Nara and Kyoto has such beauty. especially at dusk. and it’s not only the beauty of the surroundings, it’s the whole atmosphere these old cities contain that has such great appeal.
tōdai-ji (東大寺) meaning the eastern great temple, is situated in central Nara and it’s main hall contains the world’s biggest bronze buddah. the building is incredible and even though it was my third time visiting the place i stood in awe when facing this open space. we managed to catch it just before closing and the lightning was magnificent.
corn crisp with popcorn and rosemary
50 ml flax seeds
50 ml unsalted sunflower seeds
50 ml unsalted pumpkin seeds
50 ml unpeeled sesame seeds
200 ml corn meal (fine-grained polenta)
1 tsp sea salt (plus some to sprinkle)
fresh rosemary, 1/2 tbsp finely chopped
40 ml olive oil
250 ml boiling water
2 tbsp popcorn kernels (popping them will give you about two handfulls)
put the popcorn in a tbsp of olive oil, in a hot pan with a lid. make sure you move the pan so that the popcorn don’t burn and when the popping stops remove from the heat and set aside. when cool press the popcorn flat with a rolling pin.
put all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix. pour in the water and olive oil and mix until smooth. spread out the “dough” on baking paper sprinkle with sea salt and spread out the pressed popcorn on top. put another baking paper on top and roll with a rolling pin until the dough covers the paper. bake in the oven at 150 c for an hour. perfect as bread or snacks – the popcorn gives it a nice twist!
lemon-honey butter
5 tbsp butter
a pinch of sea salt
cest from 1/2 a small lemon
1/2 tsp organic honey
mix everything, season more if needed and let sit in the fridge for 10-15 min. serve with artichokes or simply on the above bread.
piecefully 