kimberly ah

May 22 2014

Homemaker’s Challenge #4: Barrel-Aged Cocktails

I’ve been intrigued by barrel-aged cocktails ever since I had the Foghorn at Girl & the Goat last summer. When I got home and googled the ingredients, I kept coming across the Martinez which led me to the barrel-aged Martinez. I was really excited to try aging cocktails, especially once I poked around the internet a little bit more and realized you could age just about anything (minus fresh ingredients) to make a more mellow and slightly different cocktail. I researched and researched barrels vs wood chips. Aging in a barrel seemed more “authentic” and fun, but shipping wood chips was a more economical option. But when it came down to it, aging my first cocktails in a barrel just made me more excited about the project, so I went with that.

So back in December (notice the Christmas decorations in the picture above) I ordered my barrel from Oak Barrels Ltd. Their prices seemed reasonable (though, I’ve never ordered a barrel before, so take that for what it’s worth) and when I asked a question about their manufacturing process, I received a clear, friendly and positive response. Their barrels are made by a cooper in Mexico who sources the wood from American barrels. I bought the 1-liter black hoop barrel. I was going to go higher end with the galvanized hoops or the brass hoops, but the barrels can only be used three to five times before they don’t seal anymore, so I figured I would buy the least expensive barrel this time since I was just experimenting.
The barrel is hilariously tiny, but mighty. It holds thirty-three ounces which is enough for about eleven magically aged cocktails. I followed the directions and rinsed the barrel and filled it with water for a few days so it could swell and seal properly. Then I rinsed it some more and I was ready for mixing.

Then I used my math “skills” to create the recipe, basically dividing how many cocktails I could get out of a one liter barrel and then multiplying the basic recipe for a Martinez by that amount. Because the recipes for a Martinez vary greatly–some have a 2:1 ratio of vermouth to gin, some have a 2:1 ration of gin to vermouth, some are 50/50, I felt like I had a little freedom to play around with my recipe to make it work for the barrel size. Here’s my “recipe” for a one liter barrel:

Barrel-Aged Martinez

21 oz gin (I used Letherbee because I happened to have two bottles on hand.)

11 oz sweet vermouth

1 3/8 oz maraschino liqueur

a few dashes of orange bitters

Using a funnel, add all ingredients to the barrel. Put in the stopper and swish things around. Then let the barrel hang out on the counter for a week or two, rolling it around every day or two and strain into a bottle when it’s ready (1-2 weeks).

Once your cocktail is bottled, pour the desired amount into a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake until chilled. Pour into a cocktail glass and garnish with an orange peel. It’s kind of nice to have a ready-made cocktail in your cabinet!

***

Since the one liter is such a small barrel, things aged pretty quickly. (Oak Barrels Ltd recommends 1-2 weeks of aging for this size.) I started tasting on the seventh day and ended up bottling mine on the twelfth day. I just used an empty Letherbee bottle and a mason jar for the overflow.

I think my first try was a success. The barrel aged Martinez is richer and deeper than the freshly made version. I think it’s going to be fun to experiment with a few old favorites to see how they change once they are aged. I have a long list of cocktails I want to try in barrels this summer…stay tuned!

To see more Homemaker’s Challenge posts, go here.

Tagged cocktails

May 21 2014

Trader Joe’s Panko-Breaded Tilapia

It’s been awhile since I’ve talked about Trader Joe’s…

Last month, Naoto brought home a box of frozen fish. I’m not usually a fan of frozen fish, but I agreed to try this because it was Panko-breaded tilapia filets. Panko breadcrumbs are the best breadcrumbs. (Panko could have its own Japan Does It Better post!) And tilapia is my favorite fish because it’s not too fishy and it has a nice texture. I’ve eaten several meals of panko-breaded tilapia since then. I’m a fan.

