​There are affiliate links throughout this blog post for your convenience, where I can earn a small commission. I never support a product or brand I don't personally use and enjoy, but if you'd like to learn more, you can head to this page!

​Summertime means I’m on a strawberry kick! And to be honest, I’m always on a strawberry kick. Strawberries are definitely one of my all time favorite fruit, and any dessert with strawberries in it is an automatic favorite of mine.
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Protein Milkshake offered me to try out their newest flavor. When I saw that it was Strawberry Shortcake protein, I was beyond excited! So, naturally, I had to make strawberry shortcake with it… and this version is totally acceptable for breakfast because it’s oats in disguise! Thank you again to Protein Milkshake for mailing me these samples to try out.

​You cannot beat Protein Milkshake’s macros. It’s exactly why they’re on my list of best protein shakes for Weight Watchers. Their flavors are all around 110 calories each (including this one), and they clock in at 1 SmartPoint per serving if you're following any of the myWW plans! 

Unlike some proteins, they’re very smooth and the flavor is strong. Thankfully it’s not sickeningly sweet, but the perfect balance. 

The strawberry shortcake flavored  protein gave these baked oats such a lovely flavor. This truly did taste like a shortcake! When I opened the package, it even smelled just like a strawberry cake!

Ready to make cake for breakfast?
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• 1 egg
• 0.5 cup old fashioned oats
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon 
• 1 tsp honey (you can also use a light maple syrup)
• 0.5 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk 
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 serving Protein Milkshake protein powder
• Frozen strawberries

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• 1 tbsp 1/3 fat cream cheese
• Stevia to sweeten to your liking 
• Sugar free vanilla syrup

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• Blend oats in a blender or food processor until they are ground like flour.
• Add oat flour and all other ingredients for the baked oats into a blender. Mix until well blended. This should have a similar consistency as a thick pancake batter. 
• Coat 3 ramekins (or a muffin tin if you don't have ramekins) with nonstick spray. Divide mixture evenly.
• Air fry at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-25 minutes. You can also bake it, but your oven times may vary! 
• Mix all ingredients for frosting and top it onto one ramekin when you’re ready to serve. 
• Optional: top with extra strawberries!

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​If you’re making your baked oats in advance, you can store them in the fridge and then reheat in the microwave. They should only need 30-60 seconds in the microwave (depending on your microwave strength).
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If you haven’t seen it already, there’s a viral TikTok snack hack going around: pasta chips!

Pasta chips are essentially just air fried pieces of cooked pasta. This is best when done with a smaller shape, like penne or bow ties. But I’ve seen some influencers like The Korean Vegan do this with ramen noodles, too! So your options are limitless.

​One of my favorite TikTokers is Steph Grasso, a clinical dietician who tried this with chickpea pasta for an added protein boost. I absolutely love Banza’s chickpea pasta and pizza crust, so I knew I had to try this!
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Banza’s chickpea pasta is just made with chickpeas (plus a little tapioca and some xanthan gum). It packs 22g of protein and 8g of fiber per serving! So it’s much more filling than standard pasta.

I tried Banza for the first time when I participated in Veganuary. Their products are vegan and gluten-free, so they fit the bill for a vegan substitute. Anthony and I both really loved it and found that there wasn’t really a flavor difference from regular pasta. And calorically, it’s similar (190-200 calories per 1 cooked cup).

When making my protein pasta chips, I had seen a ton of recipes with Italian seasonings and Parmesan cheese. But I wanted to try something different. At the time, I was really craving cool ranch flavored Doritos!

So I whipped up some seasonings that I had and found that this totally hit the spot. It made for a great pre-workout snack! I used penne pasta and it reminded me of Takis.
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• 1 box Banza chickpea pasta
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Paprika, to taste
• Garlic salt, to taste
• Onion powder, to taste
• Ranch seasoning, to taste (I used half of a Hidden Valley packet)

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Don’t feel like making your own? Here are some of my favorite protein chips:

• Quest makes protein chips and protein tortilla chips that are a great grab-and-go option.
• Peatos makes protein snacks. These are very similar to Cheetos and Funions! They use pea protein to give their snacks a plant-based protein boost. I love their nacho flavor.

