Yes, I’m still in Minnesota.

Hubs is holding down the Terrace in Tokyo.

I suddenly find myself living back at my parents’ house like a teenager. Or a college student trying to soak every last bit out of life at home. It’s a bizarre situation to be in as an adult. Some of you may be wondering why I’m not in Japan right now. Without going into much detail yet, let me just say it is not solely a result of the earthquake and all that followed. I’ve stayed behind to take care of some personal/family things. When life settles down a bit I’ll share more, but for now that’s the best explanation I can give. I will be heading back to Tokyo at the end of this summer, so life in Japan has not come to a close just yet!

I’ve been thinking a lot about springtime in Japan as I (not-so-patiently) await the arrival of warmer weather here in Minnesota. Here, spring takes its sweet time, sometimes bringing snow rather than flower blossoms and cold winds rather than warm sun beams. Still, when it does decide to grace us with its presence, spring in Minnesota is bliss. Spring in Japan, on the other hand, pops up earlier than I usually expect. For me, it begins with the blooming plum blossoms. Their sweet fragrance fills the air and pops of bright pink and white scatter Tokyo like splotches on a watercolor painting. Then, not too much later, the cherry blossoms bring even more beauty. They announce spring like trumpeters announcing royalty and everyone around, young and old, stops to soak in the joy of spring.

Mixed in with thoughts of plum blossoms, cherry blossoms, and other such things are the weekly routines of life in Tokyo. Every Sunday, hubs and I attend church in Omotesando. In the middle of this very high-end area of Tokyo with stores like Louis Vitton, Chanel, and Armani sits a church filled with wonderful people. And while I couldn’t care less about the designer clothing shops, I always gawk at the windows showcasing macarons. I have totally fallen in love with these light, crisp-chewy cookies. Since they were so easy to come by in Tokyo, I never bothered making my own, thinking it wouldn’t be nearly as worth it as purchasing a perfectly made macaron at Pierre Hermé (or even Starbucks!) on special occasions.

Last week, I decided it was time to try them out. I was very nervous and quite positive they wouldn’t turn out right the first time around. Which they didn’t. They tasted fine and the texture was OK, but they did not look quite right (no feet). The second try, which I did this morning, was a near success. The texture of the shell batter is still not quite right- it was a bit lumpy today, making it impossible to have nice smooth tops to the cookies. Still, they don’t look half bad! I’m not done trying, but I wanted to share my results with you today.

Easter has always been a big deal in my family. Actually, all major holidays are a pretty big deal in my family. We enjoy the same exact dishes each year at the same house. For 20+ years, holidays have been predictable and wonderful. Of course, when we moved to Japan everything changed. Holidays like Thanksgiving and Easter were no longer spent around the same group of family members. Instead, we found ourselves surrounded by a new “family” that helped us to break out of tradition and try some new things. In many ways, the changes we experienced helped me to appreciate the consistency I’ve had throughout my life.

Experiencing holidays in both concrete and transient environments has lead me to strongly believe in the power of sharing traditions with others. By sharing I don’t mean forcing people to like the way you do things, just simply allowing those closest to you to see what makes you who you are. The traditions we develop and carry with us help to create the diverse groups of people that make up this beautiful world and we can always learn from those outside of our close-knit circles.

Since many of you will be participating in Easter celebrations this weekend, I’ve put together a menu featuring recipes from Tokyo Terrace that represent the traditional and not-so-traditional aspects of holiday gatherings. Some of the recipes are based on my own family traditions, while others are new developments that have come about over the past couple of years in Japan.

No matter where in the world you find yourself, I hope you are surrounded by good people and comforting food.

Enjoy!

Drinks

Pink Lemonade & Thyme Sparkler

Bloody Marys with a Japanese Twist

Appetizers/Side Dishes

Deviled Eggs

Sweet & Spicy Thai Pineapple

Edamame Crostini with Meyer Lemon & Shiso

Mini Pommes Anna

Main Dishes

Savory Vegetable Galette

Phyllo Squares with Egg, Spinach & Cheese

Desserts

Whole Wheat Cranberry Citrus Scones

Strawberries & Japanese Whiskey Sabayon

Blueberry Tart

Brown Sugar Shortbread with Fig Jam

It’s hard to believe that I am beginning my third year in Tokyo. Especially considering this was the conversation when we decided to come here:

Husband: “Do you wanna move to Tokyo?”

Me: “Um, do I have to decide right now?

Husband: “Yes.”

Me: “Well, uh….(nervous stomach flutters)…I guess so.”

Husband: “Ok! Sweet!”

6 months later…

Husband: “So how long should we stay?”

Me: “Probably 2 years. At the most.”

Husband: “Yeah, I agree.”

And now here we are. Our third year in this foreign land that has become our home. I can say with complete certainty that I did not see that one coming!

We spent our third anniversary of moving to Tokyo enjoying the Obon festivities (read more about Obon here). Specifically the fireworks, or hanabi. The weather was oddly comfortable in the midst of the oppressive heat of summer. We enjoyed takoyaki (doughy balls of batter with pieces of octopus, scallions, and ginger covered in a savory sauce and fish flakes) while we waited on our plot of land covered with a plastic tarp for the fireworks display to begin. And of course we did a little people watching.

