Ochazuke is a Japanese dish made by pouring tea over a bowl of steamed rice with savory toppings. It’s the ultimate comfort food on a cold winter day!
This simple syrup includes the licorice flavor of kokuto (Okinawa brown sugar) and can be used to sweeten any dessert including our Mizu Shingen Mochi (Raindrop Cake) and Fruits Mitsumame.
This savory focaccia combines floral sakura with caramelized onions and rich, creamy camembert.
Mistumame is a traditional Japanese dessert that combines fruit with cubes of jelly. A great summertime treat!
While it’s not quite eggs and ham, this brunch option is plenty green. Our quiche crust gets its unique hue from yomogi powder, which you can purchase here.
What is yomogi?
Also known as Japanese mugwort, yomogi is a native herb packed with antioxidants and vitamins. For centuries, traditional Asian medicine used yomogi to treat common health issues like inflammation or improve blood circulation. In modern times, yomogi is brewed as tea or added into confectionaries and soups.
What does yomogi taste like?
Yomogi tastes somewhat grassy and earthy because of its wild forest floor origins. It’s a little bit sweet, a little bit bitter, and very aromatic. As a result, the vegetarian filling of this quiche contains mushrooms, leeks, and goat cheese to complement the crust.
For best results, bake the quiche filling on the top rack of your oven to prevent over-browning the surface. Remove it from the oven when it is just set, as it will continue to cook as it cools.
This recipe and the yomogi powder used are featured in our Baking: “Amai” Care Package.
Kokuto (Okinawa brown sugar) adds a delightful, licorice flavor to these easy to bake cookies.
Mizu Shingen Mochi is a jelly-like dessert that's light, beautiful and delicious. Also know as Raindrop Cake, it's meant to resemble a giant raindorp.
Nama Choco (or Chocolate) is rich, creamy, and silky smooth chocolate that you can savor as it melts in your mouth. It's a popular Japanese treat and the addition of matcha adds a nice slightly bitter complement to the rich chocolate - a perfect pairing!
These buttery rosettes combine vanilla and matcha for the perfect bitter sweet taste!
If you are looking for an easy gluten-free dessert, look no further than our delicious baked mochi donuts!
Mochi donuts are made with glutinous rice flour known as mochiko. They are often associated with the Pon-De-Ring style donut that originated around 2003 from Japan’s Mister Donut franchise.
While wildly popular for their unique shape and mochi-like texture, the Mister Donut Pon-De-Ring does not actually include mochiko and is not gluten-free. Instead, wheat flour and other secret ingredients are used to achieve the crispy-on-the-outside, chewy-on-the-inside fried donut. The confusion around the donut may be attributed to the term “mochi mochi,” which Japanese people use to describe chewy foods. Keep this in mind if you are gluten restricted and traveling around Japan!
This donut recipe takes inspiration from Hawaiian butter mochi bars, though they are not as dense. Instead, these donuts bake up lighter while keeping that classic mochi mochi (but gluten-free!) bite. For the sake of simplicity and health, they come together in a quick, pourable batter that is baked in the oven in a donut mold. The result is a golden donut with a soft, chewy center. Decorate these donuts with a yummy and easy matcha glaze and sprinkles for a fun, Japanese-inspired treat!
This recipe, as well as the mochiko and matcha powder used are all included in our Baking: “Amai” Care Package.
These moist carrot muffins include a myriad of flavors spices along with a nutty kinako (soybean powder) and oat streusel.
Japan is famous for its crackers which come in an infinite array of shapes and flavors. These crackers include okara (soybean pulp) powder and we recommend getting creative with your toppings to make them your own!
These beautiful no bake sakura jelly cheesecakes are the perfect size for a floral treat.
Sanshoku dango is an iconic Japanese sweet rice cake treat - so iconic that it even has its own emoji! 🍡
Sanshoku dango is often sold in the spring as the colors represent Japan’s world-renowned cherry blossom (sakura) season. You may see it called hanami dango, a term roughly translated as “flower-viewing”. For generations, families and friends across Japan partake in hanami, laying tarps out under blooming sakura trees. They enjoy one another’s company while sharing seasonal food and drink, such as sanshoku dango.
What do the dango colors mean?
The term “sanshoku” translates to “three colors”. It’s a straightforward name for a treat that carries considerable meaning. The beautiful colors - pink, white, and green - symbolize the sakura life cycle.
Pink represents the young buds that emerge on bare branches in early spring. White represents the five-petaled blossoms at their peak. And finally, green symbolizes the leaves that grow out of the branches once the last petals have fallen off the tree.
Dango is made from glutinous rice flour. This recipe uses mochiko, as well as silken tofu to achieve the bouncy, chewy texture. The pink dango in this recipe uses salt-pickled sakura blossoms and an optional dash of food coloring. The green dango is flavored with yomogi (Japanese mugwort), a medicinal herb native to Japan and historically appreciated for its anti-inflammatory properties. The combination of these traditional ingredients makes for a chewy, sweet, and floral treat.
While traditionally a springtime treat, we won’t blame you if you make these year-round! Don’t forget to pair them with a hot cup of green tea for a perfect afternoon snack.
This recipe, along with the mochiko, pickled cherry blossoms, and yomogi powder used, are all included in the Baking: “Amai” Care Package.
Neri goma and tahini add a buttery and nutty flavor to these moist and fluffy cupcakes.
Is there a more popular baked good than banana bread these days? With the ingredients already in your pantry, it seems everyone has a recipe they swear by.
If you’re looking for an elevated version of classic banana bread, look no further. This recipe is kid-friendly (have them mash the bananas!) with easy-to-follow steps. But, it also makes a great impression amongst adults for its unique dark brown hue, simple-yet-fancy banana cross-section, and perfectly moist center.
Best of all, our banana bread recipe incorporates a timeless Japanese condiment: silkyblack sesame paste.
Known asneri gomain Japanese, sesame paste is like tahini, but has a key difference. Tahini uses raw or lightly toasted hulled sesame seeds that result in a slightly bitter taste. Sesame paste, on the other hand, uses unhulled, deeply toasted seeds that grind into a richer spread that isn’t as sharp. Black sesame seeds have an even deeper, earthy flavor than white seeds, and pairs perfectly with the sweet and creamy bananas in this bread.
Coincidentally, banana bread is a great way to “mottainai” – a Japanese term to express regret over wasted goods and the collective effort to repurpose them. It’s no secret that the best banana bread is made with overripe bananas left on the countertop for too long, as they become sweeter, softer, and juicier. Instead of tossing them in the garbage can, simply remind yourself “mottainai!” and break out the loaf pan and this recipe.
Find this recipe and theneri goma used in ourBaking: “Amai” Care Package. You can also find the neri goma sold as a single item in ourMichi no Eki Market.
“Kombu dashi has a lovely mild, mineral, and briny taste that’s at the core of many traditional Japanese dishes. It’s most often used in soups and salad dressings to infuse a little taste from the sea.” - Pickled Plum
