I am not a waffle girl by any means. In fact, I do not think I like any breakfast dish that originates in batter form. However, I am quickly falling in love with Moffles. Moffles are mochi waffles, or mochi that is cooked in a waffle press. And for those of you who have not heard yet (and I am hoping not many of you have, or else this blog entry will seem super outdated!), moffles are the new popular dish in Japan. After reading an article on moffles sent to me by my dear friend Adam, I was intrigued and had to try making them on my own.
Mochi is a brown rice paste that is quite common in Japan. I learned about mochi last year through Emma, who likes to cook it up in a pan. I quickly fell in love with the way it puffs up and gets crispy when baked. However, cooking mochi in a waffle maker takes it to the next level. I "borrowed" my mom's panini maker (complete with waffle and crispelle slide in plates) and brought it to my apartment. All I did was cut two squares of mochi paste (try brands such as Grainaissance) with a sharp knife, and placed them in the waffle press. Of course I pushed a little to hard and broke the whole machine, so if you want to learn from my mistake, don't be so eager to fasten the clasp of the press. Just let it rest closed until the mochi starts to melt a bit. Once it has softened, you can press the lid down and snap it shut. The result is a crispy waffle on the outside, with a gooey chewy texture to the bite. I made a quick sauce of soft tofu (1/2 cup), agave nectar (1 tbsp), and matcha green tea powder (1/2 tsp) to serve it with. You can top mochi with both sweet and savory condiments, so I encourage you to try your own and let us know what happens. Also, mochi is a bit sticky, so don't pile the moffles on top of one another, or else they are impossible to peel apart. This is not the last you will see of Kitchen Caravan moffles, because we will be experimenting for awhile ahead! In any case, we hope you try these fun treats and join us in the moffle craze!

So right now my boyfriend is on his way back to Italy, after a delicious Easter weekend. He loved the date and yogurt creme brulees, and when compared with dark chocolate walnut cookies, he preferred the brulee! Something went wrong with the recipe, and they did not come out as smoothly as usual, but he gobbled them up regardless. I was so happy to watch him enjoying my dessert! I also was relieved because I was in charge of the desserts for Easter Sunday lunch. He loved the Zuccotto recipe I made, which was taken from an old issue of Vogue Entertaining and Travel from Australia. Anyway, I am starting to think that maybe the picky boyfriend is not so picky anymore, and in fact might like everything I make, or at least pretend to. In case you are wondering if he knows about these blog entries, he does, but he likes the attention!

If you have ever read my blog entries about my picky boyfriend you would know that I suffer a lot with this boy. See, I am dating an Italian, and no cuisine is ever as good as Italian, and no food is ever as good as Mamma's. I have made him soba noodles with a nice miso tahini dressing, my "Amor Prohibido" Pasta with acorn squash sauce, and my show stopping Champurrado Tart with dark chocolate and anise. I still have not gotten a compliment worthy of my labors, so I keep on trying. Maybe I am just masochistic. He is arriving tonight to spend Easter with me, and so I thought I would prepare the date and yogurt creme brulees that I consider one of my signature dishes. The challenge is that much greater because he does not even like dates. I know you are probably thinking that was a bad move, but just think that the rewards will be twofold if I succeed. The cremes are in the oven baking, and he is on a plane right now arriving. After he eats them I will tell you the results!

One of the coolest things that I have seen lately, which has slightly restored my faith in the world again is the Love Difference Confectionary Project. Chefs, confectioners, and artists were invited to develop sweet recipes with the aim of promoting shared experiences and understanding throughout the Mediterranean region. Michelangelo Pistoletto of Cittadellarte-Fondazione Pistoletto, the man who germinated the project, contributed his recipe for Halvah Ice Cream. The sweets were presented at the “Love Difference Ice Cream and Sweets as Cultural Passports” in La Spezia, Italy in late Feburary.
I found out about the Project through Julie Upmeyer of Caravansarai, a project space and meeting point in Istanbul. She created the “Two Times Tart” for Love Difference. “Two Times Tart” consists of half tart shells that were commissioned to a local baker. Each half circle is then filled with one of 9 recipes from Turkey and its 8 neighbors. The two halves form a whole, and bring together the tastes and textures of neighboring countries. The tart halves are to be eaten simultaneously, thus crossing cultures, geographical boundaries, or as Julie says “transgressing political tensions in the simple action of eating”. Unfortunately, you have to be in Istanbul to try the tarts, but we can always hope. My picks for the tart fillings would have to be Turkey and Syria.

Last year Whole Foods bought Wild Oats, which was another popular natural food store chain. I remember hearing the news at the time, but thought that it was a corporate matter, and that it would not bring about visible change to the customers. Silly me. I really like Whole Foods and can find almost everything that I am looking for when I shop there, but today I saw one of the negative sides of having a monopoly in the natural foods market.
There was a Wild Oats in my town long before Whole Foods arrived, and we always used to go there to buy our special organic products, and stay for lunch as a treat. When Whole Foods came into town, I started getting my groceries there. Recently, however, I had rediscovered the myriad bulk bins at Wild Oats. They carried spelt flakes, barley flakes, and other more hard to find whole grain products. They also sold bulk spices, which is much more economical than paying $5.00 for each bottle, even if you only need 1 tsp. Well today, after not having been back since the summer, I noticed that it was no longer called Wild Oats, but officially another Whole Foods Market, and that inside there was no trace of individuality to be found. I have to admit, I was slightly disappointed. When I went over to the bulk bins I could no longer find my favorite barley flakes, or spelt flakes for that matter. When I asked for help, the man said that they were no longer carrying them. I asked if it had to do with the fact that they were now a Whole Foods. He quietly nodded his head. Then I ambled over to the prepared foods section, where there used to be a Japanese noodle bar. I used to look forward to getting a bowl of hot udon noodles with inari and shitake mushrooms, a dish that is hard to find even in the best sushi restaurants around here. Because of the change, there is no longer a Japanese noodle bar either. There is the same salad and hot foods bars as in any other Whole Foods Market, and of course the ubiquitous sushi station.
I know that barley flakes and Japanese noodle soups are not a make it or break it issue, but I am starting to feel that Whole Foods is turning into the kind of company I never thought it was. It is weeding out its competition, and offering the same products in all of its stores. Similar to Starbucks, the Gap, and other American brands that are the same in every town, which have led to the homogenization of America.

My favorite patisserie in New York City is by far Payard on Lexington Avenue between 73rd and 74th Streets. There is nothing like peering through the glass displays at all of their elegant pastries and tarts. Although they have a torturous array of sweets combining classic and playful combinations, my favorite item there is the Flourless Butterless Chocolate Cookie. It is chewy, chocolatey, and perfectly (not too) sweet. I have pondered, though never attempted, how they make such a perfect cookie without any butter or flour. How is it not too sweet? not too rich? not too filling? I was imagining corn syrups and the like, but never did I think I would be able to replicate the recipe on my own. I was not quite sure that I wanted to either.
Well, last night I was perusing our collection of old Gourmet magazines, in search of a vintage dessert recipe to make for Easter, when I flipped to the "You Asked For It" section of an April 2002 issue. There, right in front of my eyes was the Payard Flourless Butterless Chocolate Cookie recipe. Words cannot express my gratitude for Gourmet publishing this recipe, even though it is "adapted from" the original. Alas, a jump start into a whole new world of butterless, flourless! I will be baking these up in no time, with variations and combinations galore. However, I will always return to Payard for the original cookie, and a decadent afternoon of French pastry.