Japanese cuisine · Desserts & Sweets

Kuri Manju

Golden-baked dough pockets with white bean paste and a whole candied chestnut at the center.

Ingredients · for 6 servings

• 250 g flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 80 g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 40 g butter
• 2 tbsp whole milk
• 300 g white bean paste (shiro-an, or marzipan paste as a substitute)
• 12 chestnuts (pre-cooked or candied)
• 1 pinch salt

Instructions

1. Beat butter with sugar and one egg until fluffy, separate the second egg and set aside just the yolk for later, stir the white into the mixture.
2. Sift flour, baking powder and salt over the top, add the milk and knead everything into a soft dough; wrap in foil and chill for 30 min.
3. Divide the white bean paste into twelve portions, flatten each one, place a chestnut inside and seal into a smooth ball.
4. Divide the dough into twelve pieces, roll each out to 8 cm, place a filled ball on top and pull the dough over it without any gaps; place seam-side down on a baking sheet.
5. Whisk the reserved egg yolk with 1 tsp water and brush the manju thinly with it twice, 5 min. apart, so the surface later has a deep shine.
6. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C top/bottom heat for 18–22 min. until chestnut-brown and glossy, and let cool on a wire rack.