asian markets and sweets

Yesterday was 'visit all the asian markets and get all the asian snacks while driving to visit my dad' day.  

Some highlights include seeing stickers that are really cute but I couldn't justify spending money on them since I have stickers and well - what do you do with them besides stick them...

I forgot what I thought about the spam musubi that I bought a long time ago from H-Mart.  Well, I bought it again and now I know that it's not that great.  The rice was plain with no flavoring added.  The egg and spam were flavorful, but honestly, the spam is too salty.  Too much sodium for me.  As I get older, I realize I can't handle the same things as before.

REMEMBER: Next time no more spam musubi.  It's not as good as I recall.

I hope to remember or read these notes next time to avoid buying them yet again.

The novelty / snack store (Fukuya) next to H-mart had so many kawaii stuff like tons of keychains, unbelievable amounts of snacks - decision paralysis!  I didn't buy any keychains but I did like glancing at them.

I got things I already know I like - lychee and strawberry gummies, and a new flavor (mango) mixed in with tried and true ones.  They were way cheaper there ($2.99 a bag) than at H-mart next door ($5.49!). 

I also got some dorayaki from Fukuya and when I asked a worker there, he said they were $2.99 (no price sticker).  However they rung up at $5.49 instead - they were cheaper and on-sale next door at H-Mart.  Lesson to learn : stick to products with price labels or be prepared for price shock.

At Kam man, I bought some dim sum.  There were egg custard tarts next to Portuguese tarts.  I got an egg one.  Also got some sesame rice balls and a container of bean curd rolls.  I thought the bean curd rolls were vegetarian but upon reading the ingredients at home, I see they are not - they include pork, shrimp, and possibly more stuff like beef.  There was something that tasted like salty creamy cheese inside too... 

LESSON TO LEARN : Avoid the bean curd rolls.  I should stay away from any 'complicated' dim sum items, and maybe just stick to things that can stay room temp all day.  Especially since I have a long drive home from the place of purchase.  Even after I microwaved everything, it seemed risky in hindsight.

Next time I could just get the white plain buns, and skip the other stuff (definitely anything containing meat, heavy oils, sauce, etc.).

Kam man has the usual bakery stuff but now they also have tons of mooncakes.  No idea which is the best brand.  I'll have to ask my dad one day - he'd know.

Editing to add - I called my dad later to ask him about mooncakes.  He said that the best ones are the ones made in USA (where we live) because they would be the freshest.  For example, the ones made in Hong Kong or Taiwan were made months ago.  Here in the US, they would be made closer to Moon Day.  They're not available yet at this time of year.  Made fresh to order closer to the holiday.

So I went to Costco and bought the only mooncake they sold.  May as well grab the other asian snacks nearby since the Costcos closer to me probably won't have them.  (The one near my parents obviously have more asian clientele.)

I'm saving the mooncakes (made in Taiwan) for next month, when it's actually Moon Day.  The mung bean one, made in Malaysia, is very pretty with its flower design, but the taste is meh.  It smells weird.  I guess because of the mung bean.  The castella cake is nice, and made in Japan.

And I also went to Trader Joe's - to get kimbap, mini taiyaki, and jumeokbap among other things.  I miss having these stores closer so I really had to stock up a bit.  Until next time.  There was even another store I skipped (Ranch 99) - not enough time!

chocopie

This is more a reminder to myself.  Chocopies (the Korean cake / snack) are dry and don't taste good.  Nobody else around me likes them either.  I thought the same the first time I bought them a long time ago.  However, I must've forgotten and gave them another shot.  Unfortunately they still aren't worth it, and I'm now stuck with too many since they were sold in a box of too many.

The box picture and description are misleading.  You might imagine them being soft, squishy, fluffy, and all the things they're not.  There is marshmallow in the middle, but other than that - the cake part is so dry.  Even when it's far from the expiration date.

Maybe some people like them if they're comparing to even worse things.  But for me, nope.  I did read that some people microwave them to improve the taste, but I'd rather not and won't.

Remember - don't buy Chocopie anymore.  I'm not even including an image because I dislike them that much.

Chinese new year

 Happy Chinese New Year!

This year I didn't buy any new year treats, because my mother gave me some.  There are pineapple cakes and the Isabelle assortment from Costco.  

It's the year of the horse.  The tin box has a nice cover sheet showing the contents inside - taro cakes, horse-shaped lychee mini cakes, and Ice Q cakes in peach and tangerine flavors.  I really like lychee fruit but haven't tried this particular cake yet.  I'm saving them for the end of this week when the whole family will be together again.  So far, I like the Ice Q cakes - they're squishy like mochi and slightly sweet.  We taste tested them last week.

gingerbread man

 or maybe it's a lady.  The squiggly icing on the legs could be for pant legs or a dress.  Anyway - 

MERRY CHRISTMAS 

& 

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

panettone

 

I bought this panettone from Aldi, with the intention of saving it for Christmas.  Then one day I was hungry and thought - why wait another month?  It won't be as fresh as it is today.  HAHAHAHA

So over the course of a few days I ate most of it, since the others either did not want any or only had a little. And it wasn't as good as I thought it would be.  I thought there was a panettone last year that tasted great.  Did I buy it from somewhere else?  Did my taste buds change?  Did the recipe for this one change?  Maybe it was a different one from Costco?

It's not bad, just not as good as I'd imagined.  However, it's super cute, soft and squishy!  To me, it's more like soft bread (vs cake).  Probably because I'm used to super sweet stuff, like fruit punch and sweet tea.

