Homemade Ume Shu (Plum Liqueur)

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Sorry for the long lapse in posts, things have been crazy here recently! Not only did a take a long (and well deserved) vacation to Montréal (more  on that later), but I recently got engaged! If you care to see all of my wedding-related inspiration, you can hop on over to my “Wedding Ponderings” board on Pinterest.

The perfect drink for a celebration, and for the summer is ume shu (梅酒). Translated as plum wine or plum liqueur, this drink can be served on its own as a cordial, on the rocks, or used more like a syrup and mixed with soda water. Ume shu is one of my favorite drinks because it reminds me of my time spent in Japan as a student, and later a teacher. It was the prefect drink to cool off with during the hot, muggy summers at the end of a long day. Even the cheap ume shu in Japan seemed to taste better than whatever I could find here, so I would always stock up when I was there. Now that I know I can make my own for less than the baggage overage-fees, I’ll be on the lookout for ume in the store constantly.

7898_10100987043368986_2069828772_n If you can find ume (green plums) in your local supermarket, it’s not that hard to make your own ume shu–all you need is soju/shochu, rock sugar, and ume plums. The hardest thing is waiting 3 months for your concoction to be ready!

If you want to buy plum wine, it’s pretty affordable and readily available in stores. My favorite is Hakutsuru, but a good backup is Takara or Kinsen. Those are both a bit hard to find, but I know Choya and even Gekkeikan are available at wine shops, Cost Plus World Market, and Asian groceries.

The recipe I used is from Kitchn, but other bloggers such as Miss Mochi have their own tutorials as well. I had already made my ume shu by the time I saw this video, but it’s also a great way to learn too.

Homemade Ume Shu (Plum Liqueur) Recipe

By nicole Published: June 27, 2013

    This recipe is made in a quart glass jar. The measurements for sugar and ume below are approximate. You'll want to measure the weight of your plums and use half that weight in sugar (2:1 ratio).

    Ingredients

    Instructions

    1. Wash the plums and remove the stems. The stems are small and deep, so use a toothpick or your pinky fingernail to dig them out.
    2. Place a layer of plums in the jar, then a layer of rock sugar, then a layer of plums, then a layer of rock sugar. Continue until all the plums and sugar are used up.
    3. Pour the alcohol in the jar until there's about an inch of alcohol over the top of the plums.
    4. Put the lid on the jar securely and store the plums in a cool, dark place. Shake the jar occasionally to help the sugar mix with the alcohol.
    5. After 5 to 6 months, the umeshu is ready to drink.
    6. However, this liqueur mellows with age, so you may notice a different flavor after a year or two. Try making a few different batches, and drink one after 6 months, drink the other after a year, and drink the next after 2 years.

      May Foodie Penpals

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      Our Foodie Penpals package was from Carrie!

      What we got was: mango passionfruit tea, cinnamon apple chamomile tea, blueberry superfruit tea, lemon ginger tea, vanilla chai tea, acai berry tea, green tea, green superfruit tea, chamomile tea, licorice spice tea, english breakfast tea, hazelnut coffee, banana chocolate chip muffin mix (with a recipe), 5 pieces of Dove chocolate, almond milk (to use with the muffin mix), cherry cola, coconut cream pie lara bar, hemp granola bar, dandelion and burdock soda, and a lovely note!

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      The sodas look really interesting. Nicole LOVES that brand of Dandelion & Burdock soda. Cherry Cola is my favorite type of soda, besides Shirley Temples. The tea array was great. It really was a wonderful variety for me to try. All of them were good! The coconut cream bar sounds delectable. I will have to try it soon! The chocolates are always welcome in any package!

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      I made the banana muffin cups already because I had perfectly 3 over ripe bananas and I wanted to make something with them – how perfect. The almond milk was the perfect size to use with the recipe too. Only complaint I have is that I need to make those muffins again. Perfect for breakfast! I would add a pinch of sugar in the mix if I did it again. Or drizzle honey (Nicole’s suggestion) on top. I did sprinkle some on top and baked them a little more and that seemed to work okay.

