Bloggers Around the World Round-up: Japan ... and guess what?

Inevitably this was going to come, the end of our trip ... eh ... stay in Japan. What shall we say? Where all our dreams fulfilled? What about yours?

Let's see what everyone was busy with. So, without any further ado, we start our Japanese food round up with ...

Some lovely Matcha Madeleines from Choclette. For sure you love that colour and ... most probably that cake stand as well. Who doesn't? Go, have a closer look. You can't see it all from here.

Next, have some Yakisoba from Elizabeth ... and don't pay too much attention to what her brother says. Judge for yourselves and get some noodles ready. That is, if you have any.

Caroline has something completely different for us: Jap Cakes. Is that any sort of trick? I wouldn't know. Do YOU remember Jap Cakes? No? Then have a look and find out some more details ...

Before we leave, let me remind you of something you read here on this blog some time ago, something with rice and salmon: Rice Balls with Spring Onions and Smoked Salmon.

However, what is travelling without some surprises. So, here it comes ...

Ruth still has to offer us some Japanese food. Let's grab some nice tofu and go for Lemon & Ginger Soba Noodles with Tofu and Salmon Gari. Above that, if you want some Matcha ice-cream, you have to check out Ruth's blog at another time.

Thanks for all who had a share! It's always be a pleasure to travel with you. 
Did you miss your blog entry? Yes, we missed it, too. Or maybe it's just some great misunderstanding and I didn't see it. In that case, let me know. In the other case, just hang on as we travel westwards ... to ... have a guess ... maybe it's simply inevitably ... it couldn't be any other way ...

INDIA

Do I have to say anything more? You know what to do, don't you?
In that case ...

1. Leave a comment with a link to your post here in this very post, below (ha ha - can't comment anywhere else on that post). 
2. Link to my blog and this challenge in your post.  
3. Use the "Bloggers Around the World" badge (the one you find at the beginning and end of this post ... you know!).  
4. You can use a new or an old post, but it has to be adjusted accordingly (you know, all the linking). 
5. Have fun and enjoy it (and maybe tell others)!

If we don't hear or see us again in this regard or connection, you know, we will meet here again at the 13th of May (Have you ever wondered why 13th?). 

In case you are lacking inspiration, just tune in to Christine & Christian here on this very blog. It's all about India.

Rice Balls with Spring Onions and Smoked Salmon

On our current part of our virtual food journey for Bloggers Around the World I asked everyone to do something Japanese, or with typical Japanese ingredients, or ... whatever, let's go on with it.
I hope you are all busy ... brains working what to do ... or already cooking or baking ... or even writing up something. Whatever you do: Have fun!
I was thinking and looking around, too. So I came up with some rice balls with a spring onion an smoked salmon filling.

All we need is cooked rice, smoked salmon, spring onions, some sesame seeds and a bit of ginger, if you like. No big fuss about it! Pure and simple!
A good thing, that I have a rice cooker. So I simply put in three cups of rice with sufficient water and let it do it's job, while I relax and do something else.

Oh, the rice is already done. No worries! The cooker will keep it warm. So I head over into the kitchen and cut the smoked salmon and the spring onions in a very relaxed way. Here goes a bit of ginger in it.
In fact the rice could be a little to hot. So I better turn the cooker off and open it a bit before I proceed. 
With wet fingers I take a handful of the rice and form it into a ball. Then I make a hole into it to squeeze in one or two teaspoons of the spring onion and smoked onion mixture. I just need to make sure the rice closes around the filling.

To serve them I sprinkle a few roasted sesame seeds on them. That's it!
You can have them anytime. I even had some for breakfast. Above that, I reckon, you can also go for a different filling, like maybe a total veg version. What about cucumber or zucchini or ... you will get ideas.
If you have the feeling, you might need some kind of sauce with the balls, why not mix some wasabi and soy sauce together, and there you go.

So far for my contribution to the current Bloggers Around the World. I never have been to Japan, but I suppose it would be very interesting. However, you can't have everything or go everywhere.

Now it's still up to you. There are still 12 days left to do something Japanese for Bloggers Around the World. I'll be waiting on you ...

Bloggers Around the World: USA Round-up ... and next assignment

Did I mention in one of my last posts that I would be going to the airport? Of course I did, it was the post about the French bread with the chocolate and strawberry filling. Well, I didn't go to the airport to fly somewhere, but just to pick someone up. Once more, no travelling!
A good thing we have our Bloggers Around the World trip.

The last few weeks we have been visiting the USA. There were a lot of options of what to cook or bake ... Let's see then with what everyone came up with.
We want to start with Caroline. After all, she couldn't be stopped once she read the theme was USA and so she went on submitting post after post after post ... you can all find them on Caroline Makes ...
At first we have American-style banana pancakes. Why not have some for breakfast.

Then Caroline has some Walnut Whip Whoopie Pies for us. To be honest, I have never tried whoopie pies. At least not that I know of.

From the looks of it, though, you might want to have a go. Or what about some Navajo Fry bread? If not, you can at least enjoy the nice view ...

Then we have some cake from Caroline as well ...

