Count down to a 1000 Dango

 Continued from previous blog.

"A thousand, I'll give it a go."

But when I looked in the freezer, I suddenly found that I had run out of frozen mugwort paste, which I had received as the last harvest of last summer. I had to think about what to do with the greens that would have to be skewered first!

The first thing I did was to contact Namayasai, the Organic Japanese vegetable farmer in Lewis who lets me stock mugwort every year.

Namayasai: "Well, the weather didn't improve this spring, so we're not ready to harvest yet. I'll have another look around the end of next week and let you know."

At that point, it was the end of March.Then, a friend of mine happened to come for tea at the shop and said, "I'm going to Japan tomorrow"! I'll buy it online from a Japanese wholesaler, so bring it back here for me! I plead with him. Even though he readily agrees, his return date is mid-April.

Anyway, as soon as I got it, I could start, so I just waited.

After several sunny days, Namayasai informed me that the crop was ready to be harvested, three days before my friend returned from Japan. I actually got the mugwort from my friend on 16 April and the mugwort from Namayasai on 18 April. Thanks to that, I got enough mugwort to make roughly 3,000 dangos! (lol).

First, we wash the mugwort and use only the tender leaves.After blanching the tender leaves, I make a paste with a blender and roll it up in batches to make yomogi dama (mugwort balls). They will be used to make Japanese sweets until next spring. I made three times as many mugwort dumplings as the amount in the photo.

Once that is done, it is time to make the dumplings.

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Here's a little bit of knowledge.

Three-pastel coloured dumplings are very popular here in London and South..

They are skewered in the order of green, white and pink from the bottom.

They are also popular as hanami (sakura picnic) sweets.

The green at the bottom represents the budding ground, the white represents lingering snow and the pink represents plum and cherry blossoms.

Another explanation is that pink (red) and white are good luck, while green is to ward off evil spirits (mugwort has also been used as a medicinal herb for centuries).

It is also thought that a play on words, with representing greeny summer(Natsu), white winter(Fuyu) and pink spring(Haru), and that the absence of autumn(Aki) is because there is 'no boredom(Aki-nai)'.

The pink colour is a plant-derived pigment, so it is suitable for both vegetarians and plant-based people.

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Without a commercial rice cake pounder, An An starts by steaming a mixture of rice flour and sugar. This is a labour-intensive process of steaming and kneading, steaming and kneading. Each morning, one kilogram of dumpling dough is made for three colours of dumplings at a time, making 3x50 dumplings. Electric dumpling machines are used in most Japanese confectionery shops in Japan. An An does not have such a luxury.

What do we use?

Ta-da!

A traditional wooden ball cutter (kyu-dan ki).

It's extremely heavy, but that weight makes a lot of round dumplings at once, which is great. A Japanese traditional confectioner recommended that I should buy one more than ten years ago, and I immediately bought it from Kappabashi, Tokyo. It seems that there are no longer any craftsmen manufacturing them and new ones are no longer available... How sad!

The 50 or 100 dumplings are brought to the café, and every day my helpers carefully skewer the dumplings one by one, cutting off the pointy ends to avoid injuring guests mouths.

So now we have 350 sanshoku dumplings to go!

If we make 250 this week and 100 next week, we will have achieved our goal!

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 an-an's three-coloured dumplings🍡

Ingredients; White rice flour, rice cake flour, sugar beets, kuzu flour, tapioca flour, mugwort, pink food colour (red beet).

All packaging materials are made from materials that can be decomposed in household compost. However, the solid bamboo skewers take a long time to decompose, so we hope they can be reused for something else.

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Everyone is welcome.

Many people are eager to bring toilets from Japan.

There may be restrictions on installing them, and many people may have given up on the idea here.

This is an opportunity to casually ask an expert. Please come and visit us.

Both dumplings and tea are free 💓

it's already a week into May!!!

 

Hello.

The wisteria in our neighbourhood park has started to bloom.

It's finally getting warmer (or rather, hot when the sun is shining) and it's the season when you want to sit outside and have a cup of tea.

An-an is doing well today, too.

Although Children's Day on 5 May has already passed, we will continue to make Kashiwa Mochi.

I saw on a Youtube news programme that during Golden Week in Japan, there was a huge crowd of tourists from overseas and domestic tourists during Golden Week. As usual, the Japanese yen seems to be flying low, and shopping in the UK is strictly forbidden to be converted into Japanese yen. You won't be able to buy anything 💦.

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This month's sweets.

Strawberry Daifuku

We make lots of these with delicious British strawberries!

Kashiwa Mochi

Koshi An (sweet red bean paste)

Miso-an

Yomogi tsubu-an

Young sweetfish

A sweetfish snack for early summer.

An-an's young sweetfish has yuzu-flavoured gyuhi inside.

　

We would like to make as many strawberry shortcakes and strawberry mille crepes as possible, but the cakes on display change from day to day. 

