“Everyday” Sesame Sticks

Posted by Hirono

Another recipe from the “Every Day“ book. Another big success. I can’t stop eating these sesame sticks and neither can my 21-month old toddler!

I didn’t have black sesame seeds so I replaced them with white. It’s so nutty, subtly sweet, and the crunch is irresistible. My daughter is begging me for another one while I type this … and I don’t blame her. The batch I just baked is almost gone now.

Black Sesame Sticks

黒ゴマスティック（「まいにち食べたいごはんのようなクッキーとビスケットの本」から。）

80 g cake flour
20 g whole wheat flour
20 g cane sugar
20 g black sesame seeds
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons soy milk (you can substitute with water)
A pinch of salt

Here’s the detailed information on how to make these yummy sticks. It’s in Japanese but there are plenty of pictures to help you along the way!

Black Bean Brownies

Posted by Hirono

I’ve noticed that many bloggers I adore have vacated the blogosphere and moved on to other social media in recent years, sharing their thoughts via pictures and 140 characters instead of potentially lengthy, often time-consuming posts. It’s wonderful that I can still take a peak into their interesting lives and delicious food and craft adventures in catchy tweets and sepia color photos, but I miss their creative expressions through vibrantly written words. Many of them are great epicurean, talented crafters and even better writers, and I miss savoring on their deliciously selected words!

On a separate note, this blog, Lavender and Olive (well, Time for Dinner for most part, until I changed the name), celebrated its six-year anniversary the other day, with more than 500 posts. Six years! Yipee! The readership remains meager (I don’t think my family members even read this blog ) and I STILL don’t have a clear point of view (Is this a food blog? Knitting blog? Sewing? Soap making?), but this is an extension of my life and I’m really proud of it. And thank you so much for your continued support.

Cheers to six more yummy years! In the meantime: Black Bean Brownies from Melissa D’Arabian’s Ten Dollar Dinners!

Note: I substituted black beans with kidney beans (because that’s all I had in the pantry) but still came out delicious! I might like this better than regular brownies, with the perfect combination of cake and fudge. I think I’ll add more beans (maybe a whole can, instead of 3/4 cup) next time because I loved the texture so much (but they don’t taste like beans at all).

Black Bean Brownies
(Adapted From Food Network)

Ingredients

Butter, for greasing pan
3/4 cup cooked black beans
1/2 cup vegetable oil, or olive oil
2 eggs
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon instant coffee or espresso
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips, divided
1/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 9-inch square baking pan.

In a blender, puree the beans with the oil. Add the eggs, cocoa, sugar, coffee, and vanilla. Melt half the chocolate chips and add to the blender. Blend on medium-high until smooth. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the blender and pulse until just incorporated. Stir in the remaining chocolate chips. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake until the surface looks somewhat matte around the edges and still a bit shiny in the middle, about 20 minutes. Let cool at least 15 minutes before cutting and removing from the pan. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve.

Cook’s Note: Place a small cutout or stencil on the brownie before dusting to make a design.

Azuki Mushi Pan

Posted by Hirono

During our first few weeks of parenthood, many veteran moms and dads reminded us that tough times will eventually pass, and we’ll be rewarded with better days in the near future. My husband and I trusted those words and kept our eyes on the prize … and after many stressful days and sleepless nights, I think the day has finally arrived!

I’m not sure if it’s because Pon Pon is a lot more low maintenance now that she’s 3.5 months old, or we parents have gotten used the routine (or maybe it’s a combination of many things, like not sweating the small stuff anymore), but our days are much more manageable now. The baby sleeps through the night (she goes to sleep at 8:00 p.m. and doesn’t wake up until 6:00 a.m. on most days), she’s happy during the day, and she’s just so fun to be around. And when she smiles … oh my, those giggles make all those early struggles worth it. I know that there will be many more sleepless nights to be had, but all in all, we’re in a really good, blissful place.

We’re so incredibly lucky.

My kitchen mojo has returned as well. It has become somewhat of a routine for me to go into the kitchen in the morning a few times a week and bake, before the baby wakes up. I’d turn on Today’s Show, say hello to Matt Lauer, and start mixing. I wouldn’t make anything too intricate or time consuming — just something that I can whip up in less than 30 minutes – but I really look forward to this quiet, tranquil “me” time in the morning.

Today’s sweet – Azuki (red bean) mushi (steamed) pan (bun). I posted a similar recipe before, but I think it’s worth repeating!

Azuki Mushi Pan （小豆蒸しパン）
(Makes 5)

150 g flour
40 g granulated sugar
4 g baking powder
150 ml milk
2 tablespoons prepared azuki
Sprinkle of salt

Instruction:

① Measure and mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add milk and azuki and mix, just enough to incorporate all ingredients. Be careful not to over mix.

② Divide and pour the mixture into 5 cupcake linings. Steam over high heat for about 15 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

➂ Cool the buns on a baking rack for a few minutes before serving.

