Yesterday Islay and I made sesame and kinako crackers. Well, the original recipe says ‘cracker’ but it’s more like biscuits. The original recipe is by ooLife who cooks organic food. http://oola.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/2008/05/post_08a4.html

I doubled the amount of ingredients of the original recipe which claims it yields about 25 crackers, and yet I was only able to make about 30. Perhaps I should roll the dough thinner.

There are more cracker recipes on the internet and I would like to try savoury ones at some point.

Adjusted recipe (doubled amount)

A… 100g all purpose flour
A… 40g kinako powder
A… 2 tbsp cane sugar
A… 3 tbsp black sesame seeds
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp water\

Instructions

1. Pre heat the oven at 150.
2. Combine A.
3. Using hands, combine A with olive oil. Add water little by little to make a dough.
4. On the baking sheet, roll the dough to 2 mm thickness and cut it into squares. No need to separate them.
5. Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes.

January Reflection

Here is my first monthly reflection of 2021. The purpose of this entry is to remind myself of the new year resolutions, reflect on and evaluate my actions towards the resolutions, and act better in the next month.

1. Reading books

My goal is to read five books monthly (total 60 books). This month I read seven books -two in English and five in Japanese. So far so good.There are a few that I didn’t finish, which include a book that I bought by accident on Amazon jp. The total cost is 5,724 yen. They are all e-books.

Books I read:

Books I bought but didn’t read:

Books I am reading:

2. Creating my personal website

I have written one or two entries weekly and they are reading notes, documentary notes and cooking notes. Writing reading and documentary notes is good as it gives purpose and concentration when I read articles and watch documentary films. Cooking notes are also useful to record adjusted recipes, though they would be nicer with photos.

3. Start preparation for our brewing business

I spoke to Takeshi at the beginning of January and received some advice which is recorded in my website. It is certain that I would need a basic set of book-keeping knowledge and skills so I started reading about it, though I also feel it is not urgent. The book by ふくしままさゆき and his YouTube tutorials are really good. Perhaps I shall study one or two chapters a month.

I read about Triple Bottom Lines (TBL) which I think will be a useful reference when we start our business.

I learnt that there may be a possibility that the Village Office hires me through the scheme as well. In that case, I will need a driving license, too. It seems the entire cost to get a driving license is slightly cheaper here (it would cost approx. £2,000 in Japan at the current rate), so it may not be a bad idea.

I also gathered some information about the new guy with the scheme. I quite like his writing on note. He is quite into environmental issues, too.

4. Own less

Several bags of clothes from our bed room has been donated to charities. We also sorted out documents and now the big, heavy cabinet is empty! I shall tidy up the kitchen and see if I could reduce the amount of small items such as tupperwares.

This week Islay and I made cranberry oatmeal bar (well, Islay was mainly picking at the bowl). It was super easy and delicious! It’s something Jon can eat, too. Just like the last time, I reduced the amount of sugar and I am glad I did that. I garnished some chocolate chips on top but maybe it’s better to mix them with the last layer. The original recipe is by Veggie Inspired (https://www.veggieinspired.com/cranberry-oatmeal-bars/).

Adjusted recipe for the cranberry oatmeal bar

A… 2 cups old fashioned oats (I used the porridge oats from Coop)
A… 1 cup white all purpose flour
A… ½ cup coconut sugar
A… 1 tsp baking powder
A… tsp ground cinnamon
A… ½ tsp salt
B… ½ cup coconut oil
B… ¼ cup runny almond butter
¼ - ½ cup dairy free milk (I used semi oat milk)
½ cups cranberry sauce
sprinkle of chocolate chips (optional)

Tools

I used two shallow baking pans -one for baking and one for pressing down. The original recipe recommends a parchment paper but it was totally fine without it.

Instructions

1. Pre heat the oven at 180.
2. Combine A.
3. Combine B (warm them up in the microwave if needed) and add it to A. Squeeze the mixture between fingers!
4. Coat one baking pan with oil. Make a layer of the mixture, cranberry sauce and the mixture. Press the the layers well.
5. Bake it for 30-40 (30 mins was good) and cool it for 20 mins before cutting.

Yesterday I baked an apple cake modifying the recipe by Loving It Vegan (https://lovingitvegan.com/vegan-apple-cake/). The reason of the adjust is the amount of sugar in the original recipe. I often find the American/European baking recipes contain way too much sugar!

The cake was tasty with strong flavour of brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. It goes really well with whipped cream or ice cream.

It might be an good idea to make baking a Sunday thing for me to do. It provides me and Islay with snacks for the week! I shall use the cranberry sauce in the next baking.. maybe a bar?

Adjusted recipe for the apple cake

• 2 and 1/2 cups (312g) All Purpose Flour
• 180g Brown Sugar (originally, 300g)
• 1 and 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
• 1 cup (240ml) Vegan Buttermilk (fresh lemon juice mixed with soy milk)
• 1/3 cup (80ml) Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) Chopped Apple (Peeled)

For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping

• 1/2 cup (100g) White Sugar
• 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp Vegan Butter (Softened)

Tools

I used two pound cake tins.

While reading the chapter 6 in How to Give Up Plastic by Will McCallum, I learnt that plastic enters the ocean as a result of us washing our clothes. Shockingly, a fleece jacket could be responsible for releasing as many as 250,000 microfibres.. the author advises that we buy less clothes, wash them less, buy non-synthetic clothes like organic cotton and wool where possible, and consider using a wash bag that can catch the microfibres inside and a washing machines with a microfibre filter.

In the chapter 7, I came across with the Zero-Waste Chef, Anne Marie. She published a book and blog that includes recipes specifically featuring ingredients that can be sourced from plastic-free packaging. The recipes even include ones for cleaner. How inspiring!

Zero Waste Chef https://zerowastechef.com/

I’m currently reading How to Give Up Plastic by Will McCallum on Libby. Along with shocking statistics around plastic usage and waste, the book provides how to cut back on plastic in household and suggests eco-friendly (and often vegan friendly) brands. Here is a table from the chapter 5 and our progress to plastic-free bathroom/cosmetic items.