I was able to approach Thanksgiving preparations with much more confidence. 

If you want to prepare a turkey for Thanksgiving and you live in Japan, this is what I recommend:

Step 1: They do sell turkeys at Costco, but unless you have a big enough oven this option is out of the question.  We ordered a tiny 5 lb turkey from a website called “The Meat Guy.”  It’s great. Order about a week in advance.  The website even allows you to choose a specified day and time of delivery.  

The turkey-sitting in an 8x8in pan.

Step 2: Make sure your turkey is thawed out completely 12-24 hours before you want to roast it. 

Step 3: Brine it!  I followed this recipe (I also added an apple, as you can see) for brining our little turkey.  Brining makes a huge difference in the juiciness of the turkey.  We let ours brine for about 16 hours before roasting.

The turkey brining away.  We had to put it into a backing bag and then into our crisper-it was the only way it would fit into our fridge!

Step 4: Stuff and roast.

Stuffed with wild rice cranberry dressing. Yum!

A perfect fit for our tiny oven!

Step 5: Eat!

This is what the rest of our holiday meal looked like:

Kabocha squash with butter and brown sugar.

Mashed potatoes-because you have to!

A made-up wild rice, cranberry shittake stuffing.  Delish!

Sorry, my gravy is out of focus.  If you make gravy, for mercy's sake, make this one!

Pumpkin-one of the best desserts (or, let's be awesome, breakfasts too!) ever.

 Our holiday was delightful in every way.  Flowing with apple cider, champagne, and white wine.  Bountiful, delicious food.

So very much for which to be thankful!

Happy Thanksgiving

May your day be filled with love!

...and lots of pie and turkey.

Happy Thanksgiving!