      What we sent to Jean

      What we sent to Jean

      We sent to Jean, from Alabama! She loved her package and sent us a nice email and a picture.

      For more information on Foodie Penpals, follow the link below.

      The Lean Green Bean

      Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

      By Ariel Published: June 24, 2013

      • Yield: 15 muffins (15 Servings)
      • Prep: 5 mins
      • Cook: 30 mins
      • Ready In: 35 mins

      This recipe came in our May 2013 Foodie Pen Pal package from Carrie.

      Ingredients

      Instructions

      1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a bowl. Let sit while you prepare the muffin pans.
      2. Spray a muffin pan with non-stick spray or line with cupcake/muffin liners. Divide the mixture into 15 muffins. They should be almost all the way filled up.
      3. Bake 20-30 minutes, or until brown around the edges and are firm to the touch. The muffins may stick when hot, but can be removed when cooled down a bit.

        Rhubarb Ginger Crumble Bars

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        Have you ever tried rhubarb? I’ve met many people who had never tried it, and of those that have tasted it, it seems people have a love/hate relationship with it. If I had to describe rhubarb, I’d have to say it’s as if strawberry and celery had a child. It goes well in baked recipes paired with sweet berries, or in this case, zingy ginger.

        This week at my office we’re having a bake sale and holding raffles for Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure®, ending with attendance at the race in DC. I’m thinking I might take a risk and make these rhubarb crumble bars. They’re pink and festive for breast cancer awareness, but will anyone buy them? Or maybe I’m secretly hoping no one buys them so I can eat them all.

        You can use this recipe as a base and swap out any fruit you like. I prefer it with a touch of cardamom in the crumb topping, but you can swap it out with a different spice or omit it altogether. Pink peppercorn would go nicely and be extra-festive.

        Rhubarb Ginger Crumble Bars Recipe

        By nicole Published: April 30, 2013

        • Yield: 16 Servings
        • Prep: 15 mins
        • Cook: 45 mins
        • Ready In: 60 mins

        This is a combination of two different recipes, one from Eat Make Read and one from Alexandra's Kitchen.

        Ingredients

        Instructions

        1. Preheat the oven to 375º. Grease a 9×13 inch pan.
        2. Prepare the dough: In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, flour, and baking powder. Mix in salt and lemon zest. Use a fork to blend in the butter and egg. The dough will be crumbly. Pat the dough into the prepared pan.
        3. Prepare the filling: In another bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently mix in the rhubarb and ginger. Sprinkle the rhubarb mixture evenly over the crust.
        4. Prepare the crumb topping: 4. Stir together flour, brown sugar, and salt. Add the butter and mix up with your fingers until clumps form. Sprinkle on top of rhubarb filling.
        5. Bake in preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

        Baked Ratatouille with Morels

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        I was given some dried morels from Marx Foods as part of their 5th Annual Morel Recipe Challenge and challenged to use these special mushrooms in a recipe where the primary method of cooking was baking.

        You may not have heard of morels before. I have had a few dishes that used morels in a very special way, including a chicken fried steak with morel gravy, but it is not something that pops up on menus too often. Morels are great at soaking up whatever they’re in. They’re great, earthy, sponges.

        From Marx Foods’ site:

        Morel mushrooms have a honeycombed, hollow, cone-shaped cap from 1 to 3 inches high. They grow naturally in a range of colors from tan to almost-black. Morels are one of the most prized and beloved wild mushroom varieties. People go wild for their buttery-earthy flavor and aroma.

        Unfortunately, their fresh season is fleeting, lasting roughly from May to July. Dried morels allow you to enjoy the flavor and beautiful appearance of morel mushrooms year round, and they’re very easy to rehydrate & cook with.

        Dried mushrooms are a great value. It takes about 5 pounds of fresh mushrooms to create 8 ounces of dried mushrooms. In addition, they can be shipped much more affordably than fresh or frozen mushrooms.

