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Sakura doughnuts depict life cycle of cherry blossoms at Mister Donut in Japan

Oona McGee Feb 26, 2024
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A delicious way to learn about four stages of the sakura, from bud to falling petals.

One of the most beautiful aspects of cherry blossom viewing in Japan is the chance to enjoy the blooms in different stages, as they swell from tiny buds into full blossoms, before dancing on the wind in flurries as they fall.

This life cycle of the sakura is one that’s as fleeting as it is beautiful, and now we’ll be able to enjoy it not only with our eyes but with our mouths, thanks to this year’s range of cherry blossom doughnuts from Mister Donut.

Dubbed “Sakura Mochitto Doughnuts“, with “mochitto” referring to the chewy texture of the dough, there are four items in the collection, three of which are making a return this year due to popular demand while one is making its first-ever debut, to bookend the blossoming cycle in beautiful fashion.

The first item in the range, the Sakura Mochitto Doughnut Tsubomi (162 yen for takeout or 165 yen for eat-in), is dipped in glaze and sprinkled with soybean flour made from 100-percent domestic soybeans. The brown exterior conceals a beautiful pink interior, so you can feel like you’re biting into the tsubomi (“bud“) of a sakura as you eat it.

The Sakura Mochitto Doughnut Gobuzaki (183 yen for takeout or 187 yen for eat-in) depicts the “gobuzaki” (“half-bloom“) stage of a cherry blossom, with only half of the doughnut dipped in pink strawberry chocolate. Inside is a pale pink whipped cream made with cherry and red bean paste to match the look of the blossoms before they begin to bloom.

The Sakura Mochitto Doughnut Mankai (183 yen for takeout or 187 yen for eat-in) gives us a taste of the celebrated “mankai” (“full bloom“) stage, with salted sakura leaves in a cherry blossom bean paste glaze and a scattering of sakura-flavoured chocolate flakes to represent the beauty of the flowers in full bloom.

The final doughnut is a brand new one that’s never been seen before, and it’s called the Sakura Mochitto Doughnut Maizakura (183 yen for takeout or 187 yen for eat-in). “Maizakura” translates as “Dancing Sakura” and refers to the way the petals dance on the wind as they fall from the trees at the end of the season.

To capture the beauty of this final stage, we have a bean paste filling made with azuki beans sourced from Hokkaido and a work of art on top that depicts the petals being blown up into the sky by the wind against the branches of the trees. This artwork is created with white chocolate, milk chocolate, and sakura-flavoured chocolate flakes.

While each doughnut can be purchased separately, they’re also being sold in a “Sakura Mankitsu Set” (“Cherry Blossom Full Enjoyment Set“) for takeout customers. Priced at 711 yen, the set contains all four Sakura Mochitto Doughnuts and comes in a pink-and-white box perfect for hanami picnics.

The new doughnuts will only be available for a limited time from 28 February to late March, and with the blooms set to start appearing in Tokyo from 18 March, there’ll be ample time to eat the doughnuts through each stage of the blossoming process.

Source, images: PR Times
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