Easter has always been a big deal in my family. Actually, all major holidays are a pretty big deal in my family. We enjoy the same exact dishes each year at the same house. For 20+ years, holidays have been predictable and wonderful. Of course, when we moved to Japan everything changed. Holidays like Thanksgiving and Easter were no longer spent around the same group of family members. Instead, we found ourselves surrounded by a new “family” that helped us to break out of tradition and try some new things. In many ways, the changes we experienced helped me to appreciate the consistency I’ve had throughout my life.

Experiencing holidays in both concrete and transient environments has lead me to strongly believe in the power of sharing traditions with others. By sharing I don’t mean forcing people to like the way you do things, just simply allowing those closest to you to see what makes you who you are. The traditions we develop and carry with us help to create the diverse groups of people that make up this beautiful world and we can always learn from those outside of our close-knit circles.

Since many of you will be participating in Easter celebrations this weekend, I’ve put together a menu featuring recipes from Tokyo Terrace that represent the traditional and not-so-traditional aspects of holiday gatherings. Some of the recipes are based on my own family traditions, while others are new developments that have come about over the past couple of years in Japan.

No matter where in the world you find yourself, I hope you are surrounded by good people and comforting food.

Enjoy!

Drinks

Pink Lemonade & Thyme Sparkler

Bloody Marys with a Japanese Twist

Appetizers/Side Dishes

Deviled Eggs

Sweet & Spicy Thai Pineapple

Edamame Crostini with Meyer Lemon & Shiso

Mini Pommes Anna

Main Dishes

Savory Vegetable Galette

Phyllo Squares with Egg, Spinach & Cheese

Desserts

Whole Wheat Cranberry Citrus Scones

Strawberries & Japanese Whiskey Sabayon

Blueberry Tart

Brown Sugar Shortbread with Fig Jam

I am not much of a morning person. Usually I crawl out from under my warm covers, interrupting cuddle time with my dog, to silently make coffee while the haze gradually (VERY gradually) clears from my eyes and I can join the world of the awake. Some mornings it takes all my strength not to hit the snooze button for the umpteenth time. Other mornings, residents of our apartment complex apparently think I need some extra early waking-up. They call taxis at 4:30am, loudly explaining where they need to go. Conveniently, this happens right outside our first floor bedroom window. As these exchanges occur, I’m typically imagining what would happen if I walked outside and gave them a piece of my mind. But I’m too tired to move, let alone yell at someone broken Japanese that doesn’t make any sense. Too much effort before the dawn has cracked.

This morning was classic. The dog had to be let out at about 3:00am, then an hour later a taxi pulled up outside followed by a 5 minute conversation that seemed to be happening in my room because the walls are paper thin. Then, at 7:00am, an ambulance drove by. At 8:30am I finally decided to give up trying to sleep and make some coffee and breakfast. I have to say that it was worth it. The smell of scones baking was enough to make me see the bright side of life.

Walking with Callie and looking at the beautiful plum blossoms that have been bursting over the past few days only made things better. Who can complain about a day that began with scones, coffee, and soaking in Japan’s beauty?

What are you favorite ways to begin a weekend morning?

*I used the pinewood boat, medium, from restaurantware.com in this post. You can purchase eco-friendly products like catering supplies and plastic plates from restaurantware.com and receive 10% off by entering the coupon code: tokyoterrace. For the dish used in this post, click here to purchase.

Cranberry-Citrus Whole Wheat Scones

Makes 1 dozen small scones

1 cup all-purpose or bread flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup dried cranberries

zest from 1 orange and 2 meyer lemons/1 regular lemon

8 tablespoons butter, frozen for about 30 minutes

1/3 cup plain yogurt

1 egg

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, 200 degrees C.

In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking soda and powder, salt, sugar and cinnamon. Add the cranberries and zests. Use a cheese grater to add the butter. Break up the butter in the dry ingredients with your fingers until crumbly.

Combine the egg and yogurt in a small bowl and mix together with a fork. Add to the dry ingredients using a fork to combine. When the dough has begun to cling together but is still a combination of sticky and dry, use your hands to create a ball of dough.

Turn the dough onto a floured surface and gently knead until the dough’s consistency is nearly smooth. Form about an 8-inch round. Cut the dough into triangles and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.

