Tokyo Desserts

Who can't resist the two great tastes of chocolate and marshmallow. Whoopie pies are an easy way to get your homemade cake craving satisfied but without too much fuss in the kitchen. Also, they are easy an dessert to put together if you don't have the right baking pan for a full cake.

There are all sorts of flavor combinations, but here is my winter recipe for chocolate Whoopie pies with homemade marshmallow filling. Obviously, if you need to save time please substitute the homemade marshmallow for marshmallow fluff, Nutella or any flavor of your favorite jam.

Whoopie Pies
120 grams butter milk (add a few drops lemon to milk if you don't have buttermilk)-room temperature
130 grams room temperature butter
30 grams room temperature shortening
130 grams sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
200 grams flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon baking powder
60 grams cacao powder

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Sift together, the flour, cacao powder and baking powder.
3. In a large bowl, mix the butter, shortening and sugar using a hand mixer on low speed (or stand mixer) until well mixed. Add the egg in portions and mix well. Lastly, add the vanilla.
4. Add the dry ingredients and milk to the butter mixture alternately and continue to mix on a low speed with the mixer until everything is well blended.
5. Scoop the dough into a piping bag fitted with plain nozzle and pipe small mounds of dough onto the parchment paper. Tip: dip a small round cookie cutter in flour and then tap on the parchment to provide a guideline for piping the dough. Do this to make a guide for all of the pieces you need to pipe.
6. Bake 12 - 15 minutes. After removing from the oven cool completely before filling.

Whoopie pies on a silpat sheet ready for baking Flour circles are a guide to size each piece

Marshmallow Filling
25 grams gelatin
120 grams water
80 grams water
120 grams sugar
40 grams corn syrup or equivalent (in Japan use mizu ame)
80 grams egg white
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Soften the gelatin with the 120 grams water in a bowl.
2. Whip the egg whites in a bowl until soft peaks form.
3. Heat the 80 grams water, sugar and corn syrup in a small saucepan until it reaches 110 degrees Celsius. Slowly pour this mixture into the whipped eggs and continue to mix with the mixer (or stand mixer).
4. Add the gelatin water to the saucepan and heat lightly so that the gelatin dissolves completely. Add this to the egg whites in portions and continue to mix with the hand mixer for a few minutes and then add the vanilla. Mix with the hand mixer until the mixture starts to become cool.
5. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a decorative nozzle and pipe a round circle on one side of a whoopie pie. Use another piece of whoopie pie to make a sandwich with the first.
6. Tip: after step 4 the mixture will become firm quickly since it contains a lot of gelatin so have the piping bag and whoopie pies ready. You can pipe leftover marshmallow pieces onto a baking sheet that has been dusted with cornstarch. The cornstarch will keep the marshmallow pieces from sticking to each other.

I have been craving a homemade muffin for awhile. After looking at all of the sad day old muffins in the coffee shops, I just needed to bake my own. Luckily, blueberries are starting to be readily available and less expensive. I saw this recipe in a recent Southern Living magazine and knew it was was time to bake. I love the combination of cornmeal in muffins since it gives a richer taste.

This recipe can be made as either muffins or a cake. An 8-inch cake pan should be fine for the quantity of this recipe. I used two medium size muffin pans and was able to make 12 muffins.

Here is the recipe:

100 grams butter (room temperature)
120 grams sugar
2 eggs
200 grams flour
85 grams cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
90 grams buttermilk
1 1/2 cup blueberries


1. Prepare the baking pans by lightly buttering and dusting with flour. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

2. Mix the sugar and butter with a hand mixer (or standing mixer) until light and fluffy about 2 minutes. Gradually mix in the eggs and mix well after adding each portion.

3. Sift together in a bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and then add the cornmeal.

4. In portions, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture while alternatively adding the butter milk. Mix at a low speed just until everything is well mixed. Lastly, add about one fourth of the fresh blueberries and mix.

4. Pour the mixture into either the muffin tins or the cake pan and sprinkle with the remaining blueberries. Bake about 20 - 30 (the cake will take longer to bake) until lightly browned.

5. Cool for a few minutes before gently removing from the pan.

Since it is so close to July 4th, I thought I would add a few blue & white decorations.

Last muffin left with a few crumbs !

Cornbread is a tasty & hearty accompaniment to lighter meals such as fish tacos and salads.

There are many ways to jazz up traditional cornbread and adding jalapenos and cheddar cheese is among my favorites. These two ingredients are quick to put together and really add a zip to a traditional food.

This recipe only takes about 20 minutes to put together.

Makes about 8 - 10 muffins

Let's get baking!


Cornmeal 100 grams
Baking powder 8 grams
Baking soda 1 gram
Salt 3 grams
Brown sugar 40 grams
Canned corn 85 grams
Buttermilk 155 grams
Eggs 2
Butter 60 grams
50 grams jalapeno peppers (chopped)
50 grams cheddar cheese (chopped)

1.  Sift the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda & salt together.
2. Melt the butter over hot water or in the microwave.
3.  In a blender mix the corn. In a bowl, mix the brown sugar and milk and mix with a small whisk. Add eggs & corn and continue to mix until well blended.
4.  Mix the corn mixture above into the flour mixture and mix with a spatula. Add the melted butter. Mix until everything is just moistened – don’t over mix. Lastly, add the jalapeno peppers and cheddar cheese.
5.  Prepare muffin cases by lightly buttering & dusting with flour. Fill about 85% full.
6. Bake at 170  degrees Celsius for about 25 – 30 minutes.

Ready for dinner

Cornbread & taco toppings

Nut topped banana muffins

A good point about banana muffins is that the overripe bananas are naturally sweet so you don't need to add much sugar to the recipe.

I like this recipe since sugar is replaced with honey and pecan nuts are used instead of walnuts. Overall,  this recipe is very tasty.

Also, this is super quick to put together so a great recipe for a weekend morning when you have a few extra minutes to prepare breakfast.

Be creative and add raisins or chocolate chips as you like.

Recipe:

3 overripe bananas
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup melted butter
1/3 cup butter milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cup sifted flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Fill baking cups and add nuts on top

1. Sift the flour and baking powder & baking soda together in a bowl.

2. Mash the bananas in a bowl and slowly add in the honey and mix with a whisk.
Add the milk and vanilla and continue to mix. Lastly, add the butter and mix well.

3. Add in the flour mixture to #2 and mix well. Fill baking cups about 90% full. Sprinkle the nuts on top.

4. Bake at 180 degrees celsius for about 15 - 20 minutes.

Ready for breakfast!