Strawberry Sugar Cookie Sandwich

I had some extra frosting left over from my strawberry cream cheese cupcakes, and before I used a spoon to scoop it into my mouth, I baked up a batch of sugar cookies to make these yummy frosting-filled sandwiches.

Sugar cookies have always been my favorite.  They used to give out free sugar cookies at the bakery of the supermarket.  While the other kids would skulk at them, wishing they were chocolate or something fancier, I always felt like I struck gold.  I love the pure taste of sugar and vanilla, chewy while it melts in your mouth.

How do you use your leftover icing?

Strawberry Cream Cheese Sandwiches 
Makes 2 dozen

Sugar Cookie Ingredients:
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup butter, cut into 2cm pieces, room temperature
1 cup white granulated sugar
1 egg, room temperature
2tsp vanilla extract

Frosting Ingredients:
450 grams cream cheese, room temperature
100 grams butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
2tsp vanilla extract
1 cup chopped strawberries

1. Make the cookies: Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder and set aside.

2. In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla. Beat until incorporated. Add in the flour mixture in 2 batches, mixing until just incorporated each time.

3. Roll dough into equally-sized balls about 2.5cm in diameter and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper spaced 10cm apart or more. Bake for 8 minutes, or just before the cookies turn golden. Remove and cool on a wire rack.

4. Make the frosting: In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add vanilla extract and mix for 5 seconds. Slowly add confectioners sugar and mix thoroughly. Add strawberries and mix until incorporated. (Don’t worry if the frosting slightly curdles after adding the strawberries. Keep mixing until the frosting goes back to a fluffy texture.)

5. Assemble: Put frosting into a pastry bag with a extra large tip. Pipe frosting generously onto the back of one cookie and place another cookie on top. Repeat for the remaining cookies.

Recipes adapted from All Recipes’ Cream Cheese Frosting II and Easy Sugar Cookies

International Foodie Pen Pal: Reveal #2

I made a little communication error with the foodie pen pal program so Adeline over at Intrigued With and I did a simple exchange just for kicks.  Her blog is filled with great photos of Singapore, her travels, and yummy, yummy food so stop by to say hi.  Speaking of yummy food, check out this great Singaporean spread she sent me:

My box from Adeline was compact but packed to the rim!  My husband and I have already had a many snacks and a few dinners thanks to this box, and I even used her ingredients for a very successful dinner party.  How great is that!  Here’s the contents:

• Moon Cake: The first in the box to disappear.  My hubby couldn’t put it down! It was so fresh. *drooling*
• Peanut Punch: This is one of my favs – kind of like an Asian peanut brittle that’s soft and crunchy at the same time and made of many delicate layers!
• Wu Xiang Gao: I don’t know how to explain this one.. some help, Adeline? :)
• Piggie Cake: The most adorable dessert I’ve eaten!
• Bah Kut Tea Spices: This made the most amazing braised short ribs – enough for a party of 6!
• Hainan Chicken Rice: Nothing reminds me of Singapore more than this! It was a huge hit and made for yummy leftovers the next day too.
• Padang Rendang Paste: Yet to try – I’m savoring them best I can.  I’ll be sad when they’re all finished!
• Sambal Chilli: Also yet to try
• Kai Yang Marinade: this is dinner tonight!

Awesome, right?  Here are some close ups:

Adeline is such a crafty and sweet gal, and you could tell at first sight – there was a cute vintage address label, washi tape-wrapped envelopes and packaging, and she included this pretty handmade surprise:

If you love this necklace as much as I do, Adeline will be posting up more little trinkets for sale soon – follow her blog to hear more about it!  Thanks so much for all of the goodies and treats, Adeline! I’m savoring the last few bits I have left :)

If you’d like to join the International Foodie Pen Pal exchange for December, leave me a comment!  I’ll be posting more info about it early next week.  Happy weekend all!

Foodie Pen Pal International: Reveal

A few weeks back, a few bloggers and I test ran an international foodie pen pal exchange.  Including myself in Japan, our little test group included bloggers from the US, Europe, and South East Asia.  The first box I received was from the amazingly talented Erica from North Carolina over at Dogs Make Everything Better.  Check out her blog if you’re a dog lover – it’s filled with inspiring stories, travel, and her experiences as an entrepreneur.

Back to the exchange – Erica’s box BLEW MY MIND!

Look at this beautiful packaging!  All of the goods were impeccably wrapped and protected with such attention to detail.  I was immediately in love even before seeing the crazy hoard of local North Carolina food.

Needless to say, Erica went way above and beyond in every way.  Here’s what she included (please excuse my overuse of exclamation marks – I’m just that excited!):

• Canned boiled peanuts – these reminded me so much of my childhood in the south!
• Picked Bamboo – great topping on salads and a healthy snack by itself
• Moravian Toasted Coconut Cookies – disappeared in 2 days
• Crab House Seasoned Nuts – perfect seasoning and crunch with drinks!
• Salt water taffy – can you ever go wrong with taffy??
• Mama Zuma’s – the spiciest chips you’ll ever have.  My hubby couldn’t take it so I could hoard it all to myself!
• Scuppernong Jelly – my first time trying scuppernong – a muscat-like grape.
• Cackalacky Sauce – I just love the name & it’s the perfect zesty-ness to top off my Mexican food and even fried rice!
• A chic kitchen towel featuring all of the local sightseeing spots!

Isn’t this box too good to be true?!  She really knows how to pick local products!

I made a coordination error and ended up exchanging with 2 foodies.  I sent boxes with goodies from Japan over to reader Michelle and blogger Adeline over at Intrigued With (her blog is filled with great photos – check her out).  I’ll post about the yummy box I received from Adeline in Singapore this weekend!

P.S. Want to join the international foodie exchange? Our December exchange is open to anyone who wants to join!  Drop me an e-mail at ohmyomiyage@gmail.com.

Raisin Wich

A very popular omiyage in Tokyo and Hokkaido, and one that gives tourists pause is the raisin sandwich.  It’s two vanilla cookies stuck together with a special buttercream and high-quality raisins.  Paris Ogawaken claims to be the original inventor of this dessert from the 1950s, but they started a shop devoted only to their desserts in the 80s.  These are good, but I prefer the ones from Hokkaido by Rokkatei.  Their Marusei Butter Sand just oozes butter and creaminess.

In case you’re confused, Paris Ogawaken has no relation to Europe at all.  A lot of Japanese bakeries and patisseries add “Paris” or “France” to their brand names or packaging to make their desserts more appealing their local Japanese clientele.

One thing that Ogawaken does better than Rokkatei is their packaging.  The brown box is filled with quality and elegance, and each of the sandwiches are individual wrapped and ready to share.  It makes a great gift for friends and family back home if you’re able to gift them within a week or so before they expire.

Paris Ogawaken
2-20-15 Shimbashi, Minato-ku 105-0004 (map)
03-3571-7500

Hello Naomi

I’m always looking for baking inspiration.  And when I say “inspiration,” I mean “I wish I could make these in some impossible alternate universe.”

A girl can dream, right?  And there would be much worse things to dream about than these beautifully decorated cupcakes, cookies, and macaroons from Hello Naomi.

And the presentation is just too gorgeous for words.  Look at that gold cherry and the perfect cupcake holder!

It’s time to go shopping for some gum paste and gold flakes!  Where do you look for cooking inspiration?