The lovely yukata (click here for more about yukata) offered a splash of color to the crowd of thousands of people.

The food and the fireworks did not disappoint.

Cheers to year #3!

I have officially been living in Japan for 2 years now. Holy cow. Two. Years. I remember thinking that two years sounded like an eternity when considering the fact that I would be living in a foreign country about a bazillion miles away from my friends and family in the United States. However, thanks to the people I’ve met and the work I’ve been fortunate enough to find, time has flown by faster than I could have ever imagined. JapanEats.tv has definitely been part of the time-flying good stuff in Tokyo.

Grab some Pad Thai and watch the video with JapanEats.tv!

To my complete and utter excitement, we attended the 11th annual Thai Festival in Tokyo a few weeks ago. We filmed a bit of it for all of you to see with the Tokyo Bites crew! I have to say that it made for some interesting filming in the midst of a very crowded festival. People stared, asked if we were with CNN, and generally seemed fascinated the moment we brought out the cameras and microphone. That took a little getting used to on my part… but as always it was a fantastic experience! You can view the video by clicking on this link: http://japaneats.tv/?p=1806. We’d love to hear your comments, questions or general wonderings about the festival culture in Tokyo!

When you live in a place for a certain amount of time, it can become difficult to find those hidden places that keep life exciting. And yes, this even happens when you live in a place like Tokyo. Routines bring you down the same streets, past the same buildings, into the same stores…and before you know it, you’re missing out on hidden treasures that are only a few steps off the beaten path. This past weekend, hubs and I decided to take a walk around the neighborhood. I’m so glad we did, because the discoveries we made reminded me why I am so lucky to have the opportunity to live in a place like Tokyo. These photos are just a few of the enchanting scenes we found in a park that is, at the most, a 2 minute walk from our front door.

After our walk (while scratching a few monster mosquito bites) we decided to head down the hill to Hara Donuts. Hara Donuts is a chain in Japan specializing donuts made with okara, a by-product of soy milk or tofu. Before you chuckle and say, “Tofu by-product donuts? Those aren’t donuts!” I must tell you that these are, hands down, the best donuts I have ever tasted. With a texture that can best be described as light and cakey on the inside with a delicate crispiness on the outside. The balanced flavor and texture are enough to make me as obsessed with donuts as Homer Simpson. D-o-o-o-nuts….

To make things even better, these donuts are preservative free and use products made with local soy beans from Hokkaido. To read more about these fabulous donuts (since the official site is only in Japanese) check out this great article. One (or two) of these donuts along with a steaming hot latte make for a fantastic weekend breakfast. With Krispy Kreme invading Tokyo like a disease, Hara Donuts is a ray of sunshine in the world of donuts.

Just looking at the pictures from this weekend makes me feel the same serenity and complete happiness I experienced on Saturday. It was one of those mornings I often dream about but can rarely make happen because there are so many things to do. Letting loose and doing some exploring was the perfect way to spend my last weekend in Tokyo before leaving for Minnesota on Wednesday.

This past week, Brad and I had two days off of school. We decided to travel outside of Tokyo to escape the busy city. Since the break was short, we chose to travel somewhere that would require little travel time. The best place we found was Kamakura, Japan. An hour south of Tokyo, Kamakura feels like another time period. There are numerous shrines and temples to visit, beaches and of course, great food.

Our first day in Kamakura began with a stop at a coffee shop. We arrived around 11am and needed a little caffeine before we started sight seeing. Along with our coffee, we shared a small snack. In many coffee shops around Japan, different foods are made with hot dog-like sausages. We happened to have one wrapped in a croissant. Although this is not my favorite food in Japan, it hit the spot at this particular time.

Our first destination was the Daibutsu, or Great Buddha. The statue is beautiful and breathtaking. To read more about it and the other places we visited, click here.

Purple sweet potatoes are popular in Kamakura. They are used to make potato chips, lightly breaded and fried potato cakes; my favorite food made with these delicately sweet potatoes is soft serve ice cream. Yes, that’s right…purple sweet potato ice cream (pictured above). It is actually a light lavender color and tastes a little like vanilla with a hint of sweet potato. My family makes a dish at Thanksgiving each year made with sweet potatoes, brown sugar, cinnamon and marshmallows. The purple sweet potato ice cream reminds me of the sweet potatoes from that dish, only more mellow.

That night, Brad and I went to a restaurant above the Kamakura train station. It is actually two restaurants that work together. The first, Tenten, specializes in tempura while Furin serves fish and seafood. Brad and I each ordered a combination of sashimi, tempura, miso soup and salad. To help get rid of the chill that night, we enjoyed some warm sake.

Speaking of warm sake, I did a little research on how to heat sake. Here is how to make your own warm sake:

You will need:

Sake pitcher (heat resistant- most are made of ceramic)
pot of hot water
Sake

Fill the pitcher with sake. Carefully place the sake pitcher upright in the hot water. When you see small bubbles rising from the sake, remove the sake from the water. Do not allow the sake to boil. If it gets too hot the taste will be ruined. Pour the sake into small sake cups and enjoy!

I think I will let you all digest that for now. Tomorrow, I will add more about our second day in Kamakura. Thanks again for reading and feel free to share your thoughts!