Shichijo Kanshundo’s beautiful friendship with Pikachu and pals continues.
The visual appeal of Pokémon’s creature designs are a big part of what attracts fans to the franchise, and the Pokédex is filled with species that look cute, cool, or a combination of the two. It’s less often that we see Pikachu and pals used as muses for something beautiful, though, but that’s just what Kyoto confectioner Shichijo Kanshundo is doing with its latest sweets lineup.
The maker of elegant treats, which was founded in 1865, collaborates with the Pokémon franchise once every year or so, shifting the spotlight to different types of Pokémon and recipes. For this year’s batch, Shichijo Kanshundo is offering a four-piece set that includes a Pikachu sculpted out of nerikiri (mochi flour with white bean jam kneaded into the dough) plus gyuhi (extra-soft mochi) to get the cuddly Pokémon’s texture just right.
Also included in the four-piece set are nerikiri versions of Shiftry and a tri-color Ho-Oh feather. Ho-Oh’s inclusion is particularly appropriate, as the crane-like Legendary Pokémon was introduced to the series at the same time as the Johto region, which takes many of its inspirations from the real-world Kyoto area. Ho-Oh also regularly serves as Kyoto’s representative Pocket Monster species, appearing in regional merchandise and at Kyoto’s Pokémon Center store.
All of these are individually handmade by Shichijo Kanshundo staff, and rounding out the quartet is Clodsire, who instead of nerikiri is a joyomanju, a sweet bun with grated yam mixed into the flour.
Pikachu and Ho-Oh are also featured in the three-piece fuyaki senbei set. Senbei is a general term for Japanese rice crackers, and fuyaki senbei are a sweet-tasting version made with mochi rice.
Each of these fuyaki senbei is like a beautiful little painting, showing Pikachu and Ho-Oh posing with some classical Kyoto architecture, and they’re joined by Magikarp.
And finally, there’s a Pokémon hoshigashi box.
Hoshigashi is a loose classification that means “dry candies,” and their low moisture content allows for confectioners to incorporate lots of fine details in their design. For this set, you have powdery Pikachus, made with wasanbon (a traditional fine-grain sugar made with a slender variety of Japanese sugarcane) plus sakura cherry blossoms and fall leaves, both seasonal sights strongly associated with Kyoto.
Hoshigashi are often made with a wooden mold, and in keeping with that old-school ethos, Shichijo Kanshundo created a Pikachu-shaped one.
Prices range from 1,728 yen (US$11.50) for the senbei set to 2,160 yen for the higashi box and 2,916 yen for the nerikiri and joyomanju bundle, and the entire lineup is available through Shichijo Kanshundo’s online store here.
Source: PR Times, Shichijo Kanshundo
Top image: PR Times
Insert images: PR Times, Shichijo Kanshundo
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