Nostalgic sweet goodie from 🇯🇵, probably not as popular or famous as the fruit shaped cakes from Tokyo, but this manjyu has been, and always will be, staying in the special spot in my ❤️

Mochi with syrup-drenched whole chestnut in center wrapped in whitebean paste that has sweet potatoes & chestnuts puree.,.very soft & moist, sophisticated edible art. The kind of sweet served with bitter matcha green tea at tea ceremony🍵

Tiny flat soft waffle filled with azuki bean paste. Guilt free treat/goodie✌🏽

Unlike regular dorayaki, the cake is steamed instead of baked, but wait, here's more, the cake is chocolate, and the filling is azukibean paste with azuki bits in it. Ok, ok, I must admit, I've never quite come up with, or even imagined these flavor combination: chocolate and azukibean paste. Both are, I must say popular ingredients of Western & Eastern confections, but would they be mixed & still be popular? The answer is this. East meets west, contemporary wagashi that unimaginable traditional & non-traditional flavor ignites. My new favorite😋✌🏽

The Horoshima speciality, momiji manju. It really is a sibling of 🇯🇵pancake/waffles, in Dorayaki, Ningyo yaki family. For some reason, it is named & sold as "manju" but really is a soft-waffle cake filled with azuki bean paste.

Original & matcha(greentea)

Made with Domyoji flour(mochi-rice powder), encloses candied peas & cherry-leaf speckles that gives wonderful sakura(cherry-blossom) infuse. Domyoji flour gives smooth yet a slight mochi-like texture...very addictive if you love sakuramochi. Absolutely my current favorite:D

Kayushin(left) & Momowakahime(right).

I've savored this before but did not post anything...wondering what had happened... I realized that I completely forgot of snap-shooting & ate it as soon as I openend it, lols. The fresh sweet aroma of this gem with melt-in-your-mouth greentea flavored filling was sooo tempting & inviting, almost a torture taking snap shots!(but I did, lols). Sooo there you have it, the result of my sweet sacrifice

What more can I say? No month of May ends without Kashiwa mochi EVER!! Kashiwa is oak tree leaves, unlike the sakura leaf around sakura mochi for girls day, Kashiwa for boys/childrens days is not supposed to be eaten..

An overdue for this goodie: Seasonal wagashi for the moonfestival in September. The smooth sweet azuki bean paste(brown sugar sweetened) with moon & rabbit shaped whipped yokan inlayed. Yokan is lightly sweet.

A special Omiyage from Kyoto🇯🇵 The original nama Yatsuhashi, aka azuki bean paste filled unbaked mochi skin lightly dusted with cinnamon. Because of the shape, ppl outside of 🇯🇵often referrs as sweet raviolli. The correct name is Nama Yatsuhashi, or Nama Yatsu. Many flavor varieties such as green tea, strawberry, or black sesame seeds but the one with cinnamon is the original. A hint of cinnamon with lightly-sweet azuki, perfect with hot matcha tea.

My all time favorite daifuku, not only azuki bean paste but also has bits of soy beans mingled in Mochi. A hint of saltiness from soy beans gives an accent & enhances the sweetness of azuki bean paste🤙🏽

Assorted mochi & Daifuku from 🇯🇵. L to R: Kusa mochi(Japanese Mugwort mochi), Mame daifuku(pea mochi), and kuri daifuku(chestnuts), all filled with Azuki bean paste.

Seasonal (fall) special: chestnut cookie. The cookie reminds of me a kawara senbei, crunchie with more waffle-like flavor. The cream/filling has bits of chestnuts, with light chestnuts flavor. I'd eat this everyday if available all year round...

Omiyage from Japan, Chocolate covered air-roasted soybeans, with white chocolate & strawberry chocolate. Lightly sweet w/thinly coating chocolate. Contemporay Wagashi, I must say...

Seasonal goodness. This tiny candied kumquat in the center has a bit of texture with a burst of fresh citrus, melded with the light-sweet white bean paste also infused with citrus. A little edible gem😋

New Version with piece of mochi in the center, flavor & texture-wise, the best of the version so far. Th hint of sakura, just like Sakura mochi but not overpowering other ingredients.

The return of Kashiwa mochi, the must for boys day. Thick mochi encasing smooth azuki bean paste wrapped in oak tree leave. A must for the season✌🏽

The latest addition to Ayashirabe Manju series. Sweet & slightly tangy-citrus lemon🍋 filling in the center. Perfect warm weather manju😋

Similar to mooncake but with softer texture. A little dense than aya shirabe but what differs oribe nishiki is that the filling is chestnuts paste wrapped in azuki bean paste(vs white bean), then lightly baked...yet maintains the sweet-smoothness... #wagashi, #japaneseconfectionery, #oribenishiki, #japanesemooncake, #geppei, #chestnuts, #kitchoan, #minamotokitchoan, #kahalamall, #kitchoankahala, #hawaii

Dusted with kinako & drizzle of kuromitsu(Japanese Black Molasses) over it. Had it with greentea soft serve, and sipping uji matcha🍵 A little tea ceremony time in Waikiki🤙🏽

Bunny-shaped whitebean manjyu with Yuzu peels bits...yuzu gives a refreshing citrus zing. Loves this tiny treats❤️

Baby kasutera cake, omiyage from 🇯🇵 Haven't tasted it for ages, fluffy & extremely light, absolute nostagic value✌🏽

Steamed chestnut manju(beancake)

Omiyage from 🇯🇵, sakura infused clear jelly with Sweet Dainagon Azuki beans, Cherry petal shaped yokan in the center that gives an accent.

Cherry blossom infused smooth azuki bean paste wrapped in velvetty pink kinton. Cherry petal(edible) on top that adds fragrant spring time elegance. Wrapping is also resembling cherry blossom.

I was gonna have just one piece but ended up finished it all off, lols. Very moist with a hint of chocolate/not over-powering, has crunchy coarse granulated sugar on the bottom that added a nice 'lil crunchy "kick".

Cherry-infused pick crepe with azuki bean paste & cherry leaf inside, topped with cherry petal(edible!). Crepe-version of Sakuramochi.

Azukibean battered Kasutera with bits of chestnuts in it. Maybe because of that, wasn't as moist as regular kasutera...