We are also currently taking orders for birthday cakes and anniversary cakes.

Please book early as cakes will be ready 7 days after we receive your order.

For reservations, please contact info@an-an.co.uk.

Basic prices (as of May 2024): 8" (20cm) shortcake ￡40, mille crepe ￡43. Additional charges apply for the use of matcha green tea and special fruits. A box fee is also added for Take Away.

For more information on the range of cakes, see Instagram.

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From the 21st to the 31st of this month, TOTO will be holding an event at their showroom in London, and they will be using an-an's Japanese sweets.

Oh, I think I need more explanations....

TOTO is famous for its Washlet. Yes, in the film "Perfect Days", which was also released in the UK this spring, there are many scenes where Koji Yakusho, who plays the leading role, is carefully cleaning the washlet.

TOTO said, they would like to invite a gardener to their showroom in London to create a Karesansui (dry landscape garden), where they would like to entertain their guests with an-an's three-coloured dango and tea. "How many dumplings would you like?" I asked him,

TOTO "300 dumplings"
an-an: "Oh, that's fine. If it's that many, we made them when we had a stall at the Japan Festival." 

So I visited the showroom in London. They showed us illustrations of their plans and told us that they could offer the guests freshly steamed three-coloured dangos during the event. 
So, business was concluded.

And a few days later.
TOTO: "It looks like 300 dumplings won't be enough, can you order 600?"
an-an: "Eh? Ah, well, we have made them before when we had a stall at Hyper Japan, so I think we'll be fine."

And a week later.
TOTO: "I was able to borrow a freezer to store the three-coloured dumplings before steaming.And it looks like it can hold 1,000 dumplings, so can I have 1,000 dumplings please?"
an-an: "............. One, I will make it (I haven't experienced this number yet 💧 Oh, dear...)."

And then an issue arises: can we get enough materials for 1,000 dangos?

To be continued in the next blog.

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And the information about the event will be this image. Everyone is welcome.

Many people want to bring the Japanese toilets by themselves...

There installation problem, and many people may have given up.

This is an opportunity to ask an expert. 

Please visit this event!.

February is a busy month!

 It's February!

According to the calendar, it's already spring.

Hum... the illustrations in my calendar are still very winter💦.

I could have found something warmer, like plum blossoms or Japanese nightingales.

I'm sorry, but I've been thinking to myself.

So on Saturday, the 3rd, we will be rolling a lot of ehomaki for Setsubun, the Japanese New Year's Eve.

Have you ordered your rolls yet?

If you would like to eat them as ehoumaki without cutting them, please request "do not cut" when you place your order.

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Now, February is Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day.

This Tuesday, six weeks before Easter, is Pancake Day, a day to use up eggs and milk before Lent, yet an-an is taking on a new challenge.

For some time, customers have been asking us about it, but we have been avoiding it for lack of opportunities.

The other day I practised and managed to get the fluffy mouth feel of a soufflé pancake for the fourth time, so I'm going to give it a go, although the shape is a bit unique. It is difficult to cook, and difficult soufflé pancakes that sink and lose their thickness as you just put butter on them or pour maple syrup on them. Let's give it a go.

Serving starts at 9.30 on the day.

We will start making the pancakes after we receive your order, so it may take a lot of time. Please understand. We will try to make as many soufflé pancakes as we can until closing time.

As well as butter and maple syrup, we are aiming for banana & chocolate, berries & cream and apple & toffee.... maybe, maybe...

I'll keep you posted on the details until the day of the event!

If we get it right on the day, we may continue with the soufflé pancakes the following day, Valentine's Day.

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On Thursday 15 Feb, we will close at 3.00pm.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

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On Sunday 18 Feb, we will be running a calligraphy workshop. More details on the Facebook event page. It's £15 per person and will run from 1pm-3pm. To register, please visit the Facebook event page.

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A Japanese sweets workshop or Japanese afternoon tea is planned for around the end of February. We will start accepting bookings as soon as the schedule is finalised, so please look forward to it - 💓

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So, be safe and healthy with Eho-maki this year.

It is almost spring... Setsubun with Ehomaki

There's a hell of a storm blowing across the UK here, I hope you're all OK.

In Brighton, due to the wind direction, the warm winds are coming in from the south, and we are having a bit of warm rain, which is a change from last week's freezing temperatures.

So, Setsubun is coming soon, and we will be making Keihomaki again this year, as we have received requests. We have four types of ehoumaki filled with seven delicious ingredients so that everyone can take in a lot of good fortune. Let's celebrate Setsubun by eating ehoumaki and mame-maki to bring in good fortune.

This year, on Saturday 3 February, the direction of blessings is

Slightly east of East-northeast 

Good luck finding it💦.

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Kaisen, ehoumaki £12

(Sushi prawns, squid, salmon, tobiko, smoked mackerel, seasticks and cucumber)

This made with some raw fish.

