Return to my roots...
Well, the last few weeks have been filled with Japanese-influenced and inspired activities. First of all, I decided to have a Japanese-inspired theme for my monthly gourmet dinner on November 24 at the Chelsea Club. I had been thinking about this for awhile as the last Asian-themed dinner we had way back in May, in celebration of Asian Heritage Month, was popular and interesting for myself and the dinner guests, or so I heard. However, there was excitement and some intrepedation in creating this menu as there were many facets to think about.
First of all, I start what's available in the market - local and Asian - and this can change in the city and stores on a day to to day basis. In some ways, it's like when I was living in Russia because when you see something, you'd better pick it up because it just might not be there the next time you want it. Next, I try to think of menu items that will be crowd pleasers that I'll know people will like, and then there are always some more challenging items that I think are good but I'm never sure what the reaction will be. It's hard enough to please one person, but then you have 40 people with different palates and expectations. So, I try to please myself first, get others to try the dish as well, and it's a happy medium. I try to challenge people with my approach, the techniques I use, some ingredients that are new and they are not familiar with, flavour and texture combinations that they may have not experienced before and I just want to surprise them.
As I said to the reporter Marion in my interview with Centretown News (the bi-monthly issue with the article and my photo just came out last Thursday) when she asked me how I approached the dinners, it's like I am giving everyone a gift nicely packaged with a big bow and I want them to unwrap it and be surprised, excited, pleased, curious, etc. It's something I think we have too little of and I think we desperately need in our lives. We try to please the children but what about the children in adults. I just think we need more opportunities to come out and play, and be surprised and curious. That's one of the reasons I started the dinners and I am delighted that people are coming out to play. I often think that an open mind to eating and trying different foods is so representative of someone's outlook and tolerance in general of other countries, cultures and customs. Either you look at it with excitement, curiosity and intrigue or you look at it as being strange, different, not the norm.
Anyway, the more I created and played around with the menu, the more I started really remembering some of the moments I shared with my mother, father and aunts in different kitchens. My mother was more of a traditionalist and liked her Japanese food a certain way. I'm not sure if she would approve of all my fusion creations of some of her old standards. However, she was also the one who was always trying new foods and bringing them home for us to try, loved going to different restaurants, and had a passion for travelling. She was a great cook and loved more the enjoyment of cooking for others, whether for her friends or thousands of people at the Japanese Cultural Centre in Toronto where she spent numerous years in the kitchen running the food at popular events such as Caravan, the multicultural festival, or the annual bazaar. People used to line-up from all around as they knew the food was homemade and delicious.
So, without further delay, I'll plug in the the menu in here from the dinner, with the introduction as it will say it all. People seemed to really love the dinner as much as I loved putting it all together, complete with Japanese touches such as the origami cranes (which I made one by one when I had time between menu planning and cooking), chopstick holders and chopsticks, etc. I'll continue about my other activities in another entry.
-----------------------------
Dear ZenKitchen dinner guests
Welcome, Irashaimasen!
With this menu, I’ve returned to my roots. Most of the Japanese dishes this evening are based on the foods I grew up with. However, I’ve adapted them with a whole foods, vegan approach and have created my own “fusion” version of dishes, combining my favourite east and west techniques and ingredients.
Japanese cuisine is grounded in simplicity, purity and beauty, using the finest ingredients and cooking according to the seasons. This is also the essence of ZenKitchen and what I try to keep in mind in creating this and all ZenKitchen dinners.
Some of you may think first of raw fish or Kobé beef when you think of Japanese food. However, Japan has had a long tradition of vegetarian cooking in its Buddhist temples, dairy products were absent from the Japanese diets for centuries, and there continues to be an abundance of vegetable and legume based dishes in traditional cuisine.
This dinner is dedicated to my mother, father and aunts who taught me so much about the preparation of food and more importantly that the real joy comes in the sharing of it with others. They would be pleased. I hope you are too.
