Hello everyone again from Aso!
I recently took a nice walk around the onsen town of Uchinomaki and wanted to share my experience of a quaint dessert shop I found.
Nestled in the heart of Uchinomaki, is a patisserie named Pâtisserie d’Aso Miyuki.
The head chef, having spent time in Paris, creates some of the most delicious desserts I had the fortune of tasting.
From their popular choux cream to their jersey milk pudding, strawberry shortcake to the coffee jelly, you will not be disappointed with your choice.
Being a bit of a dessert enthusiast, I decided to pop in to try 1, 2 or maybe more… of their wonderful looking selection.
I started with the choux cream I had heard so much about. Using the locally produced, Aso jersey milk as part of their ingredients, this really was an indulgence for the senses. The pastry was crisp and crafted to perfection with a rich cream filling enhanced by the use of Aso’s milk.
The sweetness of the cream was spot on and not at all overpowering.
After this delicious warm up, I was ready to dive into the next treat.
I chose a traditional strawberry tart, topped with an abundance of fresh locally sourced strawberries.
Firstly the texture of the base was well balanced between crunchiness and softness and layered with a vanilla creme patissiere. Whilst we were off to a great start, it was the strawberries that really left a lasting impression with me.
I had always heard before I moved to Aso from Okinawa, that the strawberries were very good here but it was even better than I expected.
Lastly, after some of my guilt had been alleviated from the large intake of Vitamin C, I moved on to the coffee jelly.
Having heard this was another very popular choice and from the experience I just had with the other two desserts, I must admit I had high expectations.
Fortunately I was not going to be let down by my final choice.
With a coffee addiction almost rivaling my dessert addiction, this is probably as good as it gets. The coffee flavor, whilst being a dark roast, surprisingly did not have any bitter after taste and would work great after dinner.
Just as I was about to call it a day, I was persuaded by the friendly shop staff to try their milk pudding.
While already being quite full, I managed to make some extra room to taste this other very popular product. I am glad I did have a little room left as I may have missed out on this little gem.
Like the Choux cream, this pudding is also made from Aso’s rich jersey milk and has a lovely soft texture. Despite the use of the rich creamy milk, the pudding is surprisingly light and a little dangerous as it is hard to stop.
Whilst I did not have any remaining room, Miyuki also offers cookies, Manju (flour-based pastry with red bean paste filling) and various other baked confectionary that make great gifts to take back with you to your home country . won awards in Belgium .
I also learned that the shop serves homemade Gelato during the summer months, I will have to come back to try this when the summer comes so you can count on an update.
Thank you all for reading and apologies for losing myself a bit back there, desserts are one of my weaknesses.
I am looking forward to the next time when I will be sharing my experiences of the fire walking festival (Hiwatari) at the Saiganden-ji Temple.
I will also be visiting a shop run out of a shipping container that serves homemade lemonade and crepes, including a creme brulee crepe.
See you all soon.
Oliver
