Things I love about winter in Japan: yuzu and the solstice

In my home country, we really don't have much of a connection to the solstice as the "start" of a season. For instance, we just mark summer as December, January, and February (southern hemisphere!) rather than saying summer starts on December 21st. Same goes for winter – that's just June, July, and August in my home country. 

Here though, I feel like it's a lot more specific and seen as being in line with the solstice dates, so winter technically starts tomorrow, December 21st. I appreciate the winter solstice traditions, and one that I think is fun is the yuzu bath! The gist is that you float whole yuzu in your bath, and it's said to have a number of different benefits – better circulation, a way of warding off colds, and even nourishing the skin thanks to the natural oils that are present in the fruit. 

Since they are in season at this time of year, there are also plenty of ways to use them in cooking, not just for throwing in the tub. Sauces and marinades are a good start and probably the most popular that I've come across.

Do you "do as the Romans do" and embrace the yuzu bath tradition over the solstice? Got any good ideas for using yuzu in recipes at this time of year?