My daughter loves miso soup. You know, the kind they give you at the Japanese restaurant that usually has cubes of tofu and slivers of seaweed? Well my daughter who swears to hate anything seafood loves miso soup. She tolerates the seaweed or just picks them out when she sees them. But I haven't told her that the stock base for miso soup is made of fish stock. Or rather, flavored with dried bonito flakes. Did you know that?

Did you also know that the main ingredient of the soup, MISO, is made of fermented soy beans? My daughter does not mind this so much. She loves edamame! Salt and koji fungus are also added to fascilitate the fermentation process along.

The final product that I buy is a tub like the one pictured below at the Asian market. It's usually in the refrigerated section.



It is a thick paste, golden in color, has a slightly sour, fermented smell and very salty. I have been buying it mainly to make my daughter's miso soup. Then a few weeks ago, I ran across this recipe for Miso Dip, and I just fell in love with it!

MISO DIP

It's so simple, I don't know why I never thought of doing it before. The dip, which is really more of a condiment that you can use to accompany a variety of dishes, is simply miso paste sauteed with garlic, onions and tomatoes. Nothing could be simpler! But oh the possibilities of using this condiment is endless!

So far, we've used it as a flavor enhancer for soups, a dip for fried fish and pork chops, added it to curried dishes, and my favorite, as a pasta sauce!

I'll post more photos and recipes of miso dip inspired dishes as I get to them.
Now if you would like to learn more specific and detailed information about Miso, check out this page about Hatcho Miso for some very interesting facts.

While some, like my husband, can't understand why there's five different kinds of vinegar in our cupboard, any cook will tell you that you need all the different types of vinegar for varying purposes. One of the staples in our cupboard is rice vinegar. I use this mainly for making sushi rice and making the delicate types of salad dressings.

One of the best brands for rice vinegar is Nakano. NAKANO Seasoned Rice Vinegar is all natural, fat free, low calorie, gluten free and contains 50% less sodium than other rice vinegars. It is made from whole grain rice and naturally brewed in a traditional manufacturing process that began in Japan more than 200 years ago. Check their website for great information about the history and manufacture of rice vinegar. NAKANO’s web site also has recipes and fun to try splash tips.

As you'll see on the website, you can use seasoned vinegar for almost anything, not just salads. For a person like me who lives for the dipping sauce, rice vinegar is a must. Why I even dip green apples in rice vinegar when the mood strikes me!

Another great benefit for using Nakano Seasoned Rice Vinegar as your condiment of choice is that it is also healthy. For instance, see how it compares to mayonnaise:
1 Tablespoon of NAKANO Seasoned Rice Vinegar = 20 calories, 0 fat
1 Tablespoon of mayo = 90 calories, 10g of fat

0 grams of fat! You can't get any lower than than. Besides it being good tasting and good for you, Nakano Seasoned Rice Vinegars are also available in a variety of flavors: Original Seasoned, Roasted Garlic, Basil & Oregano, Red Pepper, Balsamic Blend and Italian Herb.

If you're like me and just won't take someone's word for anything, I suggest giving Nakano rice vinegars a try yourself. Right now there is a $1.00 off coupon for NAKANO online. You can join the NAKANO Splash Recipe Club too. They send out really cool newsletters that have great cooking themes. The last one was all about Caribbean flavors.

I don't know why the word Tahini always makes me want to dance. LOL!

Anyway, if you didn't know, Tahini is a sesame seed paste that is used as a condiment in many middle eastern and Mediterranean cooking. Some Asian cuisines also use tahini or sesame seed paste in addition to sesame oil that imparts that distinctly Chinese food aroma we have all grown accustomed to.

There are many brands of bottled sesame paste on the markets but it is so easy to prepare and the homemade version is so much better than anything you can buy, that why bother? Try making your own and you won't regret it. You won't go back to buying the bottled stuff ever again. It's also a whole lot cheaper when you make it yourself.

