Japanese Breakfast, Hatago Ichinoyu, near Hakone, Japan

I'm currently staying at a beautiful ryokan in Japan. It is located in a valley near Mt Fuji and all around is lush, green bush land. It's my relaxing part of my holiday and just as well as it's raining outside.

As lovely as this place is, it is so confusing for an ignorant westerner like me! It is incredibly traditional - think tatami mat flooring, paper walls, yukata, no chairs/beds just cushions and a small mattress on the floor and an onsen. So far I've not known what shoes to wear (my own, the ones provided or socks) how to dress (yukata or own clothes) and most confusing of all - what to eat and how!

Here is this morning's breakfast... In pictures as I have no idea what I ate and if I did it appropriately!

As soon as I sat down, the lovely waiter brought me this tray. I am guessing this is what I ate (please enlighten me!)

Back top right: soup with tofu, mushrooms, spring onion

Clockwise on tray from back: cold ?river fish (impossible to dismantle and eat with chopsticks!), soft boiled egg (see below), natto, nori, Japanese coleslaw, shiitake mushroom and something else.

In the centre L-R: pickled plum and vegetable, no idea, no idea.

I had read about natto before arriving so was not so shocked when I peeled open the sticky, stringy container. It came with two sauces, mustard and ?light soy. I put it on some rice but I saw a man nearby eat it straight from the tub whilst another lady had it on rice then somehow , using chopsticks, wrapped nori around a mouthful and ate it daintily.

See the stringiness? Let's just saw it wasn't my favourite however it was nowhere near as fermented as I was expecting. It was somewhat bland without the condiments but the stringiness made it so hard to eat - cobwebs everywhere!!!

The other confusing part to this meal was the egg. To me it seemed like a 63 degree egg but how on earth do you eat that with chopsticks!?!? I contemplated putting it on some rice but in the end I just broke open the yolk, picked up the bowl and slurped it. It was delicious, especially with the dressing which tasted like the dressing you dip tempura in.

All in all it was a delicious breakfast and I get to have it again tomorrow! Still not sure how Japanese people stay so slim with all this food! 2 large meals per day is working quite well for me!

Sarah xx

GF Almond 'Paleo' Bread with 60 Degree Egg and Smoked Salmon

I was searching for a savoury recipe to use up my almond pulp from my almond milk and stumbled across this recipe by Sarah Wilson which seems to have a bit of a cult following. I was intrigued by this 'bread' as i'd never made anything quite like it. I wasn't quite sure how almond meal, arrowroot, eggs and leaveners could end up with bread.

Homemade Coconut Yoghurt

A few months ago I jumped onboard the coconut yoghurt bandwagon to see what all the fuss was about. Coconut yoghurt fills a void for those with dairy and soy allergies in addition to the coconut fanatics out there. However, I was absolutely gobsmacked by the price! Given how cheap coconut cream/milk is, I don't understand why the commercial coconut yoghurts cost upwards of $10 for a 400g tub.

Refreshing Green Smoothie

Everything tastes better with an umbrella straw!

I've jumped on the green smoothie bandwagon. I already eat plenty of vegetables but if I can sneak another serve or two in at breakfast all the better! I much prefer smoothies over juice as they are more filling and more nutritious due to the added fibre content. Juice has much too much sugar for my liking!

Due to Melbourne's excessive heat lately, I've been having smoothies post workout because I find them to be a more nourishing and satisfying breakfast especially with a some protein powder added. I've lately been using Sunwarrior which not only tastes delicious, but isn't so gritty. The best thing with this one is that it serves two, so you've got breakfast already prepared for the following day!

French Toast

Yesterday I made challah. The only thing better than challah is challah french toast with caramelised cinnamon bananas and raspberries!

Sarah xx

Rococo, St Kilda

On a freezing Melbourne morning my friends and I headed down to St Kilda for brunch. The original plan was Galleon but they were super busy so we ended up over at Rococo.

I don't really have much to say about our meal and the service was average. We started off with coffees which were nice then got the food.

Avocado & fetta on sourdough with 2 poached eggs

Banana and hazelnut bread with mascarpone and strawberries

I know Rococo has a fairly decent reputation and to be honest the food was nice HOWEVER the portions were huge and the food overpriced. I mean $18.50 for avocado & fetta on toast with 2 poached eggs. Really? I would have preferred to pay half the price for half the serve! Another gripe we had was that the top of the menu clearly stated no alterations to menu items. Seriously - this is breakfast, the time where you are allowed to add an extra egg or take off the tomato.

I probably won't be going back in a hurry. I can get nicer food for a cheaper price elsewhere!

Sarah xx

Fitzrovia, St Kilda

Making the most of Melbourne's last few sunny days, we decided to head down to St Kilda for a walk and brunch. Initially the plan was Galleon, but alas all the outside seats were taken so we walked over to Fitzroy St in search of food. Thankfully we stumbled upon Fitzrovia.

The 60 Degree Egg

Looks like a normal egg doesn't it?

This isn't your run of the mill boiled egg. It is an egg cooked at 60 degrees for 60 minutes. Why bother? Why should you have to plan your breakfast an hour in advance? Well i have no real answer except to say i was intrigued. Supposedly by cooking an egg in this manner, some of the proteins denature, yet others still stay in their natural form which results in a cooked, but not tough/rubbery egg. Technically you are supposed to cook the egg at 62.7 degrees in order to only set some of the proteins in the egg but you can't set a Thermomix to such a precise temperature.

After 60 minutes

Upon peeling the egg it was obvious that it was different to the run of the mill boiled egg. The egg was jelly-like and the colour almost opaque.

The texture of this egg is unlike a poached egg nor a boiled egg. The yolk was cooked to the same degree throughout and had an almost custardy texture. The white was a soft as silk without a hint of bounce and without the raw gooby bits that you get in some undercooked poached eggs!

So was it worth an hour? If you are not hungry definitely!

Sarah xx

The very quick recipe

60 Degree Egg - Put eggs in the Thermomix basket, fill Thermomix bowl to 2L and pop the MC on to prevent evaporation.  Set time to 60 minutes, temperature to 60 degrees and speed to 3. Wait for an hour then enjoy!

Edit: If you don't like a really runny yolk you might prefer cooking the egg at 70 degrees for the last 5-10mins.

Breakfast Time!

Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. I love going to cafes that serve all day breakfasts because it means i can have breakfast for lunch - win! I thought i'd test out a quick and easy Thermomix recipe that is in the Vegetarian TMX cookbook but also appears on several blogs and forums.

Introducing CADA

What is it?
Coconut
Almonds
Dates
Apple

It was so simple to make - i just put 1 large granny smith apple (chopped into big chunks), 3 dates, 2tbsp coconut and 12 almonds into the Thermomix. Pulsed it 3 times and voila! CADA!

It really is delicious and a great start to the day. I mixed half of it with a small tub of yoghurt and a couple of tbsp muesli and chia and left it overnight. It kept me full for at least 5 hours which is a great when you're at work and don't have any decent snacks nearby. The best bit? I have the other half for breakfast tomorrow - can't wait!

Sarah xx