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​​You can do this with any seasonings whatsoever, but again, this totally gave me Doritos vibes! If you try this seasoning combo, be sure to tag me in your creations of Instagram - I’d love to see them.

There are affiliate links throughout this blog post for your convenience, where I can earn a small commission. I never support a product or brand I don't personally use and enjoy, but if you'd like to learn more, you can head to this page!
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This anime recipe is equal parts protein-packed and comforting! Demon Slayer (aka Kimetsu no Yaiba in Japanese) is one of my favorite anime. Even though it is newer on the scene, it has quickly captured my heart with the lovable characters and absolutely stunning animation. 

In honor of the movie making its way to the United States, I whipped up Tanjiro's udon dish that he orders in the first season of the anime. This udon looked delicious and it absolutely was. The flavor combination here was so wonderful. I took some creative liberty with the broth and focused more on the toppings and plating for screen accuracy. 
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The key to getting your sunny side up egg to cover nearly the entire bowl without the extra yolks? All you have to do is add extra egg whites when you're making it. The toppings rest on top of the soft egg with the help of the thick noodles in the broth beneath it.

Udon noodles, if you've never had them, are the ultimate comfort noodle. They're thick, a little chewy, and absolutely wonderful in a hot soup. They're also great stir-fried for a yakiudon style dish! This dish would also be great with soba noodles, but the thickness of the noodle does help support the egg when plating.
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• 0.5 cup roast chicken breast (optional) 
• 4 cups cooked udon noodles

Broth:

• 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 2 tbsp miso paste
• 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
• 0.5 cup sweet onion 
• 1 tsp minced ginger

Toppings:

• 1 egg  + 0.25 cup liquid egg whites
• 2 green onions, sliced
• Nori sheets, thinly sliced (I recommend using snack-sized sheets so you can just quickly cut them with scissors and save a little time!) to taste
• 1 tsp wasabi paste or avocado 

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• Let all broth ingredients simmer in a pot. I recommend using a slow cooker if you have one and letting it sit for at least 5 hours. I find that the longer it sits, the more flavorful it is.
• Cook udon noodles. Add 1 cup of noodles into four bowls.
• Add broth over noodles then add roast chicken.
• Cook your egg sunny-side up. To enlarge the egg to look more like the anime, you can add 0.25 cup liquid egg whites to surround the existing egg. 
• Add the cooked egg to the udon. Top with wasabi paste (or avocado if you don't like wasabi), sliced green onion, and sliced nori. 
• Serve immediately and enjoy!

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This dish was so tasty and the flavor profiles all really complemented each other. It was super filling and definitely had a good deal of protein thanks to the egg and chicken combo. I rate it a 10/10 for flavor.

I'd definitely make this again! It was super simple to make, too. If you don't want to roast your own chicken, you can buy Perdue chicken pre-made in your grocery store. They're in the refrigerated section, usually near bacon and deli meats. This gets a 10/10 for ease of recreation, too!

​Have a food from an anime that you want me to try to recreate? Let me know in the comments below! Plus, follow me on TikTok to see the behind the scenes of how this was made.
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We're making a Naruto recipe today that has me a bit nervous, but also excited... the Curry of Life! The Curry of Life makes its appearance in Episode 153. Rock Lee loves the Curry of Life, and this curry is even known to revive people from unconsciousness or heal them from the brink of death due to its extreme spiciness. 

​What we'll be doing is adding our spicy element after we've already made our curry, so that way we can have some not-spicy-curry available in case it's too much. Then, you get to customize your heat levels each time.
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There are affiliate links throughout this blog post for your convenience, where I can earn a small commission. I never support a product or brand I don't personally use and enjoy, but if you'd like to learn more, you can head to this page!
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Whenever I share a recipe with tofu, I usually get a few questions asking to get into more detail for how to make tofu crispy and flavorful.

​Tofu can sound intimidating and it gets a bad reputation. But I truly believe that people who don’t like tofu only don’t like it because it wasn’t made properly. The beauty of tofu is that it can take on pretty much whatever flavor you want to give it. 

