I’ve always loved how much Japanese people adore their own cuisine. When I visit Japan, everyone is eating Japanese food. American cities have a Thai place on every corner and countless restaurants offering other cuisines, but only occasionally will I see a foreign restaurant in Japan.

The Japanese love their own cuisine so much, they’ve created entire subcategories, and specialties within those subcategories. You might get a mix of tempura, sushi and yakitori at an izakaya, but even izakaya eating is its own category. Lines of people wait for local delicacies, and standing-only eating is a privilege people wait for patiently.

I was thinking about this when standing in a long line for Punahou Carnival cheeseburgers. The guy in front of me bought a couple dozen and carried them away in a bag to freeze for later. The people behind me were discussing the highly classified secret recipe for the malasadas they munched on.

Hawaii definitely has its own love affair with local foods. Crack-seed care packages comfort homesick friends on the mainland, and pork hash is something to carry on a plane. Then there are the popular restaurants that sell “extra gravy” on the side.

Locals will debate where to buy the best plate lunch, about the texture of shave ice, and know that chili always comes with rice.

I also respect that convenience or decor is never a factor in these decisions — it doesn’t matter if an eatery has only three tables and no parking, only takes cash or closes at 3 p.m. Maybe you don’t even know if it’ll be open because the posted hours are more like guidelines. I think it’s all testament to how much food reflects our lifestyle.

Ironically, one foreign cuisine that I do see often in Japan is Hawaii-style food. Maybe their loco moco isn’t quite right (probably not enough gravy), and we all know the addition of pineapple isn’t local style. But I think we should be flattered that they appreciate our beloved fare.

In that spirit, I was inspired by a popular shortbread recipe by food writer Alison Roman — and those legendary cookies that everyone seems to remember from their school cafeterias. These may not live up to that, but they are tender, crumbly and have that local flavor we love.

Ginger and Macadamia Nut Shortbread Cookies

• 1 cup unsalted butter, cold
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup Hawaiian “raw” turbinado sugar
• 2 tablespoons corn syrup
• 1-1/2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
• 2 cups flour
• 2/3 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup honey-roasted macadamia nuts, roughly chopped (substitute with regular mac nuts)
• 2 tablespoons candied ginger, minced

Cut butter into large cubes and place in the bowl of a stand mixer (you can do this with a regular hand mixer, but butter may need to soften a bit). Beat about 20 seconds, until it is just barely broken in. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add sugars, corn syrup and salt; beat about 20 more seconds.

Scrape down sides again, then add flour. Mix until incorporated. Dough will resemble pie dough in the crumb stage. Toss in white chocolate chips, nuts and ginger, and turn several times until evenly distributed.

On a large surface area, spread out 2 large sheets of plastic wrap and divide the crumbly dough between them. Press dough into a log. Keep working and pressing until dough is a diameter of about 2 inches, and a length of about 10 inches. Cover log in plastic wrap, twist ends and roll it a few times on the counter to smooth and round the dough. The warmth of your hands should help, but work quickly or dough will get too putty-like. Repeat with the other half.

Chill logs for an hour. Remove for 5 minutes, then roll and press together again. Chill 30 more minutes.

During the second chill, heat oven to 350 degrees. Place a piece of parchment on a cookie sheet. Cut dough with a sharp, thin knife into 1/2-inch rounds and place on the cookie sheet.

Dough won’t spread, so you can get most of the cookies on one sheet. Bake 15 minutes, until well-browned on the bottoms. I formed a new log with the pieces of dough that crumbled off as I cut the original logs, then refrigerated it while the first pan was baking.

Cool cookies completely and serve. Makes 26-30 small cookies.

Nutritional information unavailable.

Mariko Jackson blogs about family and food at thelittlefoodie.com. Her column runs on the last Wednesday of the month.