Hagi no Tsuki

Day thirty-five: Hagi no Tsuki
Sanzen, ¥147

The bush clover's masses of lovely but unassuming blossoms, known as hagi, are one of the favorite symbols of autumn in Japan. The name is accordingly attached to all sort of non-floral things, such as this Hagi no tsuki, or "Hagi moon", a popular souvenir of the northern city of Sendai.

In yet another instance of the Japanese improving on a borrowed idea, the Sanzen company appears to have used Twinkie technology to create something that doesn't call to mind bomb shelter rations. The chocolate sponge is as soft as a powderpuff and the immaculately-inserted milk chocolate cream is sweet and fudgy with no hint of a test-tube aftertaste.