winter.solstice

another year. last year this time you're at home making the tang yuan 汤圆 (dumplings) with your third sister and nephew. it was since many years that you last did that and in fact you totally forgotten about this tradition.

 because of last year experience, you make some today, in remembrance of the family values and traditions.  making tang yuan here is entirely different experience, here you decided to take the japanese root, you made some into mitarashi dango (みたらし団子). eating the mitarashi dango, you remember your great time in tokyo, the earthquake, the tsunami and the great awakening. although memories of tokyo are fading away as you embark on your london journey. nonetheless, memories are precious.

mitarashi dango is skewered onto sticks in groups of 3–5. you made it three like the spring hanami dango, even the color of the dango resembles the hanami dango pink, white and green.  you covered with a sweet soy sauce glaze.

you dislike coloring, so your dango or tang yuan is naturally color by green tea powder and purple potato flour color.  the colors are light and muted but they are natural at least.  you turn the other tang yuan into a traditional recipe - tang yuan in a sweet broth of osmanthus and fermented rice  桂花酒酿汤圆

you like the subtle fragrance of osmanthus, the entire experience in preparing the tang yuan reminds you of your childhood, where you stood beside your mum, observing how she turn the flour into a dough, add two colors (usually pink and green) and made 3 portions of dough. then it's your job to help to roll them into smaller dumplings size.  some year, your task will be going to the garden patch to cut the skew-pine leave, tie them in a note and smash a piece of ginger and put both skewpine leave and ginger into the pot of boiling water, add rock sugar... memories are precious... nostalgic and today making the dango and tang yuan certainly reminiscence the past. you're thankful today, for the great experience that God has given you and that you can re-live them through the process of making dango/tang yuan.
happy.winter.solstice!