Bon appetite, Itadakimasu, Caroline
Menu - November 24, 2007
Smokey Adjuki Bean Soup
with pumpkin-chili puree
and handcut rice crackers
Underground Salad
with ginger-sesame-ponzu dressing
Japanese Tasting Plate
Wild mushroom gyozas
Roasted chestnut sweet rice
Roasted African and Japanese kabucha
squash maple purée
Kinpira with gobo, carrots and aramé
Japanese pickles
Meyer lemon cake
with Limoncello glaze and
Asian fruit compote
First of all, I start what's available in the market - local and Asian - and this can change in the city and stores on a day to to day basis. In some ways, it's like when I was living in Russia because when you see something, you'd better pick it up because it just might not be there the next time you want it. Next, I try to think of menu items that will be crowd pleasers that I'll know people will like, and then there are always some more challenging items that I think are good but I'm never sure what the reaction will be. It's hard enough to please one person, but then you have 40 people with different palates and expectations. So, I try to please myself first, get others to try the dish as well, and it's a happy medium. I try to challenge people with my approach, the techniques I use, some ingredients that are new and they are not familiar with, flavour and texture combinations that they may have not experienced before and I just want to surprise them.
As I said to the reporter Marion in my interview with Centretown News (the bi-monthly issue with the article and my photo just came out last Thursday) when she asked me how I approached the dinners, it's like I am giving everyone a gift nicely packaged with a big bow and I want them to unwrap it and be surprised, excited, pleased, curious, etc. It's something I think we have too little of and I think we desperately need in our lives. We try to please the children but what about the children in adults. I just think we need more opportunities to come out and play, and be surprised and curious. That's one of the reasons I started the dinners and I am delighted that people are coming out to play. I often think that an open mind to eating and trying different foods is so representative of someone's outlook and tolerance in general of other countries, cultures and customs. Either you look at it with excitement, curiosity and intrigue or you look at it as being strange, different, not the norm.
Anyway, the more I created and played around with the menu, the more I started really remembering some of the moments I shared with my mother, father and aunts in different kitchens. My mother was more of a traditionalist and liked her Japanese food a certain way. I'm not sure if she would approve of all my fusion creations of some of her old standards. However, she was also the one who was always trying new foods and bringing them home for us to try, loved going to different restaurants, and had a passion for travelling. She was a great cook and loved more the enjoyment of cooking for others, whether for her friends or thousands of people at the Japanese Cultural Centre in Toronto where she spent numerous years in the kitchen running the food at popular events such as Caravan, the multicultural festival, or the annual bazaar. People used to line-up from all around as they knew the food was homemade and delicious.
So, without further delay, I'll plug in the the menu in here from the dinner, with the introduction as it will say it all. People seemed to really love the dinner as much as I loved putting it all together, complete with Japanese touches such as the origami cranes (which I made one by one when I had time between menu planning and cooking), chopstick holders and chopsticks, etc. I'll continue about my other activities in another entry.
-----------------------------
Dear ZenKitchen dinner guests
Welcome, Irashaimasen!
With this menu, I’ve returned to my roots. Most of the Japanese dishes this evening are based on the foods I grew up with. However, I’ve adapted them with a whole foods, vegan approach and have created my own “fusion” version of dishes, combining my favourite east and west techniques and ingredients.
Japanese cuisine is grounded in simplicity, purity and beauty, using the finest ingredients and cooking according to the seasons. This is also the essence of ZenKitchen and what I try to keep in mind in creating this and all ZenKitchen dinners.
Some of you may think first of raw fish or Kobé beef when you think of Japanese food. However, Japan has had a long tradition of vegetarian cooking in its Buddhist temples, dairy products were absent from the Japanese diets for centuries, and there continues to be an abundance of vegetable and legume based dishes in traditional cuisine.
This dinner is dedicated to my mother, father and aunts who taught me so much about the preparation of food and more importantly that the real joy comes in the sharing of it with others. They would be pleased. I hope you are too.
Bon appetite, Itadakimasu, Caroline
Menu - November 24, 2007
Smokey Adjuki Bean Soup
with pumpkin-chili puree
and handcut rice crackers
Underground Salad
with ginger-sesame-ponzu dressing
Japanese Tasting Plate
Wild mushroom gyozas
Roasted chestnut sweet rice
Roasted African and Japanese kabucha
squash maple purée
Kinpira with gobo, carrots and aramé
Japanese pickles
Meyer lemon cake
with Limoncello glaze and
Asian fruit compote
posted by Caroline at 8:21 PM
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