When I was little, Halloween did not exist in Japan.
There were no costume parties, no trick-or treating, and no gross (and fun) food.
But Halloween is now reportedly estimated to have over 200 million dollars in economic impact in Japan.
When we go to Japan to visit my family, we usually choose a warmer season (typically later spring or early summer), so I’ve never witnessed any Halloween related festivities in Japan in person, but based on what I see on the social media, I definitely see it has become a big event.
Valentine’s day is pretty big in Japan and people spend money, but now I hear Japanese people spend more money for Halloween.
Sadly, one thing I remember well as a Halloween related memory was the tragedy of a Japanese exchange student shot on the Halloween night in 1992.
Staying with his host family in Louisiana, he, in a John Travolta costume, and his friend accidentally went to a wrong house. The homeowner saw the two teenagers walking toward his property, went to get a gun, and told them to freeze. The reported story was that the Japanese exchange student did not understand what “Freeze” meant, he walked closer to the guy trying to explain the situation, and then he was shot dead.
This may have been the first time for many Japanese people who heard the American event called “Halloween”, and everyone leaned what “Freeze” meant…
Sorry, I didn’t mean to be a wet blanket, but 20 years later I still think about this event when Halloween approaches.
I do like Halloween and enjoy the event a lot.
These Pumpkin Snowball Cookies are super tasty and perfect for small treat bags.
Pumpkin Snowball Cookies
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1~2 tablespoons pureed pumpkin
a pinch of salt
1 cup all purpose flour
confectioners sugar
cinnamon
1. Combine the first five ingredients. Mix well. Roll to form small balls. Place them on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
2. Bake at 350F for about 15 minutes.
3. Mix confectioners sugar and cinnamon. Roll the cookies in this sugar mixture.
Have a safe and fun Halloween everyone!
I’m on Instagram.
