Miso Happy

Mugi miso is the best type of miso to use daily.  

Miso is a macrobiotic staple.  It is a protein-rich soybean paste made from ingredients such as soybeans, barley, and brown or white rice.  Miso is used in soup stocks and as a seasoning.  When consumed on a regular basis, it aids circulation and digestion.  Mugi miso is made from barley, soybeans, and sea salt, is fermented for about 18-24 months, and is the best type of miso for daily use.  Try consuming miso soup once or twice a day.  It's very medicinal and one of the few sources of protein in the macro diet.  Also beware of miso soup in regular japanese restaurants because they most likely use a fish broth or add bonito flakes to it.  

Miso Soup

1. Soak some wakame ( 1/4 to 1/2 inch piece per person) in cold water for about five minutes and cut it into small pieces.

2. Add soaked wakame to fresh, cold water and bring to boil. 

3. Dilute miso ( 1/2 - 1 level teaspoon per cup of broth) in a little water, add to soup, and simmer for three to four minutes on a low flame, do not bring the soup to a boil once the miso has been added.  Garnish the soup with small amounts of finely chopped fresh parsley or scallions before serving.

*You may also cook veggies in the soup such as shiitake mushrooms, kale, collards, watercress, carrots, ontions, etc.  Occasional use of leftover grains or beans may be added as well to thicken the soup, as well as sliced tofu or mochi.  But be sure once again to not boil the miso, this will kill the medicinal properties of the miso.


Miso Squash Soup


1. Boil 5 cups of water.  Add 1 medium onion (cut in to half-moons, about 1 cup) and 2 cups of cubed acorn squash cut into 1-inch chunks.  Cover and simmer at medium-low for several minutes.


2.  Add 1/2 cup sliced wakame (washed and soaked) and simmer for 2-3 mins.


3.  Reduce flame to very low and add 4-5 tsp pureed miso.  Garnish with chopped scallions and serve.


Miso Pickles


1. Wash a variety of root vegetables under water, scrubbing with vegetable brush.  Let sit whole in a cool shady place for about a day, or until soften so that you can bend it in a curve.


2.  Cut into medium-thick diagnoal slices and place in a jar of miso so it's completely covered.  Pickling should be done in 3-7 days.  Rinse before serving and take only small amounts.

My body nourishment routine

Doing a body scrub once or twice a day is recommended to open skin pores to promote smooth and regular elimination of excess fat and toxins, help activate circulation, promote clear and clean skin, and help discharge fat that has accumulated under the skin. Try doing the following early in the morning (after a workout is great) and at night before you shower.


1. Dip a small cotton towel or cloth in hot water. Wring out excess water.

2. Scrub the whole body, dipping the towel or cloth into hot water again when cool. Include the hands and feet, each finger and toe.

3. The skin should become pink or slightly red. This result may take a few days to- achieve if the skin is clogged with accumulated fats.


In the morning right after I do my body scrub I like to use Sea Buckthorn body lotion by Weleda.  The scent wakes me right up and leaves my skin feeling soft:

At night I love using the Birch line from Weleda.  I use the body scrub in the shower 3 times a week and the body oil daily after my nightly macro body scrub.

Give these routines a go and feel the difference inside and out ;)

Restaurant Review: Inaka

My favorite restaurant is Inaka in Los Angeles, CA.  It's home-cooked macrobiotics at its finest.  Although they do serve fish since it's very traditional macrobiotics, everything is vegan otherwise and super delicious and healing.  Here's my usual order from them:

The Inaka Plate which is a combined country style vegetable plate of brown rice, beans, stewed root veggies, sea vegetables, daikon, sprouts, kale, tsukemono, gobo (burdock), kabocha (pumpkin), tofu dipp, and lotus root.  This is the ultimate balanced macro meal :D

They have a choice of 2 desserts on the menu, but one time I went and they were having a special of vegan tiramisu.  All of their desserts are vegan and sweetened by either fruit juice, maple syrup, or barley malt.