The box comes with four filets, each individually wrapped, making it perfect for work widows like me. I just take one out, pop it on a cookie sheet and bake it for twenty-five minutes, flipping once at twelve minutes. The panko breading is thick and crispy and the fish is moist. We love it topped with our favorite Japanese condiment, Bull-Dog sauce. Bull-Dog sauce is used most often for tonkatsu (panko breaded pork). It is kind of like America’s Heinz 57 sauce but fruitier and tangier…it’s hard to explain, but it’s delicious, especially on fried foods because the tanginess complements the heaviness of the breading. Trader Joe recommends topping the tilapia with their corn salsa, but trust me…nothing is going to beat Bull-Dog sauce! (You can find it in Asian markets.)

We had this for dinner on Sunday night along with couscous and a tasty salad (painstakingly chopped by Naoto-the-slicing & dicing-perfectionist.)

If you’d like to see more Trader Joe’s posts, go here.

Tagged food, forest park

May 20 2014

5 Comments

adventures, Japan 2014, My Love Affair with Tokyo

Shabu-Shabu

Please note that this post and this website has no affiliation with Hot Pots Biz.
Shabu Shabu One of the many things I wanted to eat in Japan this time around was shabu-shabu. Shabu-shabu is a meal of thinly sliced beef that is cooked in water at the table. We’d eaten it at Naoto’s colleague’s house a long time ago and it’s fun and tasty so it’s been on my Tokyo wish list to try the real deal.

We found a shabu-shabu restaurant in Oka-san’s (Naoto’s mom’s) neighborhood and popped in for lunch one afternoon. It was a long lunch, but everything was presented so beautifully that it was nice to take some time to savor the presentation, the food and the company. While we enjoyed tiny dishes of salads and appetizer bites, our server brought out a big heavy pot of water seasoned with citrus and turned on the burner. Once the water was boiling, she brought out a tray of thinly sliced beef and a basket of vegetables. The vegetables are pictured above through the steam of the water. We had cabbage, mushrooms, seaweed, scallions, carrots, tofu and bean sprouts. Have you ever seen such a romantic basket of vegetables?

The beef is sliced so thinly it is almost see-through, allowing it to cook quickly in the hot water. You pick up a slice with chopsticks and put it in the water (still holding on!) Once you’ve swished it into a figure eight, the beef is cooked. Swish, swish…that’s all it takes. To me, the best part is the dipping sauces–a thick sesame sauce and a ponzu (citrus) sauce–for the meat and vegetables. The ponzu sauce is so tangy and a perfect match with the savory beef!

Most of the vegetables took a little bit longer to cook, so we left them in the water while we swished the beef and ate them with the sauces in between bites.

Once all of the beef and vegetables were eaten, the server brought out another dish of thin glass noodles to cook in the shabu shabu broth. I ate those noodles with the ponzu sauce as well. And, even though our meal was enormous, I couldn’t resist sakura ice cream for dessert. It was vacation after all.

Tagged adventures, food, I *heart* Japan, Japan

May 19 2014

6 Comments

Office Supplies, snail mail

LWA Address Stamp

My friend Karen gave me the most thoughtful birthday gift–a custom Letter Writers Alliance member address stamp. I’ve been wanting one for a long time, but never bought one because Naoto and I have two address stamps already so it didn’t feel practical to buy another. But those two stamp have our shared name, Hasegawa. I really wanted one with MY name, since really, most of the mail that goes out of our door is from me to my pen pals and not from us as a family.

That’s why the address stamp was such a perfect gift–it’s not something I would have bought for myself but it was something I really wanted.And because address stamps can be very personal, Karen set everything up with Kathy and Donovan and they whipped up a gift certificate for the stamp. That way, I could pick out how my name would look.

The stamp is teeny–“about the size of a postage stamp” (according to the LWA site) and it is perfect for postcards and mail art because it does the job without taking up so much space. Honestly, I’ve rarely used my other address stamps since getting this one. It stamps crisply and clearly and–the best part–it includes my member number!

Thank you, Karen!

Tagged crafts, mail art, office supplies, rubber stamp, shopping, snail mail

May 16 2014

5 Comments

adventures, coffee talk, Japan 2014, My Love Affair with Tokyo, Office Supplies, snail mail, Tea

Scenes From Bunbougu Cafe

Oh Bunbougu Cafe! Please expand to my community!

