Thursday Snapshot: Ume Ice Cream at Osaka Castle

Ume ice cream at Osaka-jo.
March, 2012

Ume (Japanese plum) blossom season is upon us. It might be a little early and ambitious, especially in light of the recent heavy snow here in Tokyo, but those little blossoms are a delight. This photo, taken at Osaka Castle two years ago, features the blossoms found in the ume orchard there along with a healthy serving of ume ice cream. Oh, yes. It was delicious.

Pumpkin Thoughts and Recipes at Kansai Scene

Mix of summer and winter squash at Tokyo's Kinshicho Farmers Market. 

Fall is when my thoughts turn to pumpkin or, as they are more commonly known in Japan, to kabocha. That doesn't mean my brain turns to mush (although there are moments...), but rather I start to think of all the wonderful things that can be done with this favorite vegetable. Thankfully, other folks are as interested as I am in this lovely vegetable, and I got the chance to publish this little overview of Japanese pumpkin varieties in the October issue of Kansai Scene. I should also mention the two recipes listed there appear regularly these days on our household menu. Give them a go and let me know what you think!

Osaka Farmer's Market Overview in Kansai Scene

Tokyo is not the only city in Japan brimming with markets. I've written about markets as I find them in our travels, but not yet offered an overview. Kansai Scene, a magazine for Osaka and the surrounding region, gave me the chance to do just that. With the help of a friendly reader (who I hope to meet in late March over fresh vegetables at a new market in Nara!) I put together this feature article letting folks know what's going on in that fair city.

Take a look, feel inspired, and hit the road!

As always, watch for my weekly market calendar for Tokyo, and feel free to let me know if there's a market to be covered. The world needs to know where to find good food.

Osaka Farmers Market Video

Just before we left Osaka to return home to Tokyo, we visited a farmer's market I'd heard about while we there in January. I was able to make it to three others, but since it was just after New Year's, many of the markets weren't open then. (New Year's in Japan is like Christmas in the West. Essentially, everything shuts down so people can celebrate the holiday with family and friends.) I was also eager to get back into the groove of markets here since we'd spent February in America and the earthquake and my leg injury threw off most of our other plans for March.

The Odona Market did not disappoint, of course, and you can read all about my adventures there at this post at Summer Tomato. We also took this short video (my first and surely not the best you'll ever see) to offer up some of the sound and feel of the market on this early spring evening.