One of the things I was looking forward to when I went back to Japan was of course ‘Manju (まんじゅう)’ the Japanese sweet. I can make some by myself but I just wanted to try some very good ones that I cannot find in London.
As I mentioned previously in “the Taste of Autumn” we are sensitive to changing seasons in Japan and ‘Wagashi (和菓子)’ the Japanese sweet is no exception. At the very beginning of Autumn the colour/pattern/ingredients of Japanese sweets have been already changed into Autumn theme.
One of three sweets in the above photo you can see that the key ingredients is ‘Kuri (栗、くり)’ – Chestnut. Chestnut is very widely used for all sort of sweets in Japan in Autumn.
The bottom right one is created with the image of a mountain in Autumn colour and Japanese Maple ‘Momiji‘ pattern was stamped on it. It also has pieces of Chestnut mixed in.
They were all very tasty sweets and went very well with strong Green Tea. 🙂
Sakura Junction 
They all look gorgeous and yummy! I’m a big fan of wagashi. Thanks for the post! ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
My pleasure! I’m please to hear there is another Wagashi lover.
LikeLike
In Hanoi (where I live now), there is a couple who quitted their job to follow the passion with wagashi. They are self-taught and improving yearly. I always feel happy to order and wait to see their work, which well-blended between Tradition of Japan, and the Twist of Vietnam ❤
LikeLiked by 2 people
Great to know about those people. The story encourages me a lot since I am also a self-taught Wagashi maker. Many thanks.
LikeLike
Cool! Keep up with your work! Your colleagues in Hanoi here always have problem with the language barrier, because they don’t know Japanese at all. 😊
Btw, do Japanese have Almond-kind Wagashi? I’m huge fan of Almond 😆
LikeLiked by 1 person
So my colleagues are not Japanese then. I wonder how they started liking Wagashi that much?
I cannot think any Wagashi with Almond off the top of my head right now but there might be some baked one, I think.
LikeLike
Oh no, they are Vietnamese couple, the husband worked as game programmer before, and his wife was a designer. He knew about Wagashi when working for a digital food magazine project, then felt in love. They are quite new, only more than 1 year experience. This is the link about them, sorry it is in Vietnamese ^^~ http://www.tiin.vn/chuyen-muc/tien/bo-nghe-lap-trinh-de-di-lam-banh-wagashi-handmade.html
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, great work. very impressive! I have to work harder now …
LikeLike
LOL, yeah, keep working! I wish I can try your Wagashi someday 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
You never know what happens in the future. The day might come sometime.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What will you make that day, I’m curious! 😆
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ha ha, I have to start planning for the day now!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Cool, is there any possibility that you can make kawaii Pusheen wagashi?!? 😍
LikeLike
Possibly?!
LikeLike
Beautiful! But we do not expect less of Japanese sweets! I love how the food changes with season in Japan, they are also food for the eyes!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, I enjoyed walking in department store and supermarket. All the seasonal food and decoration were colourful and beautiful.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh yes! Markets are my absolute favorite when traveling just about anywhere XD
LikeLiked by 1 person
I just love the seasonality of Japanese food!
LikeLiked by 1 person
So what is the taste of Autumn in NZ?
LikeLike
Gee I don’t think we have a NZ cuisine like Washoku as we are a country of immigrants. But for me home cooking wise Autumn and winter sees the slow cooker in action and lots of soups.
LikeLiked by 1 person