Kyoto Food: Summer Wagashi (京都夏の和菓子)

Kyoto Traditional confections are always full of surprise. Since I visited during the summer month, the wagashi (和菓子) is pretty much surrounding the themes of 'cooling down' or 'river' (kawa/川). Also summer wagashi are more jelly or yokan (羊羹) based and I believe it has to do with the fact that jelly/yokan creates an illusion of cooling down and they are transparent...

KAMOGAWA FUN

I bought (and ate this while in Kyoto) this from an outlet called 長久堂 along Kawaramachi dori. The wagashi also depicts the scene of Kamogawa (鴨川) with ducks swimming around.

Summer wagashi that definitely inspired by the life of Kamogawa river like the photo below....

Kamogawa (鴨川) - a typical scene where ducks swimming around at Kamogawa

FURO-SEN

Then I just had this at home this afternoon. These are the delicacies from Nijo Wakasaya. It is called Furo-sen. Furo-sen is a powdered sweet (has more shelf life and thus I can bring them home to enjoy). When hot water is added, puffed mochi birds appear. They have 3 flavors, matcha (green tea), adzuki (sweet bean) & kudzu(葛) of which I bought them all but I only tried the Kudzu one today (the one in the middle)

When I open up the package, they are just some starch and powder. However, when I poured the hot water to the bowl, the powder dilutes and becomes sticky and starchy and 2 little birds or rather ducks surfaced.....

The birdies swimming in the starchy soup....

Kibunegawa Yokan (貴船川羊羹)

Another river fun is not in Kyoto city itself but at the outskirt called Kibune (貴船). This confection is called Kibunegawa, after the Kibune River which is a stream in the North Mountains of Kyoto that flows down to the Kamo River.

Although this yokan also in line with river but instead of birds/ducks, this yokan depicts the bottom of the Kibune river. The transparency suggests cool and refreshing water. The green maple leaves recall the season. The azuki is to illustrate the bottom of the river usually fills with mud and rotten leaves and among some floating new maple leaves (green) .

In Kyoto, food is very important way to feel cool and sweets and confections are not excluded. This yokan plays on the Japanese senses to help people feel cool.
I actually had this in my apartment in Kyoto without the air-condition on. With the heat, humidity and sweat, a bite of this cool yokan cooled me down indeed...