Recipe for Shiroi Koibito Cookies

The cookie from the famous factory in Hokkaido is Shiroi Koibito (白い恋人, literally White Lover). Ishiya, the Sapporo confectioner behind the sweet since 1976, keeps that factory open to the public for visits and tastings at Shiroi Koibito Park.

The official cookie is a langue de chat: two thin squares with chocolate in the middle. White chocolate fills the classic White; milk chocolate fills Shiroi Koibito Black. Home bakers use a 100 g equal-parts batter of butter, powdered sugar, egg whites and flour, the same family as the pâte à cigarette used in pastry for decorations and afternoon tea. Let's get to the recipe!

Contents 7

Making the cookies

Before you start, on a sheet of paper, draw squares of 4 cm x 4 cm leaving a space of 2 cm between them.

For the cookies you will need:

• Small piping bag
• Rectangular baking tray
• Parchment paper
• Bowls for mixing the ingredients
• A whisk

Ingredients

• 100 g of unsalted butter at room temperature
• 100 g of sifted powdered sugar
• 100 g of egg whites (approximately the whites of 3 eggs)
• 100 g of wheat flour
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract

How to make

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).

1. Beat the butter in a bowl until it becomes creamy and slightly white;
2. Add the sugar and continue mixing. Then add the egg whites and the vanilla extract;
3. Sift the flour over the mixture and mix well;
4. Place the mixture in the piping bag;
5. In the baking tray, place the sheet of paper and on top the parchment paper, so the squares show through;
6. Carefully place the dough filling the drawn squares;
7. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges of the cookies are golden.

Making the chocolate filling

Ingredients

For white chocolate:

• 100g of white chocolate
• 20 ml of milk

For milk chocolate (Shiroi Koibito Black)

• 100g of milk chocolate
• 40 ml of milk

How to make

1. Melt the chocolate you chose, add the milk, and mix well;
2. Place on a surface with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the chocolate is soft and firm;
3. Cut the chocolate to the same size as the cookies.

Assembly

• Place one cookie, the chocolate, and another cookie on top;
• Refrigerate for 10 minutes;

Now enjoy ^^

Keep the sandwiches in an airtight container in a cool place. If the filling slumps, give the chocolate a longer chill before you stack them. Shiroi Koibito Park in Sapporo usually opens from 10:00 to 18:00, with last entry to the paid area at 16:30; confirm hours on the official park site the day you go. The blue-and-white box with Mount Rishiri is the Hokkaido omiyage people pick up beside other Japanese sweets.