maren's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Places edited in Delft, Netherlands
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Places edited in Nara, Japan
Sponge Candy
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Sweets

Sponge Candy

This chocolate-coated confection's crisp, bubbly structure is well-suited to the even crisper Buffalo air.
Sponsored by Visit Buffalo Niagara
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Dole Whip
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Sweets

Dole Whip

This pineapple soft serve has a cult following at Disney theme parks.
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Pocari Sweat
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Drinks

Pocari Sweat

A pharmaceutical company developed this beverage as drinkable IV solution.
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Wagashi
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Sweets

Wagashi

These Japanese sweets demonstrate the ephemeral beauty of the seasons.
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Matcha Chasen
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Matcha Chasen

To make the perfect matcha, start with the perfect whisk.
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Soylent
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Soylent

One fantasy food's journey from sci-fi vegan steak to silver screen cannibalism to actual meal replacement.
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Egg Cream
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Drinks

Egg Cream

A fizzy, chocolate drink that harkens back to the days of Brooklyn soda fountains.
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Cherimoya
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Fruits & Vegetables

Cherimoya

Growing this sweet, tropical fruit sometimes requires careful hand-pollination with a paint brush.
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Goma Dofu
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Prepared Foods

Goma Dofu

This tofu alternative replaces soybeans with sesame and kudzu.
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Shojin Ryori
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Shojin Ryori

Japan's traditional temple cuisine features meals that are nutritionally and visually balanced.
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Amba
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Ingredients & Condiments

Amba

The spicy, sour mango sauce is beloved from India to Israel.
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Molcajete
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Molcajete

The Mesoamerican mortar and pestle has been made, and used, the same way for thousands of years.
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Okonomiyaki
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Prepared Foods

Okonomiyaki

A wartime rice scarcity made this versatile pancake a Japanese staple.
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Taiyaki
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Sweets

Taiyaki

This pancake pays tribute to one of Japan's favorite fish.
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Ramune
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Drinks

Ramune

The Japanese soda still comes in a marble-stoppered bottle from the 19th century.
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Pineapple Bun
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Sweets

Pineapple Bun

This sweet treat is so beloved in Hong Kong, it inspired an animated movie.
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Nattō
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Prepared Foods

Nattō

These pungent fermented soybeans are coated in probiotic slime.
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Pimientos de Padrón
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Fruits & Vegetables

Pimientos de Padrón

Eating these unpredictable tapas is a game of spicy-pepper roulette.
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Grass Jelly
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Ingredients & Condiments

Grass Jelly

Once a treatment for heat stroke, the herbal gel now flavors desserts.
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Cajeta
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Sweets

Cajeta

In the city of Celaya, goat's milk caramel tops everything from ice cream to cereal.
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Pandan Leaf Extract
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Ingredients & Condiments

Pandan Leaf Extract

This plant adds a hint of vanilla and a wash of brilliant green to any dish.
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Umeboshi
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Fruits & Vegetables

Umeboshi

These salted, pickled plums are an ancient Japanese hangover cure.
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King Cake
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Sweets

King Cake

The Carnival cake comes with a hidden baby Jesus inside.
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Chicken of the Woods
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Ingredients & Condiments

Chicken of the Woods

This mushroom tastes just like chicken.
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