January 11 is a day we traditionally do "Kagami Biraki" (literally means, "opening the mirrow") in Japanese culture. In this ceremony, we break "Kagami Mochi" (two-tiered round-shape mochi ornament for the new year) and eat it for good luck.
Here's our little Kagami Mochi. I took it out of the package. I broke it into pieces and poached them in the hot water until soft.
Itadakimasu! I made two kinds of mochi snacks. One is "Kinako Mochi", which is coated with a mixture of kinako (roasted soybean powder), ground black sesame seeds, sugar, and a little salt. Kinako mochi is my favorite kind of mochi. The other is "Anko Mochi", which is mochi and sweet azuki bean paste. These are both very rustic Japanese desserts we all love.
I felt so lucky for this year.
