お久しぶり

お久しぶりーlong time no see

Today I'm challenging myself. It's a 30-day challenge.

I have obviously been extremely under-motivated to write in this blog, and I wanted to try and challenge myself to change that.

My lovely twin sister told me recently that if you try to do something for 30days, really try, it will become habit. Or, you will change your habits. I'm not really sure. I've also heard the numbers 21 and 14 from other people BUT the point is, if you make an attempt to do something for 30, 21, or 14 days, it will become habit.

Here I go.

-Day 1-

Today I FINALLY got that food processor I've been wanting. Or was it a blender that I've been wanting? Uh-oh...Well, I really wanted to make smooth soup, and this food processor I bought said スープ(suupu) so naturally I bought it. It took me three stores and a long, hot and sweaty bike ride to get the machine, and I almost bought an ice cream maker instead (which I still really want--it was a used one for 2100 yen, about $27), but I managed to stay on track.

I made this:

(photo taken with my cell-phone camera)

I call it....'Red stuff' soup

Ingredients:

1 red bell pepper

1 yellow bell pepper

2 "baby" green bell peppers

half a yellow onion

half a leek

garlic

olive oil

*salt, pepper and various spices (paprika, oregano, chili pepper, cumin)

**1/2 cup water mixed with chicken bullion to taste (chicken broth would work, but I've yet to find that in Japan)

*A variety of other spices would be good: thyme, rosemary, basil

**I did not measure the water, this is an approximate guess

The serving size depends on how you serve this...if it's a main dish, maybe 1 and a half. If it's a side dish, around 3. Also, using more or less chicken broth changes the serving size more.

Method (In the first person):

I roasted the peppers over my burner (not the safest thing I've ever done...BE CAREFUL WITH OPEN FLAMES!), and set them aside in a plastic bag to "sweat" so they would be easier to peel. 

Meanwhile, I put the onion, garlic and some olive oil in a pan over medium-low heat, with occasional stirring to encourage caramelization, NOT burning (burnt garlic is not good eats, as my hero Alton Brown would say ^_^). After they had caramelized, I dropped in the leek, and the spices. 

After the 5 or 6 minutes I peeled the skin off the peppers (or, as much as I could). This was the most time  consuming part, and eventually I just used my knife to peel what skin I could. I chopped them into square-inch chunks and popped them into my NEW FOOD PROCESSOR! I WHIIIIRRRRED them until they looked pretty smooth, then I added it to the fry pan with the onion, leeks and spices. 

Stirred that, let it reach a simmer then transferred it back into my food processor for a final chop up. Dumped that BACK into the fry pan (I know, a lot of back and forth...), added in my water-chicken bullion mix and let it reach a final simmer. 

Done.

It was pretty good, but I added more cumin in the end. I think maybe a splash of creme in the final cooking period would have also been nice.

I love cooking! It's fun to follow recipes, deviate from recipes, or just make up your own! Today I just made up my recipe, which is why I can't guarantee a serving size. Also, this recipe would be good with a variety of ingredient swaps. Veggie broth instead of chicken broth. Cauliflower or squash instead of peppers. Honestly, this is such a basic soup, but it's super delicious!

--

As for the Japan part of this update...It has been SO. LONG. I don't even know where to start.

There was the March, 11 earthquake, 3rd-years graduation at the JHS where I teach, a trip to Gifu in Toyama Prefecture during Golden week, Gassan Rock festival in Yamagata Prefecture, Sansa Festival in Morioka...Many things.

                  

I was under prepared for the earthquake and for within a week, most stores had limited supplies save beer so...had to stock up on whatever I could get! 

In Gifu, we went to an old, abandoned mining town. It was pretty cool, in an end-of-the-world sort of way...

  

  









Sansa Festival in Morioka! I don't have pictures of the dance, but I have a picture of me with friends, on the left, and a picture of Ryuta Sasaki, some guy in Ossan's band, and Ossan.

I will write more about Sansa in another post! I have to leave myself things to write if I'm to fill 30 days...

Wish me luck!