Chocolate Tofu Mousse topped with walnut and oat bran.  MY FAVORITE!!  Very light and fluffly.

Apple Kanten topped with walnut and oat bran.  Really refreshing.

Special:  Vegan Tiramisu with 3 layers of light tofu mousse.

You have got to head down to Inaka and try it yourself.  I promise you'll walk out feeling relaxed and just nourished inside.  The decor is very plane inside with white walls and tables, but that's what makes everything serene.  Parking is metered outside on La Brea, below is a picture I took of the hours for the street parking so make sure you plan accordingly.  

Inaka Restaurant

131 S La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036

(323) 936-9353

Adoption time!

I also adopted a turkey for this Thanksgiving and hope to adopt another one for Christmas as well ;)  Here's my lovely adopted turkey Amelinda!  When you make an adoption you receive a certificate in the mail with a photo.  This is a great way to give back during this holiday, and they are in much need of our help this time of year:  http://www.farmsanctuary.org/index.html

I hope you all consider adoption for Christmas:  http://action.farmsanctuary.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=22481.0&printer_friendly=1  

Thanksgiving Highlights

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!! Hope you all had a great time with family and friends :)  Here's some pics of the food I made from my planned thanksgiving menu.

Peppered Seitan 

Cornbread muffins

Scarlet Roasted Vegetables

Altogether with some shiitake kuzu gravy and roasted brussel sprouts and onions.

Blueberry Coucous cake

Travel Food

I'm on my way to Honolulu, HI tomorrow to meet up with my family for Thanksgiving :)  You could always request a vegan/vegetarian meal on the flight ahead of time but I've done that sooo many times, and every time I have been disappointed.  Either they got my order but do not have my meal on the plane, which leaves me starving for the next 6 hours, or they do have my meal and it's allwayyss Indian food which can make me feel a little ill when traveling :(  So solution is to bring your own food.  Of course this has to be something that passes through security (no liquids and in some cases, like traveling from hawaii, no fruits or seeds) and does not spoil because it's a long flight and you can't use ice packs.  Solution...rice balls!!!!  Putting some ume paste or part of an ume plum in the middle allows you to have these rice balls for up to 3 days without refrigeration.  I had these with San-J instant miso cup.  What's great about this one is that they use miso paste, not miso powder like other brands, it's portable, and all natural.  Just ask the flight attendant to add some hot water and you're all set.  Here's a great trick to use for a clean way to make rice balls.

Place some brown rice in the middle of some saran wrap and part of an umeboshi plum in the center.

Put more brown rice on top to cover the umeboshi plum and then wrap up the saran in your hand and twist the top.  Mold it into a ball to make sure the rice completely covers the plum.  

Finally, shape the ball into a triangle, unwrap and place it in the center of a sheet of seaweed.  Completely wrap the triangle in the seaweed and seal with water. 

Basic Macro Breakfast

Basics of a macro breakfast is porridge and greens, even adding a side of miso soup would be great.

Porridge 
It's important to use only whole grains.  My favorite mix is millet with brown rice and forbidden black rice.  However, you can mix any whole grains you want:  buckwheat, buhatnese rice, sweet brown rice, etc.  Place 1/2c of mixed whole grains in rice cooker and fill up to slightly passed the mark inside the rice pot that says "Porridge-0.5"  Then you can set the timer that you want the porridge ready by in the morning.  Be sure to top it off with some shredded nori or seaweed flakes (here i used dulse flakes).  *better to get ones that have no added salt*

Steamed Greens
Any of the following greens are good, you can even mix them up if you want:  collard greens, kale, chinese/napa cabbage, bok choy, broccoli/broccolini/rapini.  Be sure to stay away from spinach.  Steam in a pot with either a steamer plate or you can fill pot with little bit of water and steam it that way.

Be sure to eat this breakfast slowly so your body can easily digest in the morning.