Learning Space No.3 [Yoyun]

It must have been about eight years ago that I first became interested in persimmons. Like many other things, persimmons were not originally a food that resonated with me.

One of our customers, a farmer, gave us some persimmons as a gift, and as they ripened they looked just like mangoes!

The rich flavor and melt-in-your-mouth texture completely opened my eyes to the deliciousness of persimmons.

I was so engrossed that I ate two or three large persimmons right there and then. I'll be eating them whole like that every time I get a new one.

I continue to make plant-based snacks.

I discovered macrobiotics when my child was born; at the time, neither I nor my family were suffering from any particular illnesses, so we were immersed in a world that was genuinely new, delicious and fun.

Although I sometimes feel restricted or bothered by the combinations of ingredients and cooking methods, as I gradually come to understand the balance and laws of yin and yang, I realize that these restrictions are in fact for the sake of freedom.

She started baking sweets as a hobby, and while some of the ingredients required difficult challenges, others are quick and easy to make.

I was amazed and fascinated by all the little discoveries I made in the kitchen.

Surprisingly, there are very few things that can only be made with eggs or butter, and I've come to realize that the idea that something "must" be made with these things may just be an assumption or an obsession.

Before long, even in the kitchen, I got into the habit of wondering whether the things I was told "had to do" were really so.

There's nothing wrong with choosing the other option, and it usually ends up being fun.

The way I eat has become a way of life, and I think these little things are the reason I continue making plant-based sweets to this day.

Persimmons are used in sweets.

This is quite difficult.

When I first encountered them they were unripe and crunchy, but if I took my eyes off them for a moment, the fruit would melt and crumble while I was cutting them, and they just wouldn't behave as I wanted them to.

Most of the people who came to the learning opportunity were not necessarily big persimmon lovers, but rather had too many persimmons in their gardens or did not yet fully understand how delicious persimmons are.

First, have them cut the persimmon.

They also tried the persimmons cut by the person next to them, and everyone was surprised to find that the persimmons from the top and those from the bottom, and from adjacent trees, all tasted slightly different.

When cooked, the light and refreshing taste of raw persimmons becomes concentrated in both flavor and shape, and the texture changes to something different from both raw and dried persimmons. We had the participants taste the persimmons at every stage of the process to see how they changed.

We even had the children crumble ripe persimmons with their hands, allowing them to see how much a persimmon can change.

After that, we encouraged the children to continue stirring, grabbing, and learning that there is a lot of information that can be remembered through things other than the eyes, and encouraged them to actively use their hands.

You also need to be careful about the ingredients you combine with it; although persimmons are delicious on their own, when combined with other ingredients the flavor becomes dull, making you wonder where that energy from that time has gone.

Even with ingredients that are generally said to go well with it, if you are not careful about how you use them, the supporting ingredients will end up standing out and the persimmon will end up being a complete supporting role.

The most important thing is to not just blindly accept existing recipes, but to simply observe the persimmon in front of you.

What if anyone could easily make persimmon-based sweets at home using any persimmon they come across, whether it be crunchy or ripe, and a minimum of ingredients?

My aim was to help them remember this not through numbers but through their five senses, but as I am not used to verbally explaining things like the thickness at which to cut persimmons, which varies depending on the persimmon, or cooking tips, or sensing changes in everyone's moods while proceeding with the work, it was a learning experience for me as well.

I have tried to pack in all the important things in this recipe, while also neatly cutting out a lot of other things, but I would also like to point out that this is only a small guidepost.

It would be great if we could all savor the tenderness of persimmons in that place.

When Kaori asked me to hold a Kaki party, I was surprised when I immediately replied, "Yes, please," even though I had done my best to avoid confectionery classes.

The Utsushiki persimmons ripened at the perfect time.

The joy of enjoying what's in front of you.

When I look at even the smallest things, I find it fun and joyful to see the world expand infinitely from there.

I would say that was a learning experience for me.

There is an abundance of excitement every day.

That's why I'm happy.

I truly believe that.

With each season, new and attractive ingredients become available one after another.

I feel so happy I feel dizzy.

I'm sure my learning will never end.

Thank you to everyone who came.

Thank you so much for a truly enjoyable time.

Thank you for the persimmon too.