Yesterday, the weather finally reached 39 ℃ (102.2°F) in my area where I live. We are living in a higher temperature than our body temperature. According to the weather forecast, it'll be 38 ℃ tomorrow. No wonder we’re all craving something cold!

Today I'd love to share some cold sweets in Japan. First, I made akashiso jelly using my homemade akashiso syrup and agar. I've already written about how to make the akashiso syrup, so please use that as a reference (click here). Since the syrup has such a pretty color, the jelly looks ruby cubes.

I topped it with vanilla flavored ice cream. It's very simple to make and delicious!

The next one is baked apple with some ice cram. After baking the apples, I store them (and the juice) in a fridge to chill . The combination of cold apple and ice cream is awesome! This has become one of my favorite summer desserts. I've also written a post about how to make the baked apples, so please feel free to check it out (click here).

The third picture shows anmitsu, which is a classic Japanese sweet in the summer. The one in the picture is my homemade version. I prefer it has variety of fruit in it, so I added kiwi fruit, blueberries, strawberris, and pineapple.

The next two pictures below shows anmitsu from a traditional Japanese sweet shop. I ate it with two of my knitting friends. In this season, when you visit a traditional Japanese sweet shop, you'll definitely see anmitsu, which is quite popular.

The last picture shows mizumanjyu, which is a type of chilled manjyu ( sweet bean-paste bun) wrapped in bamboo leaves. The yellow one has a citrus-flavored filling. We keep them cool in a refrigerator until it's time to eat.

These cold sweets help us beat the brutal summer heat, and that's why so many Japanese people love them.

It's still the mid of summer here, and the muggy weather will continue. So we definitely need something to cool us down.

Do you have any favorite cold sweets where you live?

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