Classic ehoumaki £11

(Sushi prawns, smoked mackerel, cucumber, dashimaki tamago, dried tofu, seasticks and dried shiitake mushrooms)

Salad ehoumaki* £11

(Fried prawns, dashimaki tamago, lettuce, cucumber, kaiware daikon, carrot and spinach)

Veggie ehoumaki* £9

(Dashimaki Tamago, Koya-tofu, Cucumber, Spinach, Grilled red pepper, Dried shiitake mushroom, Dried radish)

*Vegetarian and vegan ehomaki can also be made using avocado and inari-age.

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If you make a reservation, you can pick up your food from 12.00 on 3 February until 5.00 pm.
If you wish to pick up before 12.00 pm, please specify a specific time.

Four types of ehomaki, each containing seven ingredients (seven gods of good fortune), will be sold uncut.

Face the direction of blessing and eat without talking so that the good fortune does not spill out of your mouth.

That's all.

We will prepare as many ingredients as possible, but we recommend ordering as far as possible by 2 February, the day before, as we may sell out.

You can be sure that your order will be placed by texting the café's phone number. We will send back a confirmation text as soon as we receive it.

Let's welcome spring in good health this year!

Since it's Saturday, you can also colour in devil's masks and make your own origami sampo~.

Happy New Year, 2004!

 This year, 2024 is,

Year of the Dragon🐉

It's cool!

But here's the illustration for the shop's calendar.

Click on it to enlarge it.

We hope it makes you feel warm and smily.

First of all, I would like to wish those who have suffered disasters and accidents since New Year's Day in Japan a speedy recovery and a little bit of life back to normal. We extend our condolences to those who have lost loved ones.

Even from within Japan, the infrastructure has collapsed and aid is not reaching us, so I think we will have to wait a little longer for aid from overseas. The Noto Peninsula and the surrounding coastal areas of Japan were one of the places I wanted to travel to, partly because of the opening of the Shinkansen bullet train. I made up my mind that I would definitely go there when the areas recover, while making a small donation now.

Thinking about this makes me think more and more that I need to travel to Japan soon. My hometown, Kobe, has also recovered after the earthquake, but the old, coasy downtown of Kobe has gone. The earthquake reconstruction has improved the earthquake resistance and safety, but on the other hand, I feel that my favourite Japanese townscape of the Showa era is now only in my memory.

I suddenly realise that this year will be 30 years since I came to the UK. With the help of everyone around me, my children have grown up and my youngest is reaching the age of 18.

I hope to be able to pass on to the younger generation what I have been helped with. Life goes around. I never forget to be grateful and thankful.

I guess this is my resolution for this year.

So, I look forward to seeing you again this year.

Brighton WaCafe an-an, Noriko

New Year's Day 2024
on the 8th.(a week late💦)

Community Party at Japanese garden at Hammersmith Park

Thank you to all those who came to yesterday's event at Hammersmith Park.

I found leftovers of the last batch of Mizu Yokan I made at the last minutes and I was rewarding myself.

It was fun to talk to all kinds of people in a relaxed atmosphere as it was a community festival.

Thank you to all the customers who told me how delicious the food was. Your comments are my driving force 💓.

Last year we sold out in a little over an hour, so this time we tried our best and brought 2.5 times as many wagashi as last year, but they really sold out in 2.5 hours.

The photo above was borrowed from the Embassy of Japan and the Japan Society.

I had asked my husband to take lots of photos, but once we started, I couldn't move for a long time and concentrated on packing the boxes.

I feel really sorry for the customers who had to wait in line and ran out of Japanese sweets. The people from the Japan Society are planning to organise some kind of event in the near future! We hope they will come up with something soon! We'll leave it at that.

I was worried about the rain forecast, which had come out just before the event, but it only sprinkled a little. Finally, I returned home to Brighton with a dazzling sunset.

Now, let's do our best to get the laundry and washing up done.

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Cafe an-an will be taking a week's Summer holiday from tomorrow. The next working day will be Tuesday 14, from 9am. Please note that we will be open from 9.00am on Tuesday 15.

🙇‍♀️

July Newsletter

Half of the year is now over and we hope you are enjoying this summer free from Corona.

an-an now has plans to pitch a stall at fairs and markets after so many years of absence. It's Japanese confectionery, Wagashi again. We are excited as we stearing the anko (bean paste) full of a huge sauce pan.

This Saturday, 8 July, I will hold a stall at the Summer Festival at Maeda Gakuen, a kindergarten ground in Acton, London.

If you are in the area, please drop by.

There will be a raffle and the prizes are amazing.

We will also have a stall at the Japanese Garden Festival in Hammersmith Park, Shepherd's Bush, London, on 6 August. This is organised by the Japanese Consulate and the London Japan Society and there will be lots of family activities to take part in. It's just a short walk from Westfield Shopping Centre, so please come along if you fancy.

Well, let's get on with this month!