Cherry Blossom Cookies

In Japan, April is one of my favorite months because the weather finally begins to warm up, the beautiful sakura begin to bloom, and hanami festivities with friends and food commence.    

Here in Hawaii, there aren't streets lined with the delicate pink and white cherry blossoms, but the spirit of Spring and sakura still stays with me.  

This post is inspired by and dedicated to all of the 61st Cherry Blossom Contestants.  Thank you girls for an amazing and unforgettable 6 months together :)

Last week, I was on a mission to make Cherry Blossom Cookies.  My problem, however, was finding a cookie cutter to match my needs.  The stores didn't carry cherry blossom cutters and I was getting desperate...so I decided to make my own.

Step 1.  Google: "how to make your own cookie cutters" and find this awesome tutorial by MyPaperCrane.  

Step 2.  Foil.  Fold.  Fold. Fold. Fold.  Fold.  You get the idea.  Staple Staple Staple!  All pau.

Ok, it took a little more finesse than I had anticipated, but the end product at least looked pretty cool.  I added a cardboard backing to my cutter to make it a little more sturdy and hoped that it would keep its shape for at least one batch of cookies.

DIY with Foil, Staples, Tape, and Cardboard!

Next, I prepared the cookie dough.  This recipe is actually from a Visual Arts Class I took in 7th grade where we made cookies as part of a project...a special thanks to Ms. Yoneshige!  I like this recipe because the cookie is nice and crunchy (thanks to lots and lots of lard!!) and it works well with royal icing and decorating.

Visual Ed Vanilla Cookies

Sift: 

• 3 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda

Other ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cup shortening
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cream shortening and sugar; add egg, mix well and then add vanilla.  Mix in sifted ingredients.  Roll out dough and use cookie cutters to cut shapes.  Bake at 350° for about 15 minutes, until slightly brown.

I found that the homemade cookie cutter didn't hold its shape entirely, but it lasted for about 20 cookies.  If it had been a little sturdier, it would've made a much nicer cookie, but it did its job.  I frosted it with light pink royal icing, dusted it off with some pink edible glitter, and added a decorative sugar pearl in the center.

Pretty in Pink: the finished product

And for fun, I decided to make some mini cookies since I found a mini cherry blossom cutter that my mom had at home to use for cutting carrots or daikon into fancy shapes.  I dusted each one with pink glitter and I think they turned out pretty cute :)

Chibi-sized Cherry Blossom Cookies

The bottom line is: improvise if you don't have the exact materials that you need!  Don't live a cookie-cutter life...make your own :P

Doodle Of The Day: Happy St. Patty's Day!

Doodle of the Day: Life of Pie

sin (π) = 0

Well I realized at work this morning that it was a special occasion...March 14th (3.14) or Pi Day!  And since I was off from work in the afternoon I decided to be productive...and doodle haha.  Pi, pie, and puns for all...enjoy!

Doodle of the Day: Happy Thanksgiving!

For all of you who read my blog & doodles, thank you!
I lub you guys <3
Happy Thanksgiving!

Share grub, share love, and eat til you're beat :P

Doodle of the Day: KRAFT Singles

Single, not ready to mingle.

What are some cheeeeeeesy pick up lines you've used or heard?

School Lunches Around the World

Sorry I haven't been updating lately :/ but I do have exciting news to share!  First, I finally reached over 10,000 page views!  Thanks for reading, everyone :D Even if I may be MIA on occasion, I promise I'll keep posting.

Also, check out this article about school lunches around the world that was posted on a blog featured on the SFGate San Francisco Bay Chronicle webpage!  One of my pictures I took of a school lunch in Japan got selected to be featured in the article :)

http://blog.sfgate.com/sfmoms/2012/09/12/20-school-lunches-from-around-the-world/

Snack Attack!

One of the things that I miss about Japan is the conbini, a magical place that is open at all hours and sells a huge variety of items such as bento, onigiri, drinks, magazines, underwear, and even oden.  Oh and you can also pay your bills, buy a concert ticket, or even have a package delivered there for pick up.  It definitely holds up to its title of "convenience store."

I usually would go to the conbini to buy a drink or snack, and would end up spending way too much time browsing the snack section for new products, such as the latest Kit Kat flavor, or the snacks with funny names.  

Here's a selection of Lipton tea flavors purchased at various conbinis.  These 500ml cartons were only about 105 yen each and there's usually some type of seasonal flavor that I would end up buying.  Muscat Tea is my favorite!

"Shekwasha" as written on the carton is actually supposed to be "Shikuwasa" and is a citrus often found in Okinawa.  The Shikuwasa Lipton Tea (above) and the Shikuwasa Hi Chew candy (below) are both from Okinawa.

Kit Kat in Japan is such a huge deal!  They have so many odd seasonal flavors as well as special flavors for different prefectures.  After browsing through my pictures, I realized that I unfortunately don't have picture evidence of the different Kit Kat's I've seen/tried.  But some of the weird ones that I've had include wasabi, miso, and shoyu.  The green tea ones are awesome, and the latest one I tried--raspberry--was also really good!  This tiramisu one was okay...

Did you know that the Nissin Company which makes Cup Noodle also makes instant rice that is Cup Noodle flavored??  Well I found this Cup Noodle Rice at a conbini near my apartment and had to give it a try.  Not great, but fun for the novelty of it.

Chocolate covered almonds with an extra arare (kakinotane) crunch is the perfect blend of sweet and salty.

Gyoza flavored Pretz sounded cool but pretty meh...

Oh, and Crunky Ball Nude??!?!  Salty Nuts??!?!  How do they come up with these names? lol.  

If you're ever in Japan and want to check out these fun snacks, make sure to check out a local conbini!  I guarantee you'll find something unusual :P