Bacon & Eggs Sushi, #Improv Challenge

NinjaBaker — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 09:58:24 +0000

Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker threw down the gauntlet to fellow food bloggers to create something scrumptious with bacon and eggs. Thank you, Kristen for this month’s Improv Challenge!

Japanese egg omelet, tamagoyaki, is one of the specialties of Auntie K aka the Ninja Baker. (And is often requested when visiting family.) Tamagoyaki is typically sweeter than American omelets.

Tamagoyaki: Japanese Egg Omelet

At a sushi restaurant, my friend, Takako-san who is a master of Japanese cooking and baking always tastes the chef’s Japanese egg omelet first. Why? Tamagoyaki, according to Takako-san is the ultimate test of a sushi chef’s skill. Others have said they order the tamagoyaki first to ascertain the freshness of the omelet. If fresh, they feel confident about the sushi fish quality.

For this challenge, I cut out the Mirin (sweet Japanese cooking wine) in my tamagoyaki. Click here for the traditional recipe. As the required companion to the egg is bacon for this challenge, I thought to make the omelet a tad savory. I increased the soy sauce and used sake made for drinking and not cooking.

As I lean towards a vegetarian diet, I chose non-GMO (genetically modified organism) soy bacon for Kristen’s Improv Challenge. I wrapped the yummy faux bacon around the sliced tamagoyaki, which I placed on top of sticky white Japanese rice. In other words, I created The Ninja Baker’s Bacon & Egg Sushi.

The Ninja Baker's Bacon & Egg Sushi

The recipe follows. Scroll down and you’ll see more fun dishes spotlighting bacon and eggs.

Improv Bacon & Eggs Sushi

Tamagoyaki (Japanese Egg Omelet): In a large bowl vigorously whisk 4 large eggs, 2 teaspoons of soy sauce and 2 teaspoons of sake rice wine.

Spray a small (5” x 7”) rectangle pan with butter flavored cooking spray.

Heat the pan over medium-low heat. When warm pour a thin layer into the pan.
As the egg starts to set, with a spatula roll the mixture from bottom to top. Add another thin layer of the egg, soy, sake batter into the pan. This time gently roll from the top of the pan to the bottom. Keep repeating this process until your egg mixture has disappeared from the large bowl.

Wrap in a paper towel to remove excess oil. When cool, slice.

Notes: Thin layers in the pan work best. Clean any fragments of egg from the pan so you can keep one nice clean roll going. Spray additional cooking oil if you find the egg mixture sticking to the pan too much.

Non-GMO soy bacon wrap: Fry in a bit of oil for about 4 minutes. (2 minutes on each side.) Place on a paper towel. As soon as it’s cool enough to handle, cut in half.

On a small mound of rice, place a slice of Japanese egg omelet and wrap with a thin piece of soy bacon.

Wishing you time to enjoy the classics in literature, music, food and art; the tried and true source of solace and comfort in a sometimes-challenging world.

The Ninja Baker

© ™ Watkinson 2012

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

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Japanese Veggie Sandwich's Sweet Substitute, #Improv Challenge

NinjaBaker — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 08:32:25 +0000

Sticky white Japanese rice dressed up with a variety of food fashions take center stage in many bento lunch boxes. But sandwiches are also major players. Such as the veggie “sando” sandwich. A luscious tomato, lettuce, cucumber and mayo concoction squeezed into two slices of thin white bread. (No crusts allowed!)

Japanese veggie sando in a Hello Kitty bento box

Sometimes, husbands and children will balk at such a sandwich. (“Salad in a sandwich?”)

Salad in a sandwich.
Japanese cucumbers, thinly sliced tomatoes, lettuce and
mayo squeezed in between white bread. Salt to taste.

Well, this Ninja Baker can help you sneak veggies into your beloved's bread. “Tasty!” is the only comment I received upon serving up my carrot bread.

Carrot bread is the star in this bento box.
Fresh carrots, pineapple and a mini scoop of butter play friendly co-stars.

The inspiration for my concoction came from Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker. (Her site may be experiencing a temporary technological challenge. But check back and see her roster of recipes that includes some great gluten-free treats.) To visit her Facebook page, click here. Kristen’s challenge to fellow food bloggers this month was to create a dish or dessert using carrots and peas.

I was stumped. Until I stumbled upon the following recipe which I adapted for the challenge. As cinnamony, carroty, brown sugary smells circled my kitchen, my hope for the bread increased. And at first bite into the soft, moist walnut studded treat, I tasted success. Yea!

Carrot Bread (with shhh - a purée of peas)

Carrot Bread
Adapted from Food.com

Ingredients:

½ cup purée of split peas
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil
1 ½ cups brown sugar, firmly packed
3 eggs
½ cup chopped walnuts
½ cup canned, crushed pineapple in juice, drained
½ cup raisins
1 cup finely shredded carrot
¼ cup organic Sucanat sugar
8 teaspoons of Demerara sugar to sprinkle on the loaves

Method:

Wash peas and soak in water for five hours or more.
Drain any excess water (if there is any.)
Blend the peas in a blender on high speed until fairly smooth.
(Make sure the blender lid is securely on.)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour four 3” x 6” mini-loaf pans. Set aside.
In one large bowl, sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil and 1 ½ cups of brown sugar.
Next, whisk in the eggs one at a time.
Stir the liquid mixture into the flour; mix well.
Add in the walnuts, pineapple, raisins, shredded carrots, peas purée and ¼ cup of organic Sucanat sugar.
Fill four 3” x 6” mini pans with batter.
Sprinkle two teaspoons of Demerara sugar atop each. Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes.

Love to read about your favorite ways of sneaking veggies into your family’s meals in the comments section. Please do also see the slew of carrots and peas creations from some mighty clever food bloggers.

Wishing you big win’s in life’s challenges.

The Ninja Baker

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

Tags:

Japanese vegetable sandwiches

carrot bread

Japanese bento lunch boxes

#ImprovChallenge

The Ninja Baker - #ImprovChallenge

Bacon & Eggs Sushi, #Improv Challenge

Japanese Veggie Sandwich's Sweet Substitute, #Improv Challenge