Umami Mart

Every time I go to Japan, I am exposed to new foods, new regions and new friends. Even though I lived there for five years and visit every year, there is still so much to discover. Sometimes I think about how I want to travel to other countries and discover new cultures and lands, but […]

For those of you planning your menu for Passover, or for anyone looking for a quick appetizer idea, here’s a fun and colorful twist on haroset, a traditional Jewish dish. Haroset is usually a blend of fruit and nuts made during Passover (which starts a week from today). At times chunky, sometimes smooth, it’s often served […]

I had some left over persimmon after making this salad for Thanksgiving, so I sliced them into wedges and made these little appetizer sandwiches, which people seemed to really like! You could use any kind of cheese, really… but do make sure you choose Fuyu persimmons (the squat tomato looking ones that are eaten when crunchy and […]

Last weekend on a warm Sunday evening in the woods we hosted A Forest Fiesta in honor of the recent opening of the Umami Mart shop in Oakland.  Guests who came were contributors and supporters of Umami Mart and all brought amazing things to share. Mike made some amazing pao de queijo aka brazilian cheese bread (I need to try this recipe!);Kishi brought his delicious […]

In a plastic bag combine: 1 cup pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) 2 tsp paprika 1/2 tsp chili powder 1 tbsp  sugar 1 tsp coarse sea salt 1 tbsp olive oile Shake the bag until the seeds are well coated, then pour into a bowl. A great alternative to cocktail nuts! By Erin Gleeson for Forest […]

Protein is a great thing to carry around. It stays together and packs an energy-filled punch, in comparison to a salad or veggie stir-fry –which can either take up lots of space or taste very bad because of a temperature change. Hunks of hamburg or chicken tenders, on the other hand, can be easily saran […]

Oh great, here we go again. Another blog post about Japanese food packaging design. But you know what? The reality is that the Japanese kick our butts many times over when it comes to intelligent, fun and groundbreaking ways to wrap something edible. Ok, so there actually are American designers at work behind the scenes […]

A trip to Brattleboro, Vermont was just what I needed this winter… it provided a little R&R and an idea that was perfect for Japanify. Brattleboro put on quite a show for this Californian. It snowed just enough make the dwellings around town look like gingerbread dusted with powdered sugar, but not enough to soak […]

This weekend two designer friends Louise Gaarmann, Tina Ratzer and I threw a “julestue” (directly translated: “christmas livingroom”) which is sort of a Christmas market with things to buy and stuff to snack on– but in my apartment and not in a local store. It was an experiment and I was biting my teeth beforehand. […]

Since my last post on an early Thanksgiving dinner, I went down to Fort Lauderdale, soaked in a lot of sun, darkened up the way a real Asian guy should look, then came back to a freezing NYC. I am depressed. I want more sun. I was going to write about my food experiences in […]