I have really loved my time at home over the past two weeks. It is always great to be able to spend time with family after months of seeing one another only on a computer screen over iChat or Skype. While it is wonderful to have technology that is advanced enough so we can see the faces of our loved ones no matter where in the world we are, still, nothing takes the place of being within arms reach of your family and friends. This morning we enjoyed some face-to-face time with my parents and sister over a delicious New Year’s Day brunch.

I found this recipe on the Martha Stewart for iPad application, which is pretty amazing. The concept is similar to spanakopita. The original recipe calls for feta cheese, which would be fantastic. I didn’t have feta so I used shredded Romano instead. It was good but lacking in the tang that feta has in contrast to the creamy ricotta. Another change I made was the use of frozen spinach rather than fresh. It saved a little time since I didn’t need to cut the leaves. If you decide to make this with frozen spinach, be sure to squeeze out as much of the water as possible by putting the spinach in several layers of paper towels or in a dish towel. Squeeze over the sink until a small amount of water comes out.

The ricotta and egg mixture is covered with 3 layers of phyllo dough and each layer is brushed with clarified butter.

After just 5 minutes, these delicious pockets are done and ready to be eaten! The light, crisp phyllo is the perfect addition to the creamy cheese and velvety egg yolk.

This was the perfect way to begin the first day of 2011 and the last day of our time in Minnesota. Tomorrow we fly back to Tokyo. Time always moves so quickly…

Phyllo Squares with Baked Egg, Spinach and Cheese

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes 6 servings

8 oz. frozen spinach

1 cup ricotta cheese

3/4 cup shredded Romano cheese

7 large eggs

1 stick unsalted butter

6 sheets phyllo dough, thawed

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Thaw the spinach according to package directions and make sure to squeeze the water out as much as possible, although a small amount of water is fine. Set the spinach aside in a small bowl. While you are thawing the spinach, clarify the butter by placing it in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat the butter until the solids sink to the bottom of the pan. Keep a close eye on the butter to make sure it doesn’t cook too quickly to get too hot. Use a coffee filter to strain out the solids from the butter. Keep the clarified butter and a pastry brush close by.

3. In another bowl, combine the ricotta and Romano. Season with salt and black pepper. Add the spinach and stir to combine. Stir in 1 of the eggs.

4. Brush a baking sheet with clarified butter. Place one layer of phyllo dough on the baking sheet and brush it with butter as well. Repeat with two more layers so have 3 sheets of dough as a base. Keep a damp towel over the dough you are not using as you work- it gets difficult to work with if its too dry.

5. Evenly space 6 scoops of the spinach mixture on the phyllo dough. Use a spoon to make a shallow well in the mixture. With the remaining 6 eggs, separate the yolks from the whites keeping the whites for later use. Carefully place a yolk in each of the spinach scoops. Gently whisk the egg whites and brush the top of the ricotta lightly.

6. Carefully place another layer of phyllo over the spinach and egg. Gently press down around the mixture lightly sealing the top layer to the bottom layer. Brush the phyllo with clarified butter. Repeat with 2 more layers so you have three total on the top.

7. Use a pastry cutter or pizza cutter to cut around the mixture, making 6 squares. Bake for 5 or 6 minutes until lightly brown and still soft in the middle. Serve right away!

It’s not often that I get out of bed thinking “I want to make breakfast! Something more complicated than cereal and milk, or fried eggs and toast!” No, usually I get out of bed thinking, “Why is there not a cup of coffee in my hand right now?!?” Apparently all I need to get my butt in gear is a situation worth getting panicky about.

Let me explain.

This is our dog Callie:

As I write this post, Callie is on a plane to Tokyo. This has been a long, hard journey for her, for us, and for our family. It all began 2 years ago when we had to leave her behind as we ventured out into the great unknown of life in Japan. We weren’t sure how well dogs would be accepted in the country so we thought it best to say a temporary goodbye to our pup. As it turns out, dogs are actually very popular in Tokyo. When we realized this, it took about 2 milliseconds to decide that Callie would join us.

The paperwork was a nightmare, as expected. But once everything was finalized and we scheduled her flight we figured we were out of the woods.

Oh boy were we wrong.

