- There are records that even at 利休's times, something called キントン was served. In Muromachi period, they were made from rice flour and coloured with gardenia, rendering them yellow (as gold, hence the name).
- Use slightly smaller 中餡 than normal, since you'll add a lot of size to it. 15 gr is fine! Then you'll use about 30 gr of threads.
- Shape outer あん into a 2 cm thick hamburger, then push it through a 金団ぶるい (= coarse sieve). I used a vermicelli press and that's fine, too. No need to worry so much about how thick the hamburger is.
- Using thin chopsticks, place a small portions of threads onto your fingertips, then put the 中あん onto that and keep adding threads to the sides. Make sure they look round rather than cone-shaped.
- To move them, best not to squeeze them with the chopsticks, but instead pierce them so that they stay intact.
木枯らし
- For the threads, use 120 gr 白あん (but should also work well with vermicelli paste!) and 1 gr cinnamon powder (or cassia cinnamon, but it doesn't make so much of a difference)
- For the filling, 粒あん is nice to add a bit of texture.
💡 I think it might be nice to sprinkle with some black poppy seeds into the あん. Other ideas might be 黒蜜 to give a bit of a 詫び feeling, or some microplaned citron zest.
🍒 I tried candied cherries in the 中あん (taking inspiration from a vermicello), but it doesn't really work. But port wine might be a nice addition to the 中餡 here!
雪間の声
Use うぐいす餡, then wrap 白あん threads around and sprinkle some 氷もち on it. Next time, I could sneak in some pear as well to round it out.
Carnation
- Used often for Mother's day
- Here, the book recommended to use 大和芋 in the あん. It's not necessary, but it makes it very light and tasty! Colour one half slightly pink.
- I think some vanilla wouldn't be out of place here, at all.
- Also, I did it in 2026 with some 黄身餡 and some lemon zest, which was very nice