I first started incorporating tofu into my diet for two reasons:

1. As a flexitarian who really only occasionally eats fish, chicken, and turkey, I wanted to add a new type of protein into my diet so I wouldn’t get as bored with my weekly meal prep (I also incorporated seitan for this reason and also love that).
2. I also love Japanese food and will be heading to Japan once all this COVID craziness is over and their borders reopen to tourists. Tofu is a huge staple in the Japanese diet. So, I wanted to try it to expand my palate both at home and abroad. I ended up loving it!

Alongside my tips, I'll be including the recipe for how I make one of my favorite Japanese meals: yakiudon, a stir-fried noodle dish!
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• Udon noodles (use as many noodles as you want to include per serving; I recommend 1 cup cooked per person)
• 1 tbsp oil 
• 2 blocks firm or extra firm tofu
• Veggies of choice: I like to use carrots, green onion, cabbage, & sweet onion, but feel free to get creative here!
• For the sauce (or, you can buy a Mentsuyu sauce or yakisoba sauce on Amazon): 
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tbsp mirin
  • 1 tsp rice wine vinegar
• Optional ingredients for topping:
  • Bonito flakes to taste
  • extra green onion
  • furikake seasoning 

• Press and drain tofu of water, then cut into cubes. Marinade with soy sauce or some of the mentsuyu sauce, and set in the fridge until ready to cook.
• Pan fry tofu until outside is crispy, or air fry it at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes. (See notes below for tips of crispy tofu)
• Cook udon noodles in boiling water per package instructions. Be careful to not overcook them since you'll be adding them to your wok or pan later!
• While waiting for the water to boil and/or noodles to cook, mix all of the ingredients for the sauce in a jar or bowl and set aside.
• Add oil to a wok or pan and stir fry your vegetables. Add your noodles, tofu, and sauce and mix well. 
• Optional: top with bonito flakes, green onions, and/or furikake seasoning and enjoy!

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Let’s quickly do some myth busting here. Because it’s soy-based, a lot of people worry about an increased breast cancer risk. But (per the Mayo Clinic) studies have actually shown the opposite: eating a moderate amount of soy foods will not increase your risk of cancer, including breast cancer. The studies also show that a diet rich in soy foods can reduce your breast cancer risk! 

This is because there are pretty low levels of plant estrogens (called isoflavones) in tofu and other soy foods like edamame and soy milk. These levels aren’t high enough to cause an increase. The same does not hold true for isaflavone supplements, though, so just be sure to chat with your doctor before taking any supplements (especially if you have concerns). 
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In my experience, the key to crispy tofu is making sure you properly drain it. Some people like to freeze their tofu before letting it thaw and then draining it because then, you can get some nice little pockets in your tofu for texture. But I don’t think this is necessary if you, like me, frequently forget to freeze it or are trying to make it more quickly and don’t want to wait for it as long. 

I like to take my tofu out of the packaging, place it on a towel, and then wrap it tightly in the towel and press it between two cutting boards. Anthony has a large wood cutting board and we also have a smaller marble pastry board, so I’ll use the wood one as a base and then put the pastry board on top. 

I let it sit like this for at least 30 minutes, but if I need to expedite the process, I’ll take a dumbbell and place it on top of the pastry board to help speed the process along. If you’re letting it sit for a while, though, I’d recommend using a thicker towel or swapping it out after some time to make sure you’re really getting all the moisture out of the tofu. 

You can also press the tofu block in your hands to drain it, but sandwiching it between two heavy objects is easier for me and I know that way, all the moisture is gone.

The key to flavorful tofu is giving it enough time to marinate. Once I’ve drained my tofu, I’ll dice it up, put it in a bowl with my marinade or sauce of choice, and then just let it hang out in the fridge until I’m ready to cook it. I like to let it marinate for at least an hour but the longer, the better. 

Then, once you are ready, you can bake, air fry, or pan fry it. If I’m baking or air frying, I like to do so at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. I’ll start at 15 minutes and then go in 5 minute intervals if I want it crispier. The best way is to have it still be a bit soft on the inside, so you don’t want to overcook it.

