tofu and mushroom miso hot pot

4 inches of snow expected in a day or two, time for more japanese hot pot. this time, with tofu and mushrooms and a bit of sweet potato. yum. making this again tonite. real comfort food, with vegetables and a delicious, rich and satisfying broth.

tofu mushroom miso hot pot

broth

4 cups dashi

1/2 cup white miso pate

1/4 cup mirin

first layer

1 large onion, sliced

1/2 cup green or savoy cabbage, chopped intot bite size pieces

2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

1 large sweet potato, peeled and thinly sliced, and chopped into quarters

2nd layer

1 pound firm tofu cut into 8 pieces

2 oz harusame or bean thread noodles, soaked in warm water until softened, about 10-20 minutes

4 oz shitake mushrooms, sliced

3rd layer

3 oz shimeji mushrooms

2 oz enoki mushrooms

1 leek, sliced

final layer

2 cups spinach leaves

1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced

You make this the same way as the salmon hot pot: layering.

start with mixing your broth ingredients. place the onions in the bottom of your medium large pot. next scatter the cabbage and potato and sweet potato. pour over the broth, bring to a boil and cover, simmer for 3 minutes. add the tofu, bean thread noodles and shitakes. cover, simmer for 5 minutes more. now add the third leayer, simmer for 2 minutes. now add the final layer, simmer for 1 minute more. bring pot to the table and ladle into bowls. enjoy with soup spoons and chopsticks. itadakimas.

muji cafe marunouchi

tokyo. where to begin? muji cafe. we were fortunate to be staying in marunouchi, a newly fashionable area with a lot of great shops, restaurants and cafes. especially exciting for us was muji cafe. we love all things muji. we fell in love with muji stores in tokyo and they expanded to new york, london, paris, and rome. we have been enjoying their wares ever since, and now a cafe. hooray muji. here is what we were eating, fried tofu patty (gonmae or gonmo or gonmodoki) and salads, hijiki romaine, and napa cabbage with slivered carrots and apple. great pastries and things also. very pleasing and comfortable in every way. always the flatterer, my youngest child said, "the food here reminds me of your food mom." what i am thinking this means is, "obsessed with vegetables." i have just now realized that nearly every post so far on this new little blog has been about vegetables and maybe some fruits. even the pie was a squash pie. i guess i am obsessed because i would love gigantic photos of vegetables on our walls.