桃栗三年柿八年 (momo kuri sannen kaki hachinen): it takes time to reap the fruit of one’s actions (lit. [It takes] three years for [planted] peach and chestnut trees, eight for persimmons [to bear fruit]) (ことわざ学習室） In late autumn and early winter (mid-Nov. to New Year), Omicho Market is awash in reds and oranges: strawberries, crabs, mikan,…
Category: Vegetarian
ベーガル革命: Whole-Wheat Bagels
もちもち (mochimochi): springy (texture) Back in my language-school days at Midd, a New-Yorker foodie friend got on my case for eating the dining-hall bagels, telling me, “That’s not a bagel. That’s a piece of bread shaped like a bagel.” It’s probably for the best that he doesn’t find out what sort of things pass for…
Recipes Revisited
What’s nice about making some recipes over and over is that, not only can I make it myself, but I can make it better. I’m updating some of the articles on this blog, so I thought it might be helpful for readers if I noted these changes. Read more for updates on homemade yogurt, chocolate…
Mini Okara Gateaux Chocolat
デコレーションケーキ (dekorêshon kêki): a decorated cake; a fancy cake. Gateau is one of those non-Japanese foods that I never had till I came here, but defining what gateaux are is a bit hard. To me, a gateau is a dense flourless chocolate cake made with cream and almond flour. To other Americans, gateaux seem to…
Aka-Zuiki Quick Pickles (Red-Taro-Stem Vinegar Pickles)
Quick pickles of a favorite Kaga yasai.
Okara Ice Cream, Healthy Lab, Kanazawa
Featured in the August 2011 Japan Blog Matsuri “Summer Lovin’.” I pass by or through Kanazawa’s bustling Ômicho Market (近江町市場) at least once a day on my commute. I love looking at all the fruit for sale, shopping at the import store, and traveling underground to the M’Za デパ地下 (depachika, basement-level department store grocery and…
Okara Burgers, Two Ways
I’m back! After a few weeks’ hiatus for moving, I have regular internet access again at my lovely new home in Kanazawa, which means I can stop watching cooking shows on my phone and get back to writing. Japan doesn’t really have much in the way of pre-made veggie burgers, so I’ve taken to making…
Kaga Yasai: Aka-Kabocha with Sesame Sauce
This article will be featured in J. Festa August 2011 edition: “Food in Japan,” hosted at japingu. ほっこりしている (hokkori shiteiru): to be warm and fluffy Traveling around Japan has really widened my understanding of Japan’s local foods. For instance, because dried apricots are nearly impossible to find in my bayside town, I assumed that there…
Café Proverbs 15:17, Kyoto
Better is a dish of vegetables where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it. -Proverbs 15:17 Whenever I go to Kansai, I always have dinner with one of my good friends who is a vegetarian and a fellow lover of cafes. This time, we went to Café Proverbs 15:17 near Hyakumanben (百万遍)…
Tricks of the Trade: Oatmeal Banana Bread
Although this site is called I’ll Make it Myself!, a lot of the baking I do is less recreating restaurant meals I liked and more reinventing recipes to make them healthier and to make them work in a Japanese kitchen. Health-wise, my philosophy with baking is that almost any bread can be made over with…
Farewell to Spring: Spring Miso Soup
Bamboo season is pretty much over, but I wanted to share my new favorite miso-based soup recipe. Despite it being a down year for bamboo, I managed to score a couple shoots at a colleague’s bamboo-picking event. In order to avoid turning into a panda, I ended up freezing about half of my yield. After…
I'll Make It Myself! 
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