One thing to remember is that the oil in homemade sesame paste can go rancid pretty quickly. The bottled stuff keeps longer because of all the preservatives they put in there. So if you're making your own, save your left overs in the refrigerator and try to use it up within the week if you can. The good thing about this is, you can make a little bit at a time so you won't have too much left over. Just buy a bag of sesame seeds so you always have them on hand, and keep them in the freezer to keep them fresh tasting.

Click here to see how we made our own Tahini or sesame seed paste.



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I first learned about Dulce de Leche from an Argentinian friend in high school. One time when I visited his house, he showed me how to make Dulce de Leche and I was amazed at how easy it was! (although his method is a bit scary)

First I'll tell you about the usual way it's made. Take a can of sweetened condensed milk, peel the label off without opening the can. Place the can of condensed milk and put in in a pot that is taller than the can. Cover the can with water, put a lid on the pot and let the water come to a boil. Lower the flame a little so that the water stays at a medium boil. Let it cook for 1.5-2 hours. If the water starts to evaporate, just add more hot water to keep the can covered.

Now here's my friends 20 minutes method, but I must warn you, do this at your own risk. He uses a pressure cooker! Yep, do the same as above, except put the can of condensed milk in a pressure cooker and cover it with water. Make sure you seal your cooker properly. Let the water come to a boil and when the pressure cooker starts to hiss, set your timer to 20 minutes. When the 20 minutes is up, DON'T OPEN YOUR PRESSURE COOKER. Let it cool on the stove until the little pressure thingy goes down. My friend admits he's opened his pressure cooker too soon before, and he ended up with dulce de leche all over his kitchen walls.

Make sure that whichever method you use, wait until the can of condensed milk has cooled before opening the can. What you'll find when you eventually get to open your can is some gooey and yummy and caramelly dulce de leche. So worth the risk and effort!

Of course, if you're not too comfortable with the risk, you can always buy them already pre-packaged from the store. :D


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Maybe it's only natural that, since I love reading vampire stories, I would also love garlic. Not that I'd want to keep away certain vampires. lol! I use garlic in just about everything I cook, but one of the best ways to enjoy the flavor of garlic is to fry it up and use it as a condiment. Sprinkle it on everything, even ice cream! Seriously, I dare you :)

Click here if you've never fried garlic before.



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Lisa Cooks recently tried out Country Bob's sauce and liked it so much she'd like others to try it. You know when 'free' and 'food' are linked I'm right there, so I'm entering Lisa's Country Bob's All Purpose Sauce giveaway. Lisa's husband tried out the sauce on some meatloaf and she says that it was delicious! If you visit Country Bob's website, there are also recipes on there on the different ways you can use the sauce.

If you want to try out Bob's sauce, make sure you visit Lisa's contest announcement for ways to win.



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Along with sweet basil, we also have a few very lush purple basil plants. So when I saw this recipe for Purple Basil Syrup on Calendula & Concrete, I knew I just had to try it. It is a perfect way of enjoying the pure flavor of purple basil.

Start out by getting about a cup worth of chopped purple basil (packed). Place basil in a saucepan along with 2 cups of water, 1 cup of sugar, and 2 Tablespoons of lemon juice. Bring this to a boil. I let this boil until the liquid was reduced to about half. If you have a candy thermometer, you can also monitor the temperature until it gets to the syrup stage which on mine is about 230 degrees F. Remove from the heat and pour it through a strainer.

At this point, you will have this beautiful burgundy syrup that is infused with the scent and flavor of purple basil. We followed Christa's lead and served this with crepes and mango slices. It was delicious!

We still have plenty of purple basil, so we'll be sure to make more of this syrup.

We love cooking and eating Mexican food, and guacamole is one of our favorites either as a dip or as an accompaniment to any Mexican dish. However, we have also gotten into the habit of making it every time we cook out on the grill. It just pairs up well with grilled meats. This is a very simple version, and I find it works best with picky kid palates.

2-3 avocadoes, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
1 lime, juiced
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced fine
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic, finely minced and mashed
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

Mix all ingredients together, slightly mashing the avocado in the process. We like to leave some avocado chunks in our guacamole. Great to dip tortilla chips in or just a condiment for grilled meats.