        One of my favorite savory, baked recipes is ratatouille. It’s a very flexible and predictable recipe that can be easily adapted to whatever ingredients you have on hand.

        morelschicken
        The first recipe I tried was Ina Garten’s Chicken with Morels, but I realized that while it has baking steps in it, the ingredients are cooked stovetop more than in the oven. I used the chicken I created using that recipe in this dish, but any protein can be used. You can also leave out meat all together and serve it with more quinoa to get the same protein punch. This keeps great in the fridge for leftovers, or frozen into lunch-sized portions.

        Go check out all the other entries in the 5th Annual Morel Recipe Challenge, and if you’re up for it, vote for my ratatouille!
        Thanks again to Marx Foods for the chance to play around with this funky ingredient.

        5th Annual Morel Challenge

        Note: I was given the dried morels free of charge from Marx Foods, though all thoughts and recipes are my own.

        Morel Ratatouille

        By nicole Published: April 26, 2013

        • Yield: 1 13x9 (8 Servings)
        • Prep: 20 mins
        • Cook: 50 mins
        • Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins

        This is one of my favorite base recipes. It's very flexible, predictable, and can be easily adapted to whatever ingredients you have on hand.

        Ingredients

        Instructions

        1. Steep the dried mushrooms in hot water while you are preparing. Preheat the oven to 375°.
        2. Dice the onion and garlic. Cook them in a pan with your sauce of choice (I've used indian curries, thai curries, italian pasta sauces, and mixtures of all). Let the sauce simmer while you slice the vegetables you are using (zucchini, squash, potatoes, red peppers, eggplant all work and are interchangeable). A mandolin works best, but you can cut them thinly by hand or with a food processor blade as well.
        3. Put half the sauce in the bottom of a 13x9" pan. Layer the vegetables closely together. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with the remaining sauce.
        4. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and a drizzle of olive oil and put in the oven for 30 minutes.
        5. Remove the pan from the oven and top with your pre-cooked protein of choice (or not!). Sprinkle with grated, melt-friendly cheese and pop in the oven for 15 more minutes.
        6. Serve as-is, or on top of quinoa. (You can cook quinoa in 20 minutes in a rice cooker!)

        Foodie Penpals: February & March

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        From Nicole: Due to a family vacation in March, my sister and I neglected to update for February and March for Foodie PenPals. Here’s what we received from this great program.

        February

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        For the February package, I received four types of teas (Darjeeling, Morocco Mint, Chamomile, and Bancha Hojicha), a chocolate grater, a chocolate bar, hemp hearts seeds, chai tea latte mix, edamame, spinach miso soup mix, luna cookie dough bar, yeast, fruit leather, dried porchini mushrooms, and almond butter to go pack.

        I just told her that I like to-go things (especially luna bars), tea, and Asian food. The mushrooms would taste great in the miso soup. I can imagine myself grating the chocolate over some risotto or a dessert like a pro. The almond butter tastes good squeezed on a fresh apple for a snack. The edamame, fruit leather, and luna bar would be great in a lunch or as snacks!

        Thanks for my lovely and creative package, Jolie!

        March

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        For my March package, I received Salted Caramel Starbucks hot chocolate packages, Cookies BBQ sauce, apple cinnamon English muffin slices, apple butter, a nutz over chocolate luna bar, chocolate chai tea latte mix, chicken seasoning, and a wonderful card.

        I really loved the hot chocolate packets, even though there wasn’t much caramel taste. Who can resist the rich Starbucks hot chocolate? I got the double chocolate for Christmas from my mom and boy, is that sweet!

        My dad already was itching to use the BBQ sauce on some chicken and wings. He used it all already! He loves it and wants to order more from their site. At $2-something a bottle, that’s so cheap! Who knew that Iowa had a hidden gem like this? It was delicious.

        The apple butter was great and the luna bar was my favorite flavor. The muffin slices were great for breakfast too.Thanks for my perfect package, Sandy!

        For more information on Foodie Penpals, follow the link below.

        The Lean Green Bean