oshima milk bakery

On Sunday, we went to see Satoshi's friend's rakugo performance.

It had been awhile since I went to one of his performances.

My blog archives says the last time was during the pandemic... 

Since we arrived a little early in the area, we walked around.

Love the tiny shops that line the street

We stumbled upon Oshima Milk Bakery...which uses milk from Izu Oshima, an island that is part of Tokyo prefecture.  

They have a tsubaki (camellia) festival that I want to check out, hopefully next year.

Order at the counter and pay...

Satoshi had their shio pan (salt bread) and milk...630 yen (tax included)

He said he enjoyed these...

Kat had their pistachio scone...500 yen (tax included)

I enjoyed this.

It had lots of pistachios in it and had a nice texture, I think they use yeast in it so it was more like bread, than flaky (buttery)

They had about 10 different types of scones to choose from.

My tummy doesn't agree with milk these days, so I didn't want  to chance it...this shop sells different flavored milks.

Up on the 2nd floor you can take your items to eat

We enjoyed their air conditioning while we ate and also looked at their photos of Izu Oshima

I'm glad we tried this place and would definitely like to try other scones here...I'll be back.

Oshima Milk Bakery

1-8-3 Hirano

Koto, Tokyo

Hours: 11:00-15:00

strawberry (almond) milk kanten

It's been awhile since I've made strawberry milk kanten.

This time instead of milk I used almond milk. I had omitted the condensed milk because the almond milk had some sugar in it, but after tasting the finished product, I think I could've added it.

I put them into the tiny yogurt pots and custard bottles that I have, they have covers so they are easy to store.

Strawberry season is coming to an end so I guess I'll be making these again next year.

whiz...brr

We had a mini snow storm the other afternoon. Nothing that stayed on the ground for too long, but it was fun to see (from my seat on the sofa).

It is still a bit too cold for smoothies, but since Satoshi was off on business, I made this one for my breakfast the other morning.

I've been seeing blueberries from Chile in the markets lately, and the local strawberries are in the markets too.

Here's what I put in it...10 blueberries, 5 strawberries, 1 small banana, 1/2 teaspoon ground flax seed, 4 tablespoons plain yogurt and 1/4 cup skim milk...whizzed together, even though it looks like only a cup worth, it was a little over, a very simple and delicious breakfast.

earl grey chocolat chaud

Do you like Earl Grey tea? What about dark chocolate?

What about chocolat chaud (hot chocolate)?

If you answered yes to all of these, then you'll love this.

I recently saw this on Pinterest, it is a great way to get inspired not only about food, but fashion and other topics too. (WARNING: you will have lots of fun looking at all sorts of photos, and the time will fly!)

The original recipe is here, and this is what I did.

Earl Grey Chocolat Chaud : 1 serving
1/2 cup of milk
3 squares of 71% Valrhona chocolate
1 scoop of Mariage Frères Earl Grey Imperial tea leaves

Put the tea into a pot and add the milk, heat on low
While the milk heats, add the chocolate and whisk
When the chocolate is melted and well incorporated, strain the liquid into a mug
Add some cute marshmallows...voila!

NOTES: I liked this, the tea flavor is there but very subtle. I have other brands of Earl Grey, so I can't wait to try them like this.

what I did...

I wanted to share with you what I did with a can of coconut milk.

Earlier this year, I found some tri-colored tapioca at the gourmet supermarket. When I saw this, I immediately thought of coconut pearls, the dessert you get at some Chinese restaurants in Hawaii.

I love this dessert. It is sweet and coconutty. Most times when you get this at the Chinese restaurant, the bowl is ice cold and so is the "soup"...delicious.

I googled and found a recipe on the Internet. It sounded easy. It was, once I prepared the tapioca.

Get this, the package said I could boil the tapioca for an hour or soak the tapioca overnight then boil them to the softness that I wanted....I chose the boiling for one hour.

Doesn't the tapioca look like candy? I loved the colors. (This was my first time with tapioca, is it supposed to have a chewy center? It reminded me of mochi.)

So, with the can of Chaokoh coconut milk, I decided to be oinky and make two desserts out of them (because two is better than one!).

the first...coconut pearls...the second...haupia.

Haupia is a coconut pudding served in Hawaii. My favorite combination is haupia with chocolate, preferably with a flaky crust...yum!

Here's both recipes if you'd like to give them a try.

Coconut pearls adapted from the Internet (makes about 6: 1/2 cup servings)

1/2 cup tapioca, follow package directions
1-1/2 cups water
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 cup coconut milk

After cooking your tapioca, get the "soup" ready.
In a pot, add the water and sugar and heat until sugar dissolves.
Add the milk and warm.
When warm, turn off heat and add coconut milk.
Chill mixture and tapioca separately for at least an hour.
Add tapioca just before serving, as it will turn mixture bitter.
Serve as is or with diced fruits like honeydew or cantaloupe.

Haupia adapted from "Sam Choy's Sampler" (2 "Sam" portions or 8-10 "Kat" portions (about 2 teaspoons each))

1 cup coconut milk
2-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2-1/2 tablespoons sugar
pinch salt

Mix everything in a pot until sugar is dissolved.
Heat on medium stirring constantly, use a whisk to make sure everything is incorporated without lumps.
When the mixture begins to thicken, turn off heat.
You can serve warm or chill for at least an hour.
Good with fruits too.

NOTES: For the coconut pearls, the original recipe states not to boil the coconut milk as it will make the "soup" very oily. The haupia is the real deal! beats those NOH haupia packets. Overall, both recipes were delicious, easy and fast!