A Japanese gift

This morning at the bed and breakfast, I made pear crepes. I had crepe batter in the fridge, so I just whipped a few up, then threw some peeled, diced pears in a pan with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Everyone seemed to like them, and I was glad to use up the pears.

After breakfast, a guest asked if I could make just one more crepe. This meant pulling out all the pans and ingredients again, and starting from the beginning. I was ahead of schedule anyway, so I said I’d be happy to. She asked if she could watch, because she was very interested in learning about American cooking. She and her husband are visiting from Japan, and it sounds like they’re having a great time.

I ended up giving her a short lesson on making crepes and pear filling, and she helped out by flipping the crepes and rolling up a few. She had her husband take numerous photographs, of me rolling up a crepe, of her standing next to me rolling up a crepe, of her rolling up a crepe…and even one with the two of us smiling in front of the stove. She called me her “cooking teacher,” and seemed so grateful for the experience. I wrote down the recipe for her and gave her my email, and in return, she gave me many thanks and a bag of what she called a “Japanese sweet.” I love the name of it…Corn Chocolate. I love how it’s described as “mild and delicious.” I love that it’s something I’ve never tasted before, and probably something I never would have tasted if it hadn’t been for this guest’s thoughtfulness.

I can only describe these little bars as white-chocolate-covered-popcorn-cereal-like-stuff. They’re pretty good, and ultra-cute. At some point in my life, I’m going to have to travel around the world, tasting all the “mild and delicious” treats out there.

9 responses to “A Japanese gift”

  1. that’s sweet!

    did you get to try the minestrone?

    😉

  2. …it’s specially made fresh, natural flavor is mild and delicious.
    Japanese product copy cracks me up.

  3. That will be a very long trip.

  4. What a really cool experience. I love visiting bed and breakfasts for that very same reason-meeting new people and learning about their cultures. It sounds like a very cool job you have. 🙂

  5. How cool! They sound good. I will post the recipe tonight for the lemon cookies along with pics of my gift. Love you!

  6. That is such a cute story. I’m not very well-travelled, but I spent 10 days in Japan this past April and it changed my life. I loved it there, would love to live there. They are so cute with their little gifts, too. They are obsessed with gift-giving.

    Also, almost all of the food there sounds weird but then when you taste it, it’s delicious and you think, “Why don’t we have that here?” 🙂

  7. I work with Crystal. She let me try one of these “Corn Chocolates”. I thought it was quite good.

    Japanese typically haul gifts with them when they travel. Traveling and meeting people are big deals to them – hence the popularity of Hello Kitty, the worlds most famous traveler.

  8. So this is what you were talking about. No, I have never tried those “Corn Chocolates” and there’s a good reason for that. The bag says that this is sold only in Hokkaido, the northmost island in Japan. The island is famous for good dairy products, and white chocolate is the most popular souvenir there. You are very lucky — you had a chance to taste something that I may not have a chance to taste in this lifetime.

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