I might have ordered a New York Cheesecake, but hey, who am I to complain when I get a Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake? However, don't get confused, there is no chocolate pumpkin in it, but ... eh ... go figure out.

Next up on our American round-up is the lovely Choclette from the Chocolate Log Blog. She has some lovely cupcakes for us ... oopsy ... she said she might manage cupcakes and ...

... we have some more pancakes. Just look at these beauties. As they are such we can live quite well with Chocolate Pancakes with Blackcurrant & Rose Compote instead of cupcakes. At least I can.

After having had so many sweet things, I guess it is time for some savoury dishes.
Elizabeth from the Law Student's Cookbook is helping us in this regard. She has some burgers for us. She copied them ... eh ... not that kind of copying. I love that idea of copying food I have eaten at another place. Now, without any further ado here we have Elizabeth's In-N-Out Burgers ...

I hope you enjoy them as you enjoyed the sweeties. Fine, it makes me think about dinner already. However, I have to wait a few more minutes more for that.

Something more savoury you have read about already on this blog a few weeks ago. Some colour food: Chicken on Chickpeas.

Somehow I didn't manage anything else, although I had ideas on doing more. That's a point also for those who couldn't make it this time. I know how busy life is and how you sometimes don't even manage the things you want to do, not even to mention the things you have to do.

Anyway, thank you for everyone, who had a part this time in Bloggers Around the World. It was a delight to have you travel with me.
Now it's time to travel on ... and maybe you manage to join us on our next leg.
What do you have to do?

1. Leave a comment with a link to your post here in this very post, below. 
2. Link to my blog and this challenge in your post.  
3. Use the "Bloggers Around the World" badge (the one you find at the beginning and end of this post).  
4. You can use a new or an old post, but it has to be adjusted accordingly (you know, all the linking). 
5. Have fun and enjoy it!

That's it! No, of course not. You don't know where we are going to. Hm, I had A fantasy destination in mind, but then again, I thought I could leave that thought for a while, because we still have so many lovely real places we still can go to. We nearly made it one time around the world, but we haven't really been to Asia. I haven't been myself to any places there apart from Turkey, but that isn't what I have in mind for this time.
So, before anyone gets confused here on what the subject is from the 13th of March to the 13th of April, I state it here clearly ...

 JAPAN

Well, that might be a bit more difficult then the last one, but ... no worries ... I still have some udon noodles in my storage and I have enough sushi rice.

Get yourself ready and do something nice. It doesn't have to be Japanese exactly, but you could also do something that makes you think of Japan or that is inspired by anything from there. Be as creative as you can be.

Hm, shall I watch the miniseries Shōgun again for preparation? I will see ...

Japan: o-konomi yaki

Some days ago I found my old notebook - the kind with paper, where you need a pen to make entries. In this very book, the last entry was from August 1995. Some things (I'm not going to reveal the whole content of that book) written in it were recipes I liked back then and wanted to keep. One of this was a Japanese recipe: お好み焼き (o-konomi yaki). This is a savoury pancake with cabbage. The name is derived from a Japanese word meaning "what you like". So, whatever you like goes on it (although there are certain things I would never dare to recommend).
Here we are then, about to cook something Japanese. To get myself in the mood I put a CD on with some Japanese music.

That was all I had: A CD from Vivian Hsu.

Together with the pancake I want to prepare a miso soup.

A bit of cutting to start with. Then ... OK ... here is the pancake recipe ...

O-konomi yaki


Ingredients:
100 g flour
1 egg (preferably from a happy chicken - at least until someone stole her egg)
1 handful of cut cabbage
50 g prawns
1 spring onion (cut lengthwise)
1 clove of garlic (peeled)
1 thumb sized piece of ginger
Salt
1 stock cube (chicken, vegetable, or whatever)
water
vegetable oil for frying
seaweed, Worcestershire sauce (optional)


Method:
First of all mix the flour, a pinch of salt, the (happy) egg and a bit of water to a "gooey"
batter.
Heat up the oil in a medium sized pan.
Then add the cabbage and incorporate well. If the batter is too gooey, just add a bit more water to get the desired texture.
When the oil is hot enough you can add half of the batter to the pan and tilt the pan so that the batter covers the bottom of the pan.
Get your prawns, spring onion, garlic, and ginger ready. Put the prawns and the spring onion on the already frying batter. Then grate the garlic and ginger on top, but don't grate too vigorously ... or otherwise you grate your fingers as well.
Cover it all up with the remaining batter and fry nicely and golden from both sides.

Once the pancake is done, you can serve it with seaweed (Reminds me of a stupid joke: Why did the lobster blush? Because the sea weed.) and Worcestershire sauce.

Then "dig in"! Maybe together with a miso soup. Well, how can you it this with chopsticks? Try, and find out ...
To finish this whole meal of, a small cup of green tea.

But don't add milk to the tea. At least that is what it said on the package.
I hope you like o-konomi yaki ... I do. Instead of using prawns - as I already mentioned at the outset - you can use many different other things, like beef, pork or go for a vegetarian version with some nice vegetables like carrots or use cheese or ... what you like (However, I don't take any responsibility if it isn't edible anymore!).

Some day I will try a traditional Japanese breakfast ...