its impossible to find shiro-an locally, not to mention sakura-an therefore when i chanced upon a recipe i was really happy. sakura-an is cherry blossom bean paste made with shiro-an (regular white bean paste) and chopped bits of sakura leaves plus pink food coloring. i never thought it was possible to make my own but well, i now can. even though spring has long gone and this post might be somewhat irrelevant, i didn't want to wait until next spring to make these. afterall, using ingredients like pickled cherry leaves, you can make these anytime and freeze until you need them.


making this is extremely easy, if you have the necessary ingredients that is. basically all you need are shiro-an, pickled cherry leaves, pink food coloring (i used wilton icing gel in rose) and i also added a little bit of sakura essence.


tastewise, totally like sakuramochi! love how the salty cherry leaves balance the sweetness of the shiro-an. next time round, i'll show you some of the wagashi that use sakura-an. there are plenty, actually.

recipe source : bohnenhase