Tonkotsu Ramen #2: Noodles

This is the second step in making a great Ramen - homemade ramen noodles.

Very easy to make, this recipe gives you smooth, tasty, tender noodles. A much better option in comparison to the ones you buy in stores.

They can be used immediately, prepared a day ahead or even dried out for future use. Whichever suits you the best!

Tonkotsu Ramen #1: Soup Stock

This is the first step in making a great Tonkotsu Ramen (or Pork Bone Ramen) - the soup stock.
Taking up to 6h of your time, it is the base and thus non avoidable step. However, since the soup will be cooking for at least 5h while needing little attention, you can use those hours to prepare the other ingredients, or on the other hand.... just do whatever you wish to. (^.^)

It's Ramen time!!!

Mmmmm...Ramen dattebayo! Ever since I started watching Naruto I got intrigued by this dish, who wouldn't when that little clumsy ninja never says no to one. :) Well, can't blame him - a big pot full of soup and other delicious ingredients just can't be bad right? And it definitely is not! After trying it in Toronto I got the Naruto fever and decided to make my own :).

Now, this is not a quick recipe, it's the old fashioned make it from scratch - soup stock and all.
If you want to make it easier you can use dehydrated soup stocks (dashi) and ready to use noodles, but those will be taken into account in another post ;).
This one is a long, delicious, homemade ramen :) , soup base: pork.

(divided into a couple of posts to make it easier to read - let me know if you want me to combine them into one)

Chocolate chips - Cake cover

As promised here I am with a new post and it's time for chocolate! :)
Few months ago while browsing one of my favorite sites, I ended up on a rather interesting decoration - chocolate chips with a Totoro design. Instantly an idea popped in my mind - this is perfect for the cake I'm planning!
At that time I was planning my sister's 30.bday cake, and the chocolate chips gave me the freedom yet precision I was looking for in it's decoration. It took some planning, a steady hand and several hours but the result was more than satisfying!

Oven Baked Mackerel with new potatoes and dried tomatoes

Wohoho. It's been a while now both for writing and cooking. Also it looks as if it will be a while more as well.

It just happens that when you love cooking that much - carefully picking the ingredients comes just naturally, and with nowadays available selection you start thinking what and where to buy it. Long story short (trust me it could be rather long, way back to my childhood :)), we're building a vertical garden on our terrace!

We already have tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins, strawberries, herbs, salads and more, growing in small pots. Not to mention medical herbs, flowers, bamboos, a japanese red maple and a wisteria. All waiting up for this weekend, when we'll be assembling the construction that should feed us with fresh fruits, vegetables and spices for the next few months \(^.^)/.

The planning and researching took most of my time, so here am I today, sharing a simple yet tasty recipe - both to cook and to write (^.^).

P.S.

If you wish me to share more info on the vertical garden, aka green wall with drip irrigation system, just say so ;)