For people who want to try a different arrangement of New Year's rice cakes next year, how about "natto mochi"?

Natto mochi, which is a round, chewy rice cake with soy sauce-based sauce and natto (fermented soybeans) mixed in, and thinly sliced white onions, is a staple of Yamagata Prefecture's home-style cooking, and has also been popular as a New Year's and Bon Festival food.

The trick is to soften the baked rice cake in boiling water, drain it, and then toss it with the natto. You can add a little soy sauce to its sauce and mustard, and top it with grated radish or grated ginger. If you serve it in an Appi-nuri bowl, it will look more like New Year's.

Please give it a try.

Appi Urushi Studio’s Flat Bowl
https://www.shokunin.com/en/appi/bowl.html
Ichiyougama’s Plate
https://www.shokunin.com/en/ichiyou/plate.html
Azmaya’s Soy Sauce Dispenser
https://www.shokunin.com/en/azmaya/shouyu.html

Reference:
https://www.pref.yamagata.jp/020026/kensei/joho/koho/mailmag/pride/nattomodu.html