I know, I know…it wouldn’t be the same. I wish more people in the US would embrace the marriage of cafes and stationery shops.

I spent a lot of time at Bunbougu during our vacation. In addition to spending my birthday there, we went back again and again for coffees and shopping. My favorite thing (other than my birthday dinner) was the snack you see above. I ordered a set that included a pot of tea and three tiny sweets. As you can imagine, I was blown away by the tiny office supply-shaped cookies. I ordered the strawberry matcha poundcake, the hazelnut ginger pencil cookies and the yuzu pepper key cookies. Everything was so flavorful and delicious–the keys were so peppery that my mouth was burning (in the best way possible!) There were other options on the menu (including a coconut flavored triangle and protractor) and you can see them here.All of Bunbougu Cafe’s menus are hand drawn (by one of their own workers) with gorgeous colored pencil illustrations of their food and cocktails. One of my favorite things to order was the caramel tea latte, a milky black tea with a hint of caramel-y sweetness. I’m working on perfecting my own at home since it will be awhile before I can drink one at Bunbougu again! If you received a postcard from me in Japan, most likely it was written at Misdo or Bunbougu…it’s the perfect place for mail! Bunbougu offers loads of unique stationery, desk items, pens and pencils, washi tape, office supplies… Many things are made in Japan and most of their offerings are from small makers and businesses. I saw many familiar American makers’ products too. I ended up buying two more silver boxes, pencils and washi tape.

But my favorite “purchase” was my new membership at the Bunbougu Cafe. For ¥700, I now have my own membership card and a key to the stationery drawers at Bunbougu! Now each time I go, I can show off my key or my membership card and get into special events (if they ever occur during our visits) and unlock the stationery drawers at the cafe. I already left my business card in one and sifted through the pretty papers and pens…apparently too busy enjoying things to take a picture (sorry!)See you soon, Bunbougu Cafe!

Tagged adventures, coffee, food, I *heart* Japan, Japan, mail art, office supplies, snail mail, washi tape

May 15 2014

6 Comments

Japan 2014, Japan Does It Better, My Love Affair with Tokyo

Japan Does It Better 13: Furu Pote

Back on our first trip together to Japan in 2011, Naoto and I stayed with his mom for a few days. We watched her regular TV programs with her at night and enjoyed a game show about restaurants. A “food expert” (I can’t remember if it was a famous chef or a food critic or what) ate every menu item from a fast food restaurant and rated each item. Sometimes the food expert had high praise, but as you can imagine, the best TV was when the food expert criticized the best sellers on the menus.

Lotteria was a featured restaurant and I became obsessed with going there and trying Japanese fast food. We finally went with Hisae and Norio (my sister-in-law and brother-in-law) and I enjoyed a shrimp burger, fries (better known in Japan as furaido potato) and a melon soda. Hisae got fries too. But she had a little pouch of powder that she sprinkled on top, giving them a salty seaweed flavor. I was amaaaazed (and disappointed that my fries were plain ol’ fries.)

Apparently, furu pote (fries shaken in a bag with seasonings) are popular in several fast food chains in Japan and across Asia.

During our trip in March, we went to Lotteria and I got to try the fries for myself. I got the butter soy sauce flavor packet and Naoto got the seaweed. I enjoyed every bite of my fries and every sip of my melon soda. And still I wondered where this concept was in the US.

For the past three years I’ve thought Americans would eat up furu pote like crazy. (Of course we would have to name it something else.) We could have sour cream & onion flavored fries, BBQ flavored fries, cheddar flavored fries. Where was this kind of thing in the home of the french fry?

Well, last week I came across this article announcing McDonald’s plans to introduce flavor packets for their french fries. If you try it, let me know what you think. I haven’t eaten at McDonald’s since 1996 and a little flavor packet isn’t going to change that. But I’m excited to hear how they taste.

