Banana Bread and Banana KAKI Muffins

There are so many different recipes to try baking with persimmons, and I decided to test with my favorite banana bread recipe.  It turned out pretty good.   KAKI  (Japanese FUYU Persimmon/Non-stringent) is crisp and peeled and chopped into cubes.  Basic banana recipe is used and half of the batter is used for a small loaf of banana bread and the other half for the Banana KAKI Muffins.    I did not use very much cinnamon.  That's the whole point of my test cooking and baking with KAKI.  To find it's best taste without drowning it with spices.   The muffins are prepared with cinnamon, ground cloves, and lemon peels.

 

Extra KAKI are sliced and placed in freeze bag for future use; soft KAKI are gently pressed with the side of the spoon to separate it a bit and placed in ice-cube tray for later use in my future concoction... actually, I did use in the earlier post I blogged in KAKI Mochi Cookies, for example.

My Grand-Son's Lego Minecraft Birthday Cake

I love my grand-children's birthday.  Hate to see them grow up so fast, but I love the challenges they give me.  This year, it's Lego Minecraft Birthday Cake.
The cake is basic Chiffon Cakes in layers with different flavors - vanilla, chocolate, and green tea.  The challenging part is in making the Lego Minecraft figurines.  And since there are two other birthdays on the same week, there is also the biker dad, and break-dancing nephew.
It was fun making it.  What will it be for next year, I wonder.

 

KAKI MOCHI Cookies

My mother's Giant FUYU KAKI ripened really quick this year.  We did not have the chance cropping the figs this year on time, and we lost it all, basically.

Here with soft KAKI, beside pulping them and freezing them, I tried it in a couple of different reicpe.  

Ingredients:

1/2 C soft KAKI/PERSIMMONS

1/2 C Sweet Rice Flour

3 Tbsp Water

1 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp Extra Virgin olive oil

1 cookie sheet with Oiled Silpat

Mix all ingredients together 

Bake at 375'F

Flip at 15 minutes

Bake 15 more minutes and flip again.  Chnage temperature to 400'F and

Bake 2-1/2 min longer.  

Remove from oven . 

Serve with sprinkles sugar on top.

Organic SOBA with Cucumber and pickles

Japanese Cold Soba is tasty and easy to make.  You can top with all kinds of Japanese pickles and shredded seaweed.   You can eat it dipped in sauce or drizzle the sauce over the noodle. 

Ingredients:

1 pkg Organic SOBA

1 large cucumber

Varieties of pickles 

Sheet of seaweeds shredded with scissors into approx 1-1/2 in. strips

Sauce:

1/2 C Soy Sauce

1/2 C MIRIN

3 TBsp sugar

5 pieces of dry SHIITAKE

Cook all in a pot.  Simmer for at least 30 minutes.   Remove everything, except mushrooms/SHIITAKE. 

Boil noodles and strain.  Set aside.

Peel cucumber, shred it or use spiral cutter.   Hold cut cucumber between the palms of hands and squeeze water out as much as you can.  

Serve with SOBA and top with you favorite pickles and sauce.

Dragon Fruits

Dragon fruits are so good for health in many ways.  They are quite expensive in the States.  If you can get hold of it, eat it as often as you can.  These two cisted me $16.50.  

In Viet-Nam it is also known as sesame seed fruits. 

Just cut, slice and peel.  And enjoy.