Friday, April 10, 2009

sweets

Spring also brings a variety of sweets too. During this season, you can find strawberry flavored items as well as sakura (cherry blossom) flavored items....I have been leaning more towards the sakura flavored ones.

Sakura chiffon cake 420 yen (about US$4.20) from Starbucks, this had more of an American (bold) cherry flavor rather than the delicate cherry flavor that you find in Japanese confections...an expensive disappointment.

Not a sweet, but this tiny bagel was from Comme Chinois, I loved this size. I bought a chocolate bagel and a multi-grain.

From Mochi Cream, the raspberry millefeuille...custard, raspberry coulis and crunch from wafers...this one was my favorite.

Also from Mochi Cream, the caramel pudding. Liquidy bitter caramel and sweet custard...delicious. (doesn't it looks like lips puckering?)

Sakura mochi...this is the Kanto (East Japan) style. A thin crepe-like outside wraps some sweet bean paste. The whole thing is then wrapped with a sakura leaf (cherry leaf) that has been soaked in salt water.

From Ferdinand, their sakura mochi anpan, a whole sakura mochi Kansai (West Japan) style is tucked inside a steamed bun. Kansai style sakura mochi is sweet bean paste and a bumpy gelatinous outside made from Domyoji-ko.

Domyoji-ko is steamed mochi rice which is then dried. I think it looks like coarse sugar when it is dried and I think it is then re-constituted when it is used to make sakura mochi. Sakura mochi has a salty and sweet flavor---salty from the sakura (cherry blossoms and leaves) which are soaked in a salt water mixture, sweet from the sweet bean paste.

Chikujian's sakura daifuku. White sweet bean paste flavored with seasoned sakura leaves, wrapped with a soft mochi (rice cake)...again the sweet and salty combination is out of this world.

16 comments:

HanamiGallery said...

ah~ in goi right off the jr line i bought a sakura cake once. i bought strawberry cake there a lot, but one time they had a sakura cake. it was very good. light flavors and a delicate cake~ very tasty~

Ken said...

The moment I'm viewing this post, I feel damn hungry. Wish to try on the mochi...

Oishii post! LOL...

Suat Duman said...

tha is really sweet:)
www.suatduman.com.tr

Jenster said...

Yum ... I love mochi and all these photos of mochi delights are making my stomach rumble!

We don't have any many varieties of mochi here ... just the basic ones filled with sweet bean paste usually. And mochi ice cream. I usually just bake myself an easy batch of coconut pan mochi when I have a craving.

Once a friend from Hawaii brought me a box of mochi. Each piece contained a whole, large, sweet strawberry. I still dream about those.

K and S said...

sounds delicious Hanami :)

Hope you get some mochi soon Ken :)

Thanks Suat :)

I wonder if it was Two Ladies mochi Jenster? They have awesome strawberry daifuku with huge strawberries in them.

Take care everyone.
Kat

Lynne said...

When it comes to desserts, the only time I prefer "cherry" is in a pie. That chiffon looks wonderful, light and tasty! I would have to try it, if it was strawberry, lol. Yummers!

K and S said...

I wish that the chiffon was strawberry too Lynne :)

Take care.
Kat

Deb in Hawaii said...

Wow--all kinds of goodies. They all look pretty yummy to me, especially the salty sweet ones!

Rowena said...

Major sugar rush--everything looks really tempting that I'm wondering if this was a series of sweet-eating days or did you go for it all in one day? (because if you did, high 5!)

Happy Easter!

KirkK said...

Hey Kat - Those are some major goodies...... And you can't have Girl's Day without some Sakura Mochi!

Lori said...

That raspberry one from Mochi Cream looks so good! I haven't seen that around here...that's not the mochi ice cream is it?

K and S said...

I agree sweet and salty are a great combo Deb :)

Unfortunately they were eaten over several days Rowena :9

So true Kirkk :)

Hopefully they will bring that flavor your way Lori :) It is the mochi cream and not the ice cream.

Take care everyone.
Kat

manju said...

Thanks again for the vicarious taste... we looked everywhere for sakura mochi this spring, No luck. The Japanese groceries here are REALLY TINY, and can you believe no one sold mochi of any kind at the Cherry Blossom Festival here?? ; (

K and S said...

That is really sad Manju, what would cherry blossom viewing be without it. Maybe next year! or you could try making your own?? :)

Take care.
Kat

Rumela said...

Wow!! Sakura chiffon cake.....they are just delicious. My bf loves them, I was going to make him a special packed lunch for his birthday as he's got to do a stock take at work and these would be perfect! thank you for shearing your post.

K and S said...

Hope your chiffon cake comes out better than this one, Rumela :)

Take care.
Kat