namagashi.生.菓.子

namagashi (生菓子) generally refers to  snacks served in the japanese tea ceremony. a variation of wagashi (和菓子) that are more elaborate more expensive than the normal wagashi.  i am mad about namagashi since my first encounter with japan.  they are usually unbaked, fill with azuki red bean paste or jelly based normally beautifully crafted according to the season.  in this case late winter or early spring.

this namagashi is called 水仙 or rather daffodil in english, symbolizing the early spring flowers

the innard of daffodil, filled with azuki

another namagashi that i picked up from an old shop nearby to ikegami baien.  it looks more like a berry to me but perhaps it is a spring fruit that i don't know of.  it is made of whole azuki and light gelatin.

an ordinary but yummy salty daifuku 塩大福 from the same shop

 

ichigo daifuku (いちご大福), another representation but fill with strawberry, azuki bean paste and wrap in mochi

spring mochi that i picked up from yanaka, this is by far the cheapest one...

and delicious, i couldn't resist them and just eat them at mos burger after my japanese twist burger ...

also from the shop in yanaka, this is down to earth sweet potato namagashi, so it is not always made of azuki

this is sakura bun - so it is technically not namagashi but a wagashi, taste very much like the dou sa pau (豆沙包) red bean paste steamed bun back home except the lightly salted sakura is added to it.

the innards

these are the namagashi that i am made about, too bad there is no old wagashi shop nearby to where i live nor  can i find on nearby my work place.  otherwise, i would buy one every day and eat them fresh as snack.  whilst in reality i only grab them as i see them wherever i go in weekend.  so it's more like a weekend sweet treats to reward myself from a week of hard work.

the weather is very changeable, it was nice, warm and sunny over the weekend but the since monday we are back to winter, grey and rainy.  but it's okay since i am at work anyway, so it's only tuesday and i am already looking forward for weekend to come.

good night.