All posts tagged: food

Hanging at ‘always a+’ Cafe

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I love finding new cafes to hang out at, and since I’ve moved to my new hood, the Cultural Centre area in Kaohsiung, I’ve been lucky enough to come across many hidden little gems. I sometimes feel like I’m back in Japan and love it. This morning I met my student at always a+ cafe, just 5 minutes up the road from my house. They offer brunch (open at 8am) and lunch sets – I had Korean kimchi style ramen and my student had Japanese udon noodles. Simply delicious and reasonably priced! It came with a choice of coffee, green or black tea. I really like that there’s so much light inside the cafe and the counters provide an ideal workspace. And there is, of course, free wi-fi. They also play great music (this morning was a repeat of The Lumineers album unplugged), at just the right volume. I’ll most definitely be back for a visit soon. If you want to check it out, here’s the address, it’s just off Zhongshan 2nd Road in Qianjin …

Banana Coconut Millet Porridge

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Today is the first day since I’ve been living in Kaohsiung that I’ve started to feel the Winter chills. My morning smoothie just wouldn’t cut it this morning. Time for some wholesome, nourishsome millet. This hearty breakfast left me feeling warm, perfectly full and satisfied. Oh and did I mention it’s dairy and gluten-free. What you’ll need: – About 1/2 cup of organic millet (be sure to pre-soak it for a few hours – drain & rinse) – water – x1 banana – coconut cream/milk – desiccated coconut flakes – x1 cinnamon stick & 3 clove buds – flax, sunflower & pumpkin seeds – honey Simply cook the millet as per the instructions, adding the cinnamon sticks, cloves & desiccated coconut flakes to the mixture from the start. Once cooked – about 20 minutes (I like to keep a little liquid in the mixture as it dries up a bit once left to stand), remove from the stove and add some coconut cream/milk, seeds, sliced banana & a dash of honey if you so desire. Yummm… enjoy :) …

Oh-So-Yummy Dragon Fruit

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One of the things I love about living in Asia is the variety of different fruit and vegetables available.  A quick pop down to the market and you never know what you might find! The Dragon Fruit (aka Pitaya) is my latest addiction. I love this tropical superfood because it tastes oh-so-good and is extremely nutritious. As you can see in my pic, it’s covered in a scaly bright pink skin, which is actually thin and peels off effortlessly. The entire inside is edible and consists of white or pink sweet tasting pulp and tiny black seeds (my favorite is the pink pulp variety). I could feel it was good for me, especially my digestion (I had proof!),  so I researched more. Here’s what I found out… – Dragon Fruits are rich in antioxidants and contain a multitude of nutrients. What’s notable is the Vitamin C content – a whopping 9mg per 100g. Typical nutritional value per 100g: Nutrition Amount Water 82.5- 83 g Protein 0.159- 0.229 g Fat 0.21- 0.61 g Fiber 0.7- 0.9 g …

Getting Back To Whole

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Throughout my life (past 30 years) my diet has changed drastically. From being a child who was mildly addicted to sugar (I was the kid at the party you couldn’t keep away from the cakes) to growing up in a mostly healthy family. Well what we knew as healthy at the time – we didn’t eat much red meat, my mom grilled not fried, and of course everything was low-fat or fat-free. When I was about 25 I became vegetarian (vegan for a while) and this lasted for about 4/5 years until I moved to Japan. I was having digestive issues and non-existent periods which I thought were related to various factors. I then met a very interesting man, an ex-raw food proponent and chef  who was a Weston Price convert, and I learnt about the value of eating full fat and organic happy animal products. I adjusted my diet and definitely saw some positive results. I researched more and more into Paleo ways of eating and read books like Deep Nutrition (Dr Catherine Shanahan) that changed …

5 Essential Japanese Foods

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One of the great things about living in Japan has been my exposure to a whole new world of foods. The Japanese are world-renowned for their longevity and health. Here are some healing foods that I have come to love and enjoy in my weekly diet, and I now consider essential food items. 1. THE DAIKON RADISH I absolutely LOVE daikon. I eat this mellow, clean tasting root vegetable just about everyday, either in a salad for lunch (they make great pickles) or added into a soup for dinner. Daikons taste crispy and juicy raw and turn slightly sweet when cooked. They are extremely cleansing and are used throughout Japan as a complement to raw or oily foods to aid digestion. Daikon also acts as a diuretic and decongestant, promoting the discharge of excess fat and mucus, thus facilitating weight-loss. 2. UMEBOSHI PLUM These pinky-red, salt pickled plums deliver a salty and sour punch, as I discovered when I had my first taste a few months back. Not really meant to be eaten straight from the …

SNAP 14/3/2012: White Day

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Traditionally, in Japan, on Valentines Day ladies give gifts (usually chocolates, home-made is best!) to men. Then one month later on 14 March the men are expected to return this gesture (popular gifts are cookies, jewellery, white chocolate, white lingerie). I received this beautiful little parcel from my boss from my favourite organic store, Natural House… He knows me so well!!

Begging for Brussels…

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Over the last few days I’ve had this insatiable desire to eat (strangely enough) Brussels sprouts. So today I finally bought some from my local green grocer and I’m glad I did. I didn’t know that these little guys are packed with so much goodness – rich in vitamins A, C, riboflavin, iron, potassium and fibre; they are part of the cabbage family and boast cancer-inhibiting and immune booster potential. I say bring on the Brussel sprouts! I prepared a simple dinner of fish (coated in lemon juice, rock salt & black pepper, then flash-fried in a little ghee) with steamed Brussel sprouts and cauliflower. The veg were so bright and scrumptious-looking that no sauce was necessary. However, I have been reading so many inspiring whole foods and Macrobiotic books lately that I thought I’d try something new. I’m really enjoying getting creative in the kitchen; I used to be the kind of cook that had to have a recipe and had to follow every instruction down to the last drop. But nowadays I’ve been approaching …

Home-made millet tostadas with pesto, carrot salsa & avo

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Having picked up various food intolerances over the last few months, eating can sometimes prove challenging and boring and so easy to get stuck into a safe food rut. But all one needs is a little inspiration and Susan Marque! I began taking food coaching sessions from Susan a few months ago and have since learnt a great deal from her. Yesterday I decided to try her Millet Tostadas recipe, (originally developed by Susan for her then boyfriend who was having bread cravings), as I am… oh to eat bread again! Well all I can say is delicious! The tostadas were crispy and nourishing and 100% wholesome. I also made her pumpkin seed pesto (I didn’t have any fresh basil so I substituted spinach and it turned out great) and carrot salsa (I added in some chopped baby daikon radish and a dash of coriander seed). All this topped with slices of fresh avo. Aaah food bliss! Susan’s books can be downloaded here.