So, even though the idea skipped across the ocean and is finally here in the US, when it comes to flavored french fries, Japan Does It Better!

P.S. To see all of the other JDIB posts, go here.

Tagged adventures, food, I *heart* Japan, Japan

May 14 2014

1 Comment

cocktails

Cocktail Perfected: Moonlight Cocktail

I’m not sure when it happened, but I have a huge aversion to the color purple lately. I used to like it. Then one day I realized that I have no purple clothes, I never choose purple pens or stationery and all of my purple washi tapes (there are only three rolls) are almost completely untouched. (I mostly use them for grandma mail…because I think she likes purple.) When we were shopping for flowers for the balcony last weekend, I steered clear of the purples and went for the reds, the pinks, the yellows and oranges.

One exception to the purple aversion: cocktails. I’ve been using my violet liqueur pretty often lately for cocktail-making…apparently I love a purple cocktail. On Friday night, I made Aviations for a little “craft club” night with some friends. On Saturday, I made the cousin of the Aviation–the Moonlight. Like the Aviation, it’s very purple, but also very delicious. It has the same basic ingredients as the Aviation, but it replaces the maraschino liqueur with triple sec.

The Moonlight Cocktail

1.5 oz gin (We used North Shore No. 6, a favorite around here.)

.75 oz Cointreau (or another triple sec)

.5 oz créme de violette

.5 oz lemon juice (freshly squeezed, always)

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake until chilled. Pour into a coupe or a cocktail glass. Enjoy on a spring Saturday night while planning your garden.

Tagged cocktails

May 13 2014

12 Comments

adventures, Japan 2014, My Love Affair with Tokyo, Office Supplies, snail mail, Spending the Yen

Spending the Yen 4: Yubinkyoku Treasures

One of my favorite places to shop in Tokyo is the post office. Or, I should say, the many post offices. Of course, my favorite was our “local” PO but it was fun to get out to other locations to see the different offerings. The postcards and washi tape above are from the Tokyo Central Post Office located near Tokyo Station and inside the Kitte shopping and dining center. (Kitte is Japanese for postage stamp.) Jess took us there and smiled as we walked into the post office. She knew it would be a hit. (Thanks, Jess!) The Kitte had special washi tape made for its first anniversary. I couldn’t resist. I also picked out some Posta Collect mailbox letter paper and a pen. It reminded me of the glue stick from last year. Anything that has that classic red mailbox on it is pretty much a guaranteed purchase.I loved the spring mailbox postcard and the big postal bear ready to deliver a big message. And this tiny tape runner is the perfect size for traveling and it’s shaped like a mail truck! I bought the fourth set of constellation stamps and my brother-in-law, Norio gave me the other set. It’s Tokyo Skytree and Tokyo Tower. Norio also gave me these post office stickers. The bike, the mail truck, the mailboxes, the mail bags…they were the best gift ever. I love that Japan has so many postal treats. I sent out so many postcards using the spring stamps (shown above). Japan really embraces unique shapes in their postage stamps, this time using round and sakura shaped stamps. This fancy mail van was delivering packages to our hotel and Lawson’s convenience store. Yay for good mail and good mail treasures!

Tagged adventures, I *heart* Japan, Japan, mail art, office supplies, snail mail, washi tape

May 12 2014

2 Comments

crafty adventures, Office Supplies, snail mail

All Caught Up On Mail

As of today, I am all caught up with my mail. If there was an open entry in my Letter Ledger, it was filled. This never happens. I’ve totally blown my resolution to return mail within one week of receiving it. But now that my inbox is empty, I feel like I can reset and have another try at responding more quickly.

I also took some time last week to finally pack up and send off some Japanese treats (of the stationery, snack and hand towel varieties) for friends far and near. I had a great time decorating the packages with some stamps, stickers and washi tape I picked up during my trip. For the most part, I kept my mail art simple with washi tapes and random bits of paper and stickers. Of course, now that I’m all caught up on mail, I’m behind on laundry, sweeping the floors and reading for book club this weekend. One thing at a time, right?