Yesterday (Friday in the U.S. and Saturday in Japan) Callie was supposed to get on a plane. However, a lovely employee at my least favorite airline informed my mom, who has been wonderful about taking care of Callie through all of this, the wrong time to be at the airport. After arriving at the airport, mom was told that Callie would not be allowed on the flight because she was late.

So we rescheduled the flight, confirmed that she would still be accepted at Narita Airport in Japan, and booked a car (since we don’t own one) for today. Whew, right? Yeah, not done yet…

The quarantine office where Callie needs to be looked over and given the ‘OK’ for entry into Japan closes at 7pm today. Her flight was originally supposed to land at 5:30pm, giving us just enough time for the final step before she came home with us.

Her flight was delayed by almost 4 hours. Meaning we will miss the 7pm cut-off time.

*Since I wrote this post, we have figured out that Callie will be here late tonight. We will pick her up tomorrow afternoon and bring her home then. Currently she is half-way to Tokyo!

I was so worked up and frustrated this morning. What could I do with myself? How could I channel all the energy that felt like it would explode out of my ears?

I made pancakes. They were delicious; crispy on the outside, moist and soft on the inside, and full of flavor. Cinnamon Polenta Pancakes, slightly adapted, from Food & Wine Magazine’s website, turned out beautifully. Even if I did brown them a bit too much. Less-than-perfect pancakes execution for a less-than-perfect day, right? Even so, it turned out that making breakfast this morning was exactly what I needed. Who knew panicking and pancakes went so well together?

Needless to say, my plans for doing oodles of blogging this weekend have been derailed. But here is the recipe for the pancakes with a little twist: yogurt in place of buttermilk.

Cinnamon Polenta Pancakes

Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine

Serves 4

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 cup plain yogurt
2 large eggs, beaten
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup water

In a bowl, whisk the flour with the cornmeal, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a bowl, whisk the yogurt with the eggs, olive oil and water. Whisk the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients, leaving small lumps.
Set a griddle or skillet over moderate high heat and spray it with vegetable oil spray. When the pan is hot, spoon in 1/4-cup mounds of batter and spread to form 4-inch rounds. Cook the pancakes until the bottoms are browned and bubbles appear on the surface, 2 minutes. Flip and cook until browned on the bottom, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Serve the pancakes warm.

There are times when I wonder how it is physically (or mentally) possible to be so busy. Brad and I have both been pulled in about fifty directions over the past few weeks, leaving my kitchen and blog a little cold and lonely. From traveling to Hawaii to moving to our third apartment in the past 2 years we have been running around like chickens with our heads cut off. We are blessed with work and friends and fun that keep us on our toes and help us to appreciate the times when we are able to slow down and soak in some slower, more silent moments.

Our new home has become a haven for us in the midst of the chaos that is Tokyo. Coming home to an apartment with a patio surrounded with beautiful plants, filled with the sounds of chirping birds and flanked by friendly neighbors is a welcome change to our previous apartment where street noise was constant and we didn’t exactly feel welcomed by the other tenants. To be honest, it doesn’t really feel like we live in Tokyo until we leave the confines of our new little world. Me likey.

Still, in the whirlwind of our lives, simple, delicious, seasonal home-cooked meals are imperative to helping us keep our sanity. In the markets these days you can find nice little cherry tomatoes, sugar snap peas, and fava beans galore. The foods are fresh and brightly colored which makes it perfect for spring-time dishes. For breakfast the other day, I wanted to stay true to the freshness and sweet flavors of the tomatoes and sugar snap peas. So, with a quick sautee in a little olive oil, a sprinkling of salt and pepper, and accompanied by a fried egg, my simple breakfast came together in about 5 minutes. To add a little Cinco de Mayo flare, I added some fresh cilantro leaves from my herb garden, a sprinkling of jalapeno-flavored Tabasco sauce and I was done!

I am looking forward to more simple spring meals in the coming days. Too often I find myself getting wrapped up in making dishes complex. For some reason that seems to be more impressive. However, meals like this remind me that the food itself, in its simplest form, can often be far more impressive than anything else. Simple, uncomplicated and honest.

Surprises are great. No matter how big or small. It’s as if someone just decided that it doesn’t matter if it is your birthday, anniversary, etc. You don’t have to do anything extraordinary. You just deserve a surprise.

