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Recipe: Vegan Mac & Cheese (Macaroni Cheese) – Gluten Free

First off, no I am not a vegan, but I appreciate vegan food. I eat a lot of gluten and dairy free food and I like vegetarian dishes. So when I first heard of vegan macaroni cheese I was very intrigued. I originally came across a recipe a few years ago, from a website that is now dead. Thankfully that doesn’t matter as I have made it so many times that I’ve personalised it. I prefer to use nutritional yeast for this recipe, as opposed to cashew nuts – so it’s nut allergy friendly. Nutritional yeast has a lovely nutty cheese flavour to it and is great for pretty much all diets. It’s nut-free, gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan friendly – so it’s suited to most people.
This is a quick and easy recipe that doesn’t take long, and tastes absolutely delicious. A lot of people on Twitter were asking me to post it, so here is my Vegan Mac & Cheese recipe!

For reference, I use cups as they’re easier.
Ingredients:
Paprika: 2 Teaspoons
Nutritional yeast: 1 Cup
Dijon mustard: 1 Teaspoon
Gluten-free Pasta: 3 Cups
Rice Milk (or any milk alternative): 1 Cup
Garlic: 1-2 Cloves (depending on personal taste)
Sunflower or Olive Oil (both work fine): 2/3 Cup
Tamari (Gluten-free Japanese soy sauce): 1/4 Cup

Put the nutritional yeast, paprika and garlic in the blender and mix to chop the garlic.
Add the mustard, oil, tamari and rice milk to the mixture. Blend the mixture for about 30 seconds.

After you’ve blended the mixture, cook your pasta in the saucepan. Whilst this is cooking pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees. It’s worth mentioning that I like to make the mixture in the morning and leave it in the fridge until the evening.  I find that the sauce seems to be a bit more flavoursome if you do this.
Once the pasta is cooked, pop it in a dish and pour over the mixture. You can optionally add gluten-free breadcrumbs to the top (or regular, if you aren’t on a GF diet). Make sure all of the pasta is covered with the sauce, and pop in the oven for around 20 minutes. Remove from the dish and serve!
This is one of my favourite recipes to make so I’m glad I could share it with you.
If you do have a go at making it, do let me know as I’d love to know what you think.
bloomzy /

A Blast from My Past: Japanese Gyaru Fashion & Life in Japan

A few weeks ago I went back to my parent’s house for a few days. Whilst I was there I decided to raid the attic, and see if I could find my old textbooks. I found myself knee-deep in university papers and old cuddly toys from my childhood. Amongst these were a few boxes of items from my time living (and studying) in Tokyo, Japan. Suddenly my objective was out the window and all I wanted to do was reminisce.
Japanese fashion has been a part of my life for over 10 years now. One fashion sub-culture in particular took up a decent amount of that time – gyaru. With hair high enough to reach the gods, and enough make-up to make an MUA weep, gyaru was an enigma wrapped in a mini skirt and fuzzy leg warmers. I was automatically drawn in, and spent most of my time reading magazines and blogs dedicated to the style. Gyaru is the reason behind me starting this blog in the first place! So you can imagine that finding these magazines and books was something quite special. Memories flooded back: Buying the Ranzuki Hair & Make-up Book in a small conbini in Kyoto. Adding points to my WC loyalty card as I bought everything and anything from the brand. Getting a ‘hair set’ (that has since created perpetual hair envy) with a friend for our joint birthday party. 
I met some amazing people because of gyaru, people who I can now call good friends.  So naturally it will always be a big part of my life and although I’m sure there were bad times, I can only remember the good. Recently I’ve missed my time living in Tokyo, but I do wonder if going back might tarnish those memories. It’s safe to say that things wouldn’t be the same now, but maybe that’s a good thing? Gyaru has faded from it’s origins and seems to be evolving into something all together different. So for now, I’m happy to keep my memories as just that. 
Interested in reading more about Japanese fashion and how my blog started?
Check out my Style Evolution post or browse my Japanese Fashion tag.
bloomzy /

Photo Diary: Of Castles and Kings

Yesterday I visited Chirk Castle in Wales, which is part of the National Trust. I’m a bit of a history geek and I love walking around old manor houses and castles etc. I also knew that it was the perfect time for me to take my camera and snap a few arty shots. I love sharing non-fashion/beauty images with you every now and again. Chirk Castle is lovely and the gardens are equally beautiful. The castle’s decor was as opulent as it was extravagant.  Flowers were in full bloom, and the sun was shining. It’s definitely worth a visit if you’re nearby.
bloomzy /

Video: Life in Japan Q&A #1

Here is the first in my ‘Life in Japan Q&A’ series. I’ve decided to do this series in short videos so you can find exactly what you want to know, without having to sit through 25mins of me rambling away. The first couple of questions are from Kat about learning Japanese (and using it on holiday) and coping as a vegetarian in Japan.

If you’d like to ask your own question you can leave a comment here on this post or here, or you can tweet me. 

Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more videos.
bloomzy /

Where to Eat in London: Fingers Crossed

Fingers Crossed | Cafe | Stoke Newington | Website
– reservations not available –

Fingers Crossed is a local cafe I came across in my London Coffee Guide. I don’t drink coffee but I know my stuff, thanks to an overly enthusiastic sibling. So when I read that they also offered amazing food, I knew I had to check them out. I headed there around midday on bank holiday Monday, with my fiancé.

Fingers Crossed is in a rather unexpected location. However thanks to the cleverly designed logo on the front window you’re unable to miss this hidden gem. Inside is a very basic rustic chic setting, with one long communal table and several single tables. I don’t mind the idea of communal tables so we sat down, next to the cakes. Of course. It was busy, with most of the tables being taken up by talkative groups, all who had ordered food. Originally we only went in for cake, but after seeing the food come out my fiance just couldn’t resist. I choose the brownie with a cheesecake topping, and he went for the tomatoes and eggs, with Sicilian sardines. Presentation wise, the food was similar to the cafe – providing a quality product that doesn’t need dressing up. The brownie was superb, and is the best invention to happen to cakes since…ever! The baked cheesecake topping added a texture and taste to the egg-less chocolate brownie that I just haven’t come across before. I was tempted to bring back a bag full, but managed to resist. The fiancé said his brunch option was delicious, and he loved that he could taste everything in the dish that had been mentioned on the menu. According to him it was the tangy sweet tomatoes that brought the whole dish together though. I asked him if he would eat it again. His answer? “Definitely”, and he wanted to try the other similar dishes too.

The barista came over to us after we’d eaten and asked us if we wanted to “…try something different”. Of course we said yes, and soon enough two espresso glasses were placed in front of us. “It’s iced coffee” he told us. He spoke about it with such enthusiasm that we weren’t surprised when we tasted how good it was. It was incredibly fruity and refreshing. I only had a few mouthfuls as I can’t drink coffee really, but I enjoyed it immensely. He told us it isn’t really popular in the coffee world yet, but if everyone was to try the one he gave us I know they’d be won over. After we had finished our iced coffee (I gave the rest of mine to the fiancé), we went up to pay. They don’t take cards here, so you will need to bring cash. Don’t worry, you won’t need to bring much though, as we were pleasantly surprised to see that it was pretty cheap.

I noticed that there were freshly cut flowers scattered around the cafe, which I always love. However it was the service that really made me smile. There were only 3 people working in the cafe: the hostess, barista and chef. All 3 of them were delightful and chatty, whilst making sure everyone had everything they needed. I will definitely be going back to Fingers Crossed, and I will be bringing everyone I know with me!

You can read more of my restaurant reviews on Zomato.

bloomzy /

Where to Eat in London: Onthebab

Onthebab | Korean Streetfood | Lunch/Dinner | Old Street, Shoreditch | Website
– reservations not available –

Onthebab is a lone Korean restaurant in the heart of Shoreditch. I headed there around 12pm on a Tuesday with V.A of Chopstickpanorama.

Onthebab is a tiny restaurant located on Old Street, yet they’ve managed to fit in as many tables (and a bar) as possible, without it feeling uncomfortable. The interior matches the exterior, making sure the minimal chic feel of the restaurant stays in touch with it’s Shoreditch roots. We were greeted by a very welcoming waitress, and an empty restaurant. I gave a sigh of relief that we had made it before the lunchtime rush. We had a hard time choosing which dishes to have, not because there were too many, but because they all sounded delicious. We finally decided on the Spicy Pork Buns (to share) and a Bulgogi Bibimbap (each). I started my meal with a refreshing Cinnamon Punch – a Korean soft drink that I don’t see often. I was a little worried when the pork buns arrived, with their almost glowing red innards. No matter how much I try, my tolerance for spice is extremely low. They were spicy, but just under my barrier, and boy were they delicious. The flavour inside one of those tiny little buns is immense! I imagine this was partly due to the cut of pork and the way it had been cooked to perfection. I found myself fearful at the impending last bite. Unfortunately it came, but I was eager to try my Bulgogi Bibimbap so I recovered pretty quickly. Bibimbap is a traditional Korean rice dish with vegetables and gochujang (chilli pepper paste), usually served with a fried egg and meat. Well at Onthebab you get the whole shebang! We chose the bulgogi beef as it’s a favourite of ours. The dish was large and came with plenty of meat, egg, fresh vegetables and rice. It didn’t taste spicy, so I added a little more gochujang to mine, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Towards the end of our meals the lunchtime rush had hit and the restaurant was almost full. Still, the service was fast and impeccable. I left satisfied, and impressed with the food and the lovely people running the establishment.

It’s not often that I crave a particular dish, but I can honestly say that I will be back to Onthebab for the Spicy Pork Buns alone . Of course I’d also love to try out more of their delicious dishes too. This is one restaurant you can not overlook!

You can read more of my restaurant reviews on Zomato.