Few pointers:

Don’t worry if you don’t have a steamer at home. Simply use a large saucepan with a lid and put a steel colander basket that you use to wash vegetables with inside.
Don’t over mix the dough. It really makes a difference in the fluffiness of the buns.
Don’t steam the buns too long and make sure that your steamer is really hot before putting the buns in.
If you put too much water, the buns will become wet and sticky.

These little fluffy buns are one of my favorite Japanese snacks. I like them so much better than cupcakes and have less calories since there are no oil or butter used here. The combination of airy bun and sweet aduki beans are exquisite. I’m going to try making the green tea flavor next time.

I’m realizing every day how important it is to maintain a good balance in life. Although the baby’s well-being is our upmost priority (and will continue to be), it’s still very crucial to put aside some quality time for myself … and that’s not being selfish. On a contrary, that’s what’s best for the baby too. Happy mom equals a happy baby.

Update:

A delicious variation of this confection is a green tea mushi pan. Simply add 2 tablespoons of matcha green tea powder with dry ingredients. They’re seriously good.

Little Bun in the Oven

Posted by Hirono

Pregnancy can bring many surprises to expecting mothers, but this one definitely caught me by surprise — I’ve been told on several occasions that I’m tiny! Okay, when people say this, they don’t mean that I’m tiny but that my stomach is smaller than that of an ordinary 20-plus-week pregnant woman. The former would have been a fabulous compliment, but being told that my stomach seems underdeveloped definitely brings a concern, especially when it comes from your own baby doctor!

From the time I discovered that I’m pregnant, at around 14 weeks, to now, I’m down about 12 pounds from my normal weight. Most of the poundage came off during the first trimester but I haven’t been able to add much more, even as my appetite returned to almost normal. This was definitely a source of my worry and insecurity for the last few weeks.

Luckily, during my last prenatal appointment, I had my belly measured and learned that Pon Pon is growing right on schedule. She’s at around two pounds and 14 inches, spot on with the average 27-week bun in the oven!

A lesson learned here – everyone is different and there is no reason to be worried just because you might think you’re a little different from the mom-to-be next door. Instead of feeling insecure, I’m now considering myself truly, truly lucky that I’m still able to feel comfortable with no back pain, no swelling, and no cramps – symptoms that usually come with an expanding belly. I know that my stomach will expand rapidly as I enter the third trimester, so I’m going to enjoy this “tininess” while it lasts!

On the topic of food … I made some steamed bread for snack this afternoon. I was craving something sweet but not in the form of cookies or anything buttery, so I went to my go-to recipe for the Japanese mushi (steamed) pan (bread).

This is a wonderful recipe! The bread comes out fluffy and nicely chewy, stay moist even the next day. All the ingredients are things that most of us have sitting around in a pantry, and there’s no milk or eggs so it’s health friendly (if you don’t put in chocolate chips, of course). It’s still high in carbs but it is a much better alternative to a calorie-laden cupcakes. You can add matcha green tea powder and azuki (sweet red beans) for Japanese-inspired flavors!

Steamed Bread (Mushi Pan)
Inspired by a recipe from Cookpad.com.

Ingredients:

150 g flour
40 g sugar (I used brown sugar)
4 g baking powder
150 ml water
Sprinkle of salt
Handful of chocolate chips

Instruction:

Measure and mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add water and mix some more (but not too much). Divide and pour the mixture into 5 cupcake linings (I used my trusted silicon liners) and sprinkle a little bit of chocolate chips on top. Steam for 15-30 minutes. Enjoy!

Dark Chocolate Covered Acai

Posted by Hirono

My sister introduced me to this amazing chocolate snack the other day. It comes in a two-pound bag and inside are little acai fruits and blueberries covered in luscious dark chocolate.

I’m crazy smitten with acai ever since I discovered the palm-tree fruit in Brazil several years back (at a place appropriately called “Acai”) so I knew I would fall in love with this snack the second I pop one in my mouth … and I was right. It was chewy and decadent. I was head over heal at first bite.

She told me that I can pick up the bag at Costco but I decided to order it via Amazon instead since I don’t have the membership to the store. Two days later, the box arrived at my doorstep. To my disappointment, the chocolate arrived in one, large block, instead of little chocolate nuggets! I had to put the chocolate block in the refrigerator immediately so that it won’t pour out of the bag.

I was bummed but I don’t blame Amazon … it’s been stupid hot lately and it’s inevitable that it would melt away completely. I guess I need to pay the membership to Costco to pick up another bag or wait until the weather cools off to order again.

I think I’ll just wait. Besides, it’s too hot to get in my car and fight for a parking space at the nearby Costco. It’s a jungle out there. So, until the arrival of autumn, I will be “sawing” the block with serrated knife in hopes of chipping away a small piece.

Thanks, Amazon, for another great customer service. I received a full refund and got to keep the product.

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On a completely different and more serious note, a tragedy struck the hockey world today. A plane carrying a Russian hockey team crashed, killing 43 people, including Pavol Demitra, who played for the LA Kings a few years ago.

I really enjoyed watching Demo play and he was one of my favorite players during the 2005-2006 season when he was a King. Here’s me and Demo at Tip-A-King in 2005.

This breaks my heart. My thoughts and prayers are with their friends and family, and everyone who’ve lost their hero today.