Today, for example, began cloudy and looking full of rain. By the time I biked home this afternoon, the clouds had blown away and the sun was shining brightly. The best part of this surprise was the sunset over the Tamagawa (Tama River) just outside of our apartment. The sun looked like a perfectly round, pinkish-orangish-redish ball sinking behind the horizon. The purple sky surrounding it only enhanced its beauty.

Surprises never last long. Just like today’s sunset. Often, surprises are uncapturable by a camera. I tried taking a photo of the sinking sun, but it did no justice to what I was actually looking at. Every photo that I took robbed the view of its brilliance. So, I hope my words are sufficient and have put a lovely picture in your imaginations.

Another surprise for me today happened in the kitchen. Brad was working tonight and I had high hopes for my dinner at home. I was going to clean and cook my first whole red snapper. This is something I have been aching to do for months and months, but the timing has not worked out. Today, I thought, was my day.

Well, I’d love to continue with a glowing success story of my gutting a fish all alone and serving a beautifully cooked meal. Alas, it did not go that way. Here is the short story of what happened…

I would like you to meet Doug (cue music of danger) *dun dun dunnnnn…..*

Doug is the Red Snapper I bought at the grocery store today. He is a beautiful specimen. Small in size, perfect for a single diner, with beautifully pink coloring and clear eyes. (Note: don’t name your fish before cleaning- it only becomes that much more difficult to tear their guts out in the end). I probably spent about 15 minutes just staring at Doug, lifeless on my white plastic cutting board. I wondered what he looked like swimming around in the Pacific Ocean. I wondered about the fisherman who caught him. And the person who packaged him so beautifully before he was put on the shelf at the grocery store.

I blame this series of events on the book I am currently reading: The Omnivore’s Dilema by Michael Pollan. Anyone out there read it? It’s brilliant and totally worth the read. However, you have to be ready to question whether you really are worthy, or informed enough, to digest that cow, chicken, or in this case, fish. I can’t help but think about exactly where my food came from after reading that book. And I am thankful for that. Too often we forget that our food came from somewhere, something, and someone.

Back to Doug. I had read up on all the best ways to gut a fish. I had the step-by-step down to a science. Or so I thought. Just to clarify before I go on- I have no problem eating meat or fish. I can watch someone gut a fish, for example, I just can’t do it myself. Yet.

I prepared myself for the big moment. The first incision would be an easy one, right?

The moment my knife cut into Doug’s poor little belly, I cringed and froze. I was nearly paralyzed at the thought of removing any bloody guts.

Uh oh. Now what?

What will I do for dinner?

Brad wasn’t home, so he couldn’t save the day on his white horse. So, I quietly wrapped Doug in some plastic wrap, gently placed him back in the refrigerator, and searched through my kitchen for some new inspiration.

Here is what I found: fingerling potatoes, dill, eggs, onions, goat cheese, and lemons.

Ok, I can work with that. I chopped 2 of the small potatoes and half of the onion. They were tossed in a pan with some olive oil and cooked until browned and crispy on the outside. I boiled some water to poach 2 eggs. Next, I chopped about 3 tablespoons of dill and tossed it in with the potatoes along with some salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper. I transferred the potatoes to a dish. After poaching the eggs, they were placed on top of the potatoes, added a dollop of goat cheese, a sprig of dill and a small wedge of lemon.

Voila!

My dinner appeared in front of me in no more than 15 minutes. Surprise!

Like I said, I love surprises.

I finally woke up at 11am this morning after a long night of much needed sleep. While enjoying a cup of coffee with Brad, I had the urge to make something special for breakfast. Being that it was already after 11am, I decided it should be a brunch appropriate meal. The decision was an easy one: eggs benedict. So, I hopped on my bicycle and rode to the grocery store.

My mom used to make eggs benedict on Sunday mornings every once in a while. Her hollandaise sauce was always so creamy and flavorful and soaked in perfectly to the toasted english muffins along with the egg yolks. The canadian bacon sandwiched between the bread and egg added just the right amount of salty flavor to round out the meal. This was my first attempt at making my own eggs benedict and I made a couple of small changes. Rather than using english muffins, I used fresh baked white bread from a bakery down the street. In place of Canadian bacon I used smoked salmon. Lastly, I added a side of sauteed asparagus.

For the recipe for the hollandaise sauce, click here.