FeedTheCuriousKitten - International Snacks, Drinks and Gourmet Food Ideas

This is my second post featuring Gokoku Japanese Bakery's seasonal items themed around Okinawan brown sugar (kokutou). The previous post was the  Okinawan Brown Sugar Kokutou Raisin Bun , which was absolutely delightful. This time I tried the Kokutou Kinako Bun, which I loved even more. First, I must explain what toasted soy butter or perhaps kinako butter is. I first discovered it when I tried  WowButter  from the US, which was marketed as a peanut butter substitute. Instead of peanut butter, however, I thought it tasted exactly like roasted kinako powder. Compared to peanuts, kinako has much stronger grain, malt and earthy notes, and might less of what I might describe as the tinge of corn flavour that is prominent especially in American peanut varieties. This bun is like a normal fluffy bun of theirs, but with a thick layer of a kokutou-kinako spread or cream filling running down the middle, as you can see in the pictures.