Chabukusa, matcha-aji / crepe wrapper cake, matcha flavor

Also called tsuyabukusa or fukusa, this little cake tastes similar to everyday dorayaki or taiyaki. The sea sponge look is not just unique; the air pockets lighten the cake's chewy texture. With this matcha version, the delightful aroma of green tea fills your mouth as you take a bite.

This is fun to make. The batter you spread on the hot pan quickly produces air bubbles, which you gently rub or touch with paper or cloth to open up and make craters.  Keep the heat level relatively high for the best bubbling results.

1 cake (1/5 of recipe):
110 calories; 3.2 g protein; 1.0 g fat; 21.5 g carbohydrate; 19.8 g net carbs; 23 mg sodium; 21 mg cholesterol; 1.7 g fiber

Zukkini to tamago, feta chiizu no pan / zucchini, egg and feta cheese pastry

This is another savory pastry we like. Sauteed zucchini is paired with fluffy fried or microwaved egg and feta cheese. Dill makes this combination truly savory.

1 pastry (1/9 piroshki-style dough recipe and 1/3 of filling recipe):
266 calories; 12.9 g protein; 12.8 g fat; 25.5 g carbohydrate; 20.9 g net carbs; 151 mg sodium; 89 mg cholesterol; 4.6 g fiber

Karukan / steamed yam cake

A regional specialty with 300 years of history from Kagoshima in southern Japan. Traditionally made with yamaimo or jinenjo Japanese yam (Dioscorea japonica), regular rice flour, sugar and water, this simple snow-white cake has a nostalgic sweet taste. Karukan has a supple texture like mochi rice cakes but much lighter and spongy like steamed buns, which seems to make your hand automatically reach for one more piece, and another, and ...
The recipe below features more commonly found nagaimo Chinese yam and an egg white for additional fluffy texture. Plain, white cake without topping is the basic style, yet there are a number of flavor and color variations today.

Whole recipe (approx. 360 g), without kumquat confiture:
676 calories; 12.2 g protein; 1.2 g fat; 152.5 g carbohydrate; 150.9 g net carbs; 70 mg sodium; 0 mg cholesterol; 1.6 g fiber

1 piece (approx. 40 g; 1/9 of recipe), without kumquat confiture:
75 calories; 1.4 g protein; 0.1 g fat; 16.9 g carbohydrate; 16.8 g net carbs; 8 mg sodium; 0 mg cholesterol; 0.2 g fiber

Okara maccha keeki / soy matcha cake

A matcha cake made in the microwave. Taking full advantage of fiber-rich okara soybean pulp as well as calorie- and carb-free erythritol and stevia, it is a friendly companion for those who are watching their net carbs count, glucose level, or simply want something filling for a quick energy boost between meals. The cake tends to be dry on Day 1, so wrap it while still warm and keep in the fridge overnight for best results.

Whole recipe (approx. 230 g):
374 calories; 25.1 g protein; 20.7 g fat; 21.2 g carbohydrate; 8.5 g net carbs; 153 mg sodium; 428 mg cholesterol; 12.6 g fiber

2.5 cm/1" cube (approx. 25 g):
41 calories; 2.8 g protein; 2.3 g fat; 2.3 g carbohydrate; 0.9 g net carbs; 17 mg sodium; 47 mg cholesterol; 1.4 g fiber

Takoyaki / fried octopus dumplings (calamari version)

Served with an aromatic, sweet and salty sauce that blends with the savory and still creamy batter inside, these little dumplings are everyone's favorite. Takoyaki used to be something from neighborhood mom & pop shops, which often had small eat-in areas but largely sold takoyaki as a takeout item. At my local takoyaki shop, a couple of coins were enough to buy a small tray with several takoyaki, which was affordable with my pocket money -- basically change I collected from buying stationery or books -- as a child. Buying a large tray with 12 takoyaki required some help from parents or relatives, and I always dreamed about getting a large tray with 12 takoyaki and eating them all myself. When this dream came true I was so happy, but also uncomfortably full and feeling guilty about not sharing them with my sister.

The recipe below features calamari as a more widely available substitute for octopus.

