Three dishes :-)

Eggplant Sautéed with Miso is the first dish. Compared to all of the other dishes I have prepared so far this is my favorite. I absolutely adore the Miso sauce that is added. Red Miso is used for this dish; which has a little bite to it. You combine it with other ingredients to create a slight (very slight) sweet flavor. It is 100% mouth-watering! In addition you are eating vegetables!

In the book Japanese Women Don’t Get Old or Fat you are encouraged to make art with your dessert. The dessert typically is fresh fruit. I thought it to be a great idea to make something with my dessert. So I removed the core of an apple and added grapes inside. I then made small holes in a somewhat zigzag pattern. Finally I placed toothpicks through grapes as I inserted them diagonally into the holes. In addition I inserted them around the top opening where the core had been removed.

Chilled Tofu with Bonito Flakes (and Chopped Scallions) is the last dish. Again the only scallions I can find are the pickled ones (Yuck!). I was not a fan of this dish. I think I did not allow it to thaw long enough. The recipe instructs you to only have the tofu slightly chilled so that you can enjoy the flavor and texture. Since the tofu I have was already in the refrigerator it was considered over-chilled. When I took a bite it was still very cold. Not even the delicious flavor of the roasted sesame seeds, bonito flakes, and reduce sodium soy sauce could over-power the very cold tofu flavor. Well if at first you don’t succeed, try again.

With parsley and reduce soduim soy sauce