Have a food from an anime that you want me to try to recreate? Let me know in the comments below! Plus, follow me on TikTok to see the behind the scenes of how this was made.

There are affiliate links throughout this blog post for your convenience, where I can earn a small commission. I never support a product or brand I don't personally use and enjoy, but if you'd like to learn more, you can head to this page!
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Now that I have agar agar powder in my pantry after making Tsuyu Asui-inspired jelly, I wanted to try another famous jelly recipe from anime: coffee jelly! Coffee jelly got its start in the UK, but is now common in Japan's convenience stores and restaurants. 

This dessert makes an appearance in The Disastrous Life of Saiki K, an anime about a teenager with psychic superpowers. Kusuo Saiki, the titular character, is a big fan of coffee jelly. Given I have quite the caffeine addiction myself, I was excited to give this a try!
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​Coffee jelly is sometimes served as cubes inside a sweet cream (almost resembling an iced coffee beverage), but we'll be making ours to look as close to the show's as possible, which looks more like a ramekin-sized block of jelly with whipped cream. Since agar agar powder is vegan, to keep this a plant-based recipe, we'll be using a nondairy whipped cream.

​I'm using Reddi Whip's almond milk variant, but if you prefer the coconut milk whipped cream or another vegan whipped cream then that works too. 

• 2-3 tsp instant coffee (depending on how strong you want it)
• 6 oz water in a mug
• 1.5 cups water to boil
• 2 tsp agar agar  aka kanten powder 
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract or Jordan's Skinny Syrups Vanilla
• 1 tbsp sweetener (I'm using Stevia to keep this low calorie, but you can absolutely use real sugar)
  • The Stevia I use is Whole Earth, which is plant-based & suitable for vegans! If you are trying to keep this dish vegan, just be aware that some refined sugars get their color from a process that involves bone char.  
• Whipped cream (non-dairy to keep this dish vegan); I like to use about 4 tbsp per serving

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• Add agar agar powder, sweetener, vanilla, and 1.5 cup water to a pot and whisk together. Do this before the water has started to boil to prevent clumping.
• While you wait for the water to heat up, prepare your instant coffee with instant coffee and 6 oz water. Add to the pot.
• Once your water is at a rolling boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 3 minutes.
• Fill ramekins (mine filled 5 ramekins total, but this may vary depending on the size of yours) or other container with mixture and let sit in the fridge.
• Optional: When ready to serve, remove from ramekin and present on a plate or in a glass.
• Serve with whipped cream.

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Including the whipped cream, if you use stevia, each of the five ramekins contains...

If you're following Weight Watchers, this recipe is super low in SmartPoints! This is only 1 SmartPoint on all myWW plans.
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I'm a huge fan of coffee and often drink it black. So that being said, I thought this was sweet but not too sweet! The flavor profile reminded me a lot of a more dressed up iced coffee drink, and the jelly texture is great for this warmer spring weather we've been having in Florida. I'd rate it a 9/10, and will give it a 10/10 next time when I make the coffee a bit stronger.

For ease of replication, definitely a 10/10. Agar agar is super easy to work with, even more so than standard gelatin in my opinion.

Have a food from an anime that you want me to try to recreate? Let me know in the comments below! Plus, follow me on TikTok to see the behind the scenes of how this was made.
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• Japanese Fruit Jelly with a Froppy Twist
• How To Drink Black Coffee and Actually Like It
• Ichiraku Ramen Recipe from Naruto

After My Hero Academia Week, I received a request from TikTok user cookie_.demon._ to make Tsuyu Asui's favorite food! Tsuyu Asui - aka Froppy - is my favorite student in My Hero Academia so I was really excited to get this request.

Tsuyu's favorite food is jelly, which is really fitting since her Quirk (aka superpower for those of you unfamiliar with the show) is that she's part-frog!

Since Tsuyu is Japanese, we'll be making a Japanese fruit jelly, which is a bit different than your standard Jell-O. But since her costume and character design is heavily centered around the color green, we'll be giving this a little bit of a twist that breaks away from the traditional way of making the dessert. Don't worry, it's super easy and won't impact the taste.
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​If you're trying to eat in a calorie deficit like me or if you're concerned about your sugar intake for dietary reasons, I'll include some easy swaps you can make to keep the sugar content low.