Whole recipe (about 24 takoyaki balls):
902 calories; 44.8 g protein; 19.0 g fat; 117.2 g carbohydrate; 112.6 g net carbs; 862 mg sodium (with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce); 734 mg cholesterol; 4.6 g fiber

1/2 of recipe (about 12 takoyaki balls):
451 calories; 22.4 g protein; 9.5 g fat; 58.6g carbohydrate; 56.3 g net carbs; 431 mg sodium (with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce); 367 mg cholesterol; 2.3 g fiber

Abekawamochi / rice cakes with sweetened roasted soybean flour

Also called kinakomochi, abekawamochi are heavenly soft rice cakes coated with a mixture of kinako soybean flour and sugar. Traditionally, mochi are baked then soaked in hot water to soften before coating with kinako. The abekawamochi I know from my childhood was always made with hot, freshly made rice cakes. Nowadays, individually packed square or round hard rice cakes are available for everyday use; here is a quick way to make a yummy and very filling snack.

1 abekawamochi (1/4 of recipe): 
135 calories; 2.8 g protein; 0.9 g fat; 28.0 g carbohydrate; 27.3 g net carbs; 1 mg sodium; 0 mg cholesterol; 0.7 g fiber

Nama yatsuhashi / cinnamon-flavored steamed rice cakes with sweet azuki beans

I first encountered nama yatsuhashi during a school trip to Kyoto, where this special treat was waiting for us at every ryokan inn and souvenir shop. Back then the cinnamon aroma was very exotic for junior high school students from a small town, and at first we were a bit surprised by this Kyoto confectionery. But as our trip continued, soon everyone was keen for more (free) nama yatsuhashi. Cinnamon-flavored soft rice cake wrappers taste so good in combination with the sweet azuki beans inside. This is one of a very few Japanese sweets Tom likes.

Daigaku-imo / candied Japanese sweet potato

My introduction to daigaku-imo was school lunch at elementary school. Although the name daigaku-imo literally means "university potato," this candied sweet potato is popular with students of all ages, and is also a popular deli item with both youngsters and grownups. The sweet and slightly salty coating makes you come back for more of this snack-like dish. Traditionally, satsumaimo sweet potato is first deep-fried and dipped in the candy coating prepared separately. What follows is a simplified method of sauteing satsumaimo with a somewhat large amount of oil in a frying pan and adding the candy coating ingredients to the same pan.

1/2 of recipe:
234 calories; 1.7g protein; 4.3g fat; 47.0g carbohydrate; 82mg sodium (with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce; 158-176mg with regular soy sauce); 0mg cholesterol; 3.0g fiber

Yakiimo / roasted Japanese sweet potato

A much-beloved snack in fall and early winter. When I was a child, a vendor pushing a cart filled with blackened rocks and reddish-purple sweet potatoes would come around the neighborhood, chanting, "Roasted sweet potatoes! Rock-roasted sweet potatoes!" in a slow, time-honored cadence. If you started to get ready (asking parents to pitch in some cash) when you first heard the chant, the vendor would be near your house by the time you dashed out the front door. The man at the cart would dig through the rocks and find some big, beautiful sweet potatoes, wrap them in newspaper and hand them to his young customer. The warmth and the mellow smell were so rewarding, and needless to say the sweet taste was a big hit after running back to the house. Later the cart became a small truck and the chant was replaced with a recorded voice on a loudspeaker, but the melody was still the same. I wonder if those vendors are still coming around the neighborhood. Yakiimo is also a favorite when family or friends gather to clean up the yard and burn fallen leaves, providing a perfect place to roast these fall treats.

Goheimochi / grilled rice cakes with sweetened perilla seed, walnut and red miso sauce

A regional favorite snack from the Takayama and Gokayama areas in Gifu and Toyama prefectures. Simple rice cakes made by pounding regular steamed rice are grilled and brushed with sweet, nutty sauce. Goheimochi stalls are found here and there in and around these tourist destination towns in the mountains. I almost always had one every time I visited these areas -- it tasted so good in the open air with majestic mountains and rivers in the background or while browsing streets and alleys surrounded by wooden buildings hundreds of years old.

Sakuramochi (Chomeiji) / sweet azuki paste cake in cherry leaves (Tokyo style)

Wrapped in aromatic cherry leaves, this is a salty-sweet and tasty confectionery. The crepes made of flour and sweet rice powder are normally pan-fried, but microwaving makes it so easy and quick – and oil-free!

Almond orange honeycomb cigars

Thin crunchy cookies that remind of the top candy layer of florentins. The rolled shape makes them easy to take somewhere or send as a gift. This is an adaptation of a recipe by Rumi Kojima, a pâtissière.

Negi pankeeki / cong you bing scallion pancakes

A somewhat flaky pancake-like snack from Taiwan, crispy outside and a bit chewy inside. The simple combination of flour and green onions tastes great, especially when cooked with a little more oil -- dangerous for those who wish to stay trim.

Zenzai / sweet azuki soup with rice cakes

A simple, soupy sweet snack with rice cakes.