Hey everyone, I hope you’re having an amazing day today. Today, I’m gonna show you how to make a distinctive dish, chestnut and sweet potato yokan. One of my favorites food recipes. For mine, I am going to make it a bit unique. This will be really delicious.

The sweet potatoes are done when a skewer pierced into the center comes out clean. Sweet Potato and Chestnut Yokan Jelly In Japan, there is an old saying that all girls like sweet potatoes, chestnuts and pumpkins. Photographed by Akio Takeuchi *You will leave the NHK website. Instead of Azuki red beans flavor, some yokan are instead made with chestnuts (Kuri Yokan 栗ようかん), Japanese sweet potatoes (Imo Yokan 芋ようかん), or the combination of white beans and Matcha (Matcha Yokan 抹茶ようかん).

Chestnut and Sweet Potato Yokan is one of the most well liked of recent trending meals on earth. It is simple, it is quick, it tastes yummy. It’s appreciated by millions every day. They’re nice and they look fantastic. Chestnut and Sweet Potato Yokan is something that I’ve loved my whole life.

To get started with this recipe, we have to first prepare a few ingredients. You can have chestnut and sweet potato yokan using 13 ingredients and 12 steps. Here is how you can achieve it.

The ingredients needed to make Chestnut and Sweet Potato Yokan:

1. Prepare 400 grams Sweet potato, peeled
2. Prepare 20 grams Sugar
3. Take 1 pinch Salt
4. Get 80 grams Sweetened chestnuts, shelled (See recipe below. Store bought is fine)
5. Make ready 2 grams ☆ Kanten powder
6. Make ready 100 ml ☆ Milk
7. Take 50 ml ☆ Syrup from the sweetened chestnuts
8. Prepare Sweetened chestnuts
9. Get 80 grams Chestnuts, shelled and skinned
10. Take 120 ml Water
11. Take 40 grams Sugar
12. Prepare 1 pinch Salt
13. Get 1 tsp Mirin

The texture of roasted chestnuts goes just perfect for this vegetables side dish. It stays soft enough but it's got that nice bite to it cos it's oven roasted chestnuts. As you can see this is a vegetable side that is also vegan, apart from being packed with mineral and fibres. In autumn, you can usually find season-exclusive flavours like sweet potatoes, chestnut, and persimmon.

Instructions to make Chestnut and Sweet Potato Yokan:

1. Peel the sweet potatoes, slice into 1-1.5 cm half moons, then soak in water for about 10 minutes.
2. Drain the sweet potatoes (they can be wet), put in a heat-resistant dish, cover loosely in plastic wrap, then microwave for 6-7 minutes at 600W.
3. The sweet potatoes are done when a skewer pierced into the center comes out clean. Pass the sweet potatoes through a sieve to purée. This step is tedious, but essential to the taste of this dish, so persevere!
4. Roughly chop chestnuts into 5 mm cubes.
5. Heat milk, the syrup from the chestnuts, and kanten in a pan, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 2 minutes while stirring. Dissolve the kanten powder while simmering.
6. Add sugar and salt and mix well until they have dissolved. Remove from heat, add puréed sweet potato, then knead together.
7. Fold in the chopped chestnuts, fill a mold with the mixture, wrap in plastic wrap, then press with a flat object, as if you were making pressed sushi.
8. When it cools down, chill it in the refrigerator. After 2 or 3 hours, after it is well-chilled and set, remove from the mold, cut into desired sizes, then serve.
9. To make the sweet chestnuts: Soak shelled and skinned chestnuts in water. Put in a sauce pan, add water, sugar, and salt, then heat.
10. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes on low heat. Add mirin and simmer for 5 more minutes (without a lid) and allow to cool in the pan.
11. I used a 4.5 cm by 34 cm half moon mold. For molds without removable bottoms, I recommend lining the mold with plastic wrap.
12. They also turn out great pressed in a rose-shaped silicon mold! If you have silicon molds, give it a try.

As you can see this is a vegetable side that is also vegan, apart from being packed with mineral and fibres. In autumn, you can usually find season-exclusive flavours like sweet potatoes, chestnut, and persimmon. Toraya's kurimushi yokan (literally "steamed chestnut yokan bar") - Exclusively sold from September to November. Yes, it is indeed a steamed yokan with Japanese fresh chestnuts. If you visit in September you can try their chestnut and sweet potato flavour yokan.

Try Using Food to Elevate Your Mood

Many of us have been trained to believe that comfort foods are not good and must be avoided. However, if your comfort food is candy or junk food this is true. Otherwise, comfort foods may be very nutritious and good for you. Some foods honestly do raise your mood when you eat them. If you are feeling a little bit down and you’re needing an emotional pick me up, try a number of these.

Eggs, believe it or not, can be really great at beating back depression. Just see to it that you don’t get rid of the egg yolk. The yolk is the part of the egg that is the most important in terms of helping elevate your mood. Eggs, specifically the yolks, are loaded with B vitamins. B vitamins can actually help you raise your mood. This is because the B vitamins help your neural transmitters–the parts of your brain that dictate your mood–work better. Eat an egg and be happy!

Make some trail mix of nuts or seeds. Peanuts, cashews, sunflower seeds, almonds, pumpkin seeds, and so on are all fantastic for helping to boost your mood. This is because these foods are high in magnesium, which helps to increase serotonin levels. Serotonin is known as the “feel good” substance that our body produces and it tells your brain how you should be feeling at all times. The more serotonin you have, the happier you are going to feel. Not only that but nuts, particularly, are a terrific source of protein.

Cold water fish are great if you want to feel happier. Tuna, trout, mackerel, herring and wild salmon are all rich in omega-3 fatty acids and DHA. DHA and omega-3s are two things that improve the quality and the function of your brain’s grey matter. It’s true: eating a tuna fish sandwich can really help you fight depression.

Some grains are truly wonderful for driving away bad moods. Quinoa, barley, millet, etc are fantastic at helping you feel happier. These grains can help you feel full for longer as well, helping you feel better. Feeling famished can actually bring you down! The reason these grains are so great for your mood is that they are not hard for your body to digest and process. You digest these grains quicker than other foods which can help increase your blood sugar levels, which, in turn, helps make you feel more pleasant, mood wise.

Green tea is truly great for your mood. You were sure it had to be mentioned in this article, right? Green tea is loaded with an amino acid referred to as L-theanine. Research has proved that this amino acid induces the production of brain waves. This will improve your brain’s focus while at the same calming the rest of your body. You knew that green tea helps you be better. Now you are aware that green tea helps you to raise your moods also!

Now you know that junk food isn’t necessarily what you should eat when you wish to help your moods get better. Try several of these instead!