Also, this dish is accidentally vegetarian! If you get a plant-based food coloring (you can get this at Whole Foods) then this will even be vegan-friendly. 
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• Optional (for the Froppy twist!): Green food coloring
• Fruit of choice (I recommend strawberry slices, kiwi slices, or berries!)
• Agar agar aka kanten powder (this is different from Jell-O because its clear, flavorless, and it doesn't melt at room temp like Jell-O can!)
• To taste: sugar or Stevia 
• Water
• Optional: flavored syrup or fruit juice for flavor

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See instructions for ratio of water and agar agar.
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• Dissolve agar agar into water. If using 1 cup of water, start with 1 tsp agar agar.
• Bring water to boil after dissolving agar agar to prevent clumping. Once your water is at a rolling boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 3 minutes.
•  Add sweetener and one or two drops of food coloring. Stir until well-blended.
• Take off heat and pour half of the agar agar mixture into a mold
  • If you don't have a square mold for Jell-O, you can use a brownie pan
  • If you have ice cube trays or specific Jell-O molds, that works too!
• Let cool in the fridge or at room temp for a few minutes while you cut your fruit into slices. Mine only took about 3 minutes in the fridge to reach the next stage.
• Once your jelly has just begun to set (it shouldn't be completely set yet), add fruit slices, then top with the remaining half.
  • If it's completely set, then the top layer won't be able to bind with the bottom. Make sure your jelly is still really soft, but has started to form.
• Let set in the fridge until the jelly has completely set. Use a knife to cut around the fruit and then serve. 

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There are affiliate links throughout this blog post for your convenience, where I can earn a small commission. I never support a product or brand I don't personally use and enjoy, but if you'd like to learn more, you can head to this page!
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My Hero Academia week may be over, but there are still plenty of recipes from the show to be made! TikTok user @tiredbones21 requested that we make takoyaki, which is featured in this show. I love takoyaki but have never made it myself, so I'll be sharing this beginner-friendly way to make takoyaki at home. Takoyaki is, simply put, a fried dough ball stuffed with grilled octopus. 
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​This is featured in My Hero Academia with Fat Gum’s introduction, since takoyaki is a classic Osaka street food and that’s where he lives. It’s also where Amajiki got his tentacles from when he converted his food for his Quirk, Manifest.

Takoyaki is actually featured in a bunch of different anime. My first exposure to it was Cardcaptor Sakura as a kid!

​Everything you need, you can get on Amazon. You can order a takoyaki maker if you want to make more at a time, but I wanted to give this a try before I committed to a larger kitchen appliance (especially since we don't have much room in our small galley kitchen). So, I ordered this small cake pop maker that the reviews said work great for takoyaki as well. Plus, with the cake pop maker, I don't have to turn the takoyaki over since it functions similarly to a waffle iron.

Measurements are for about 3 servings, or 25 pieces of takoyaki

• 4 oz. Otafuku takoyaki kit (this comes with the takoyaki sauce and takoyaki flour)
• 1 Green onion 
• 4 oz. octopus, grilled and chopped
• 12 oz. Water
• 2 Eggs
• 2 tbsp Pickled ginger 
• Bonito flakes to taste
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise (preferably Japanese kewpie mayo, but you can use regular mayo) 
  • ​If you're following Weight Watchers or are on a calorie deficit, you can use a light mayo instead

Instructions taken from the Otafuku takoyaki kit bag. The maker I used is nonstick, so I just used a bit of cooking spray, but you may need to use oil if your maker is not non-stick. 

1. Grill and chop octopus tentacles and set aside.
2. In a bowl, mix the takoyaki flour, water, and two eggs.
3. Fill your takoyaki maker with batter about halfway. Evenly distribute fillings (except bonito flakes) in each hole, then fill to the brim with more batter.
4. If you are using a traditional takoyaki maker (not the cake pop maker I bought), once the takoyaki is cooked halfway, flip them halfway with a toothpick.
5. Once your takoyaki is golden brown, top with the takoyaki sauce, mayo, and bonito flakes and enjoy!

