Purple bread, all in my Japanese convenience store sweets. With Valentine’s Day chocolate being such a big deal in Japan, it’s generally a bad idea to try to tempt people with any sort of non-chocolat

Purple bread, all in my Japanese convenience store sweets.

With Valentine’s Day chocolate being such a big deal in Japan, it’s generally a bad idea to try to tempt people with any sort of non-chocolate sweets during the first half of February. There’s simply too much chocolatey goodness out there to compete with.

But once we get past February 14? Then the sweets schedule opens up considerably, and rushing to fill our about-to-expand dessert needs is 7-Eleven Japan. You won’t find this new treat next to the cookies or in the ice cream cooler, though, because it’s a sandwich.

Arriving next week is the Blueberry Sandwich, 7-Eleven’s latest entry into Japan’s fruit sandwich genre. The filling of blueberries and cream cheese looks enticing on its own, but what really makes this eye-catching is the purple bread.

If you’re yet to have the pleasure of biting into a Japanese fruit sandwich, they’re definitely not savory in terms of flavor profile, but they’re not as sweet or rich as a slice of cake. That sweet-but-not-too-sweet balance is what 7-Eleven is going for here as well, and after looking at sales data for fruit sandwiches, the chain found that they’re** a popular evening purchase with younger shoppers**, so it’s pitching the Blueberry Sandwich as a “nighttime comfort” food, an easy-to-enjoy sweet snack to reward yourself with after putting in a solid day’s effort at school or work.

The Blueberry Sandwich, priced at 328 yen (US$2.10), goes on sale February 18. And if you’re bummed about the Valentine’s chocolate season ending, we’ve got a super-easy recipe to make some sake chocolates of your own with.

Source. images: PR Times