Open an Izakaya in your garden (or maybe 3 or 4)!

All last week I watched as my marigolds were slowly being eaten down to stems.  This surprised me as I had planted them around my tomatoes, basil and shiso to keep other garden pests away.  While those plants seemed fine, something obviously was eating my marigolds to death.  A little research on the internet found that it was slugs (なめくじ） that were the culprits.  It seems while marigolds repel many harmful insects, slugs find them to be utterly delicious!  So I decided to open an izakaya.  Yes, that's right, actually 4 of them in my garden.  I found 4 small, shallow dishes (you can use jar lids or flower pot bottoms too) put them in the ground so the edges were at ground level.  Then I filled them with the cheapest はっぽうしゅ　I could find.  This morning they each have quite a few drowned slugs and pill bugs (まるむし) in them.  I'll let them go tonight again and then empty them and refill them before tomorrow night.  I also found out you can use non-alcoholic beer (even cheaper!) as the slugs are attracted to the yeast and sugars.   
3 June 12
Have been using non alcoholic beer with the same success as regular beer.  Even found a 99 yen imported one at the local supermarket that is all I am using now!  Hope to be slug free in another week or so.  

Shiso Pesto for a happy and flavorful summer!

Some people in the afternoon class and I were talking about this, and with summer fast approaching and the shiso growing, here is the recipe for shiso pesto.  Once you have all the ingredients, it takes only minutes to make and tastes amazing!  I find that while it is good the first day, it seems to get better the longer the flavors have time to meld together.  Oh, almost forgot to give credit, the recipe is from Miyoko Nishimoto-Schinner's Japanese Cooking, Contemporary and Traditional.  It's a vegan Japanese cookbook that has helped me immensely!

about 100 shiso leaves
1 cup extra virgin olive oil (this is an American cup, so you may need to add a little more if using a Japanese cup)
2 to 3 cloves of garlic (depending on your taste)
1/2 cup of pine nuts (see not above about olive oil)
2 to 3 tablespoons mild miso (I've used all types and it has always turned out good)
2 teaspoons umeboshi paste

Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth, you can leave it a little chunkier if you like it that way.  Toss the pesto with hot pasta.  The amount is according to your taste.  I start with about a tablespoon or 2 to an individual bowl of pasta, and then taste to decide if I want to add more.  Also this pesto is excellent on tofu, if you want a new twist on your hiya-yakko!  Hope you try and enjoy!  If you do let us know how it turned out for you.