These aren’t the easiest to make without a proper takoyaki maker, but the cake pop maker did the trick. I’d rate this a 8/10 for ease of replication but only because it took a while with the cake pop maker. Some of them also deflated fairly quickly. If we had a larger takoyaki maker, it’d have been a breeze.

The taste, though? Excellent! The fillings I selected were based off of what I’ve had at two separate Japanese restaurants here in Orlando, and these tasted really similar to the ones we had there. 10/10 on taste!
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If making 25 takoyaki pieces, each ball contains approximately...

• 40 calories
• 1 g fat
• 15.7 mg cholesterol
• 140 mg sodium
• 5 g carbs
• 0.1 g fiber
• 5 g sugar
• 2 g protein

​Have a food from an anime that you want me to try to recreate? Let me know in the comments below! Plus, follow me on TikTok to see the behind the scenes of how this was made.
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• All recipes from My Hero Academia Week
• How to make "Brock's Jelly Donuts" aka Onigiri from Pokemon
• Gotcha Roast Pork from Food Wars with vegan alternatives

Jujutsu Kaisen is one of my favorite anime out there, and it's still only on its first season. It takes some of my favorite classic shonen tropes and presents them with well-written characters, great animation, and a great balance of humor with serious moments.

We've already made Itadori Yuji's ginger chicken meatball recipe from the show, but today we're making a forbidden food from the show...

That's right! We're making Sukuna's fingers. Spoiler alert if you haven't sarted the show yet, but Itadori ate Sukuna's finger to save his friends despite the odds of it hurting him being high. So today, we're going to craft our own with hot dogs, honey glazed almonds, and bacon. This is fun to make for when you watch the show on Friday nights or to save for Halloween to creep out your friends.

There are affiliate links throughout this blog post for your convenience, where I can earn a small commission. I never support a product or brand I don't personally use and enjoy, but if you'd like to learn more, you can head to this page!
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I can’t believe Pokémon’s 25th anniversary is this year! I grew up with the series, so I knew I had to make an anime recipe for one of the shows that defined my childhood.

A weird thing I never questioned as a kid was why they called the rice balls in Pokémon “donuts” and “sandwiches.” They weren’t sandwiches or donuts - they were onigiri! This was an attempt to localize the subtitles for American audiences, but understandably was meme'd since it doesn't make much sense.

I’m making two kinds of onigiri today: some stuffed with tuna, and some with umeboshi (aka Japanese pickled plum). You can also use salmon as a filling, if you like!

• 2 cans tuna
• 4 tbsp mayonnaise (preferably Japanese kewpie mayo, but you can use regular mayo) 
  • ​If you're following Weight Watchers or are on a calorie deficit, you can use a light mayo instead
• 1 tbsp sriracha
• 2 cups uncooked sushi rice
  • ​​If you're following myWW Purple, you can use brown sushi rice
• 6 pieces umeboshi
• 12 pieces of snack-sized Nori 

• Before you begin, check if your umeboshi have pits! Remove them if so.
• Once your rice is cooked and has cooled, wet your hands or use a paper towel to scoop rice into your hands. I used a 1/3 measuring cup to scoop it out so the rice was evenly distributed.
• With your thumb, create a slight indent in the middle.
• Add either umeboshi or tuna to the indent.
• Use your hands to wrap the filling with rice and form into a triangular shape.
• Add nori to the rice ball and serve. You should have enough to make about 12-14 rice balls. ​

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Need help assembling your rice balls? Check out this video from Tokyo Kitchen!
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I love onigiri, but I've only ever made it with tuna before. This was my first time trying umeboshi and I enjoyed it! It was slightly sweet and pretty salty, so it tasted really nice in the rice. Anthony thought the umeboshi was a little too salty for his liking, but otherwise was had a tasty flavor.  

Have a food from an anime that you want me to try to recreate? Let me know in the comments below! Plus, follow me on TikTok to see the behind the scenes of how this was made.
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