In writing this up, perhaps I'll remember how it was and not get it again next year.

Happy December!

halloween

 HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

candy candy candy

Aldi German Week

Happy German Week!  Frohe deutsche Woche!  (I think that's how you'd say it, but I'm not sure.)  

In the United States, Aldi sells food specially imported from Germany twice a year.  German Week at Aldi started this fall on Wednesday, September 17th, 2025.  Well technically it's not fall yet, but it sure feels like it around here.  I was watching the leaves fall in a nearby forest-y area yesterday.  There was also a continuous crackling noise, as if a group of squirrels were busy chewing tree nuts and dropping bits all over the branches.  Maybe they're stuffing themselves in preparation for the cold weather.  I couldn't imagine falling leaves making so much bumpy noises and I didn't actually see squirrels up there, but maybe they're camouflaged.  What else could it be.  Anyhow, I went to the store to get some pretzels, potato sticks, egg & potato blend, cherry frangipane, and a mushroom cheese strudel.

The mushroom cheese strudel was meh because when I cooked it in the toaster oven, the top started to burn, but the bottom dough was still mushy and undercooked.  After I tried baking it a few minutes longer, it was still soggy on the bottom.  The filling was too cheesy for me even after letting it cool.  I probably should not get it again next year (if I remember).  If you get it, it's probably better to just cook it in the oven.  Unless you're a wiz at oven to toaster oven conversions.

I like the egg and potato blend.  I've previously cooked it stovetop, but this time I just microwaved it for convenience.  I think it tastes just as good cooked that way.  Highly recommend. Ja wohl!

The pretzels baked in the oven are consistently good, and the bags of potato sticks are like flavored potato chips.  Good basics to try if you ask me.

The cherry frangipane is probably my current favorite Aldi dessert.  I tried cooking it in the toaster oven, because I wanted to avoid using the gas oven for about half an hour.  Unfortunately that resulted in a burnt tart of sadness.  Luckily I bought 2 of them.  So the second time, I followed the directions on the box and it came out perfectly from the oven.

p.s. When I smell something burning from the kitchen, it's usually too late to save it.  Maybe someone likes burnt tart.  So sad.

solicitor handout

Usually I dislike solicitors, but this time they left a cute goody bag!  It included a patriotic pen, candies, and a sticker.

Kasia market - visit #2

I have to say, a very nice thing about the local Kasia is that it's hardly ever crowded, especially compared to the closest H-Mart.  Even on a Sunday, like today, there was plenty of parking and no wait at the registers.

This time I got take out at the food court for the family.  Everything tasted fine.  Bibimbap ($12.99) with sweet/sour chicken (+$3), and two chicken lunch boxes ($10.99 each).  

There were also some boxed desserts on display at the food court.  I had to ask what was inside the shiny rice cake balls.  They said there was white bean inside.  Maybe next time.

Instead, I bought some Japanese desserts from the main market area - dorayaki ($5.66 - $6.49) and castella cake ($8.99).  Typing out the prices, I realize they seem rather expensive.  Anyhow, I've tried the chestnut dorayaki and it's ok, not bad.

In the housewares aisle were some cute house slippers, but I have no idea what the sizing system is.  

I just looked it up now and 290 mm is equivalent to US women size 12?  Well, good thing I didn't buy that one then.  Wonder if these are even comfortable.  Maybe I'll find my size next time.

Kasia market

Last week I went to Kasia Market for the first time.  I ordered bibimbap (rice bowl), which had 9 vegetables (sooo much), a fried egg, and an optional choice of protein.  I chose tofu, but if I were to ever get it again, I'd probably choose chicken.

Other than checking out the food court, the main reason to visit Kasia was to check out the snacks.  I had an idea of mochis, but didn't find too many of them.  There was a bit of decision paralysis on what to buy when faced with an aisle of snacks that I've never tried before.

There was a google review photo of refrigerated mochi but I couldn't find them at the store.  I even asked a store associate for help.  She couldn't locate them either, but she did recommend another item when we passed by the frozen section.  She said to defrost them for about 1.5 hours before eating.

I had to later use Google Translate to understand what the packaging said, since everything was in Korean.  It was a bag of honey rice cakes, and they tasted pretty good.  The inside filling tasted like sweet peanut or sesame.  Another nice thing is that there are individually sealed bags of 4 mini cakes inside.  I like them warmer than cold, so I heated them up in the microwave for a few seconds after removing them from the pouch.

Below is the translation of the packaging.

The other snacks that I chose myself from the store did not taste good.  The non-refrigerated, packaged strawberry mochi from Taiwan were rubbery and when I squished them, they made strange popping noises that creeped me out.  The inner filling was encased in some yellow layer that looked plastic.  The box of almond mochi cake was meh and harder than expected.  I didn't quite like the Jaffa Napolitanke wafers either.

Below is a close-up of the yucky alien mochi.

taste test: strawberry cakes

It's a taste test with Trader Joe's Strawberries & Cream Cloud Cake versus Wegmans Strawberry Shortcake.  A slice of the Wegmans cake is $6 around here.  The Trader Joe's frozen cake is sold for $6.49 in the same town.

Instructions for the Trader Joe's cake say to defrost in the fridge for 24 hours.  Well I bought it this morning, kept it in the fridge for a few hours, and then cut a small piece to sit out for a few minutes until the whipped cream was soft.  Maybe it'd taste better if it defrosted longer.  There's still a lot left, so I'll update this post if I try it again later and it's significantly tastier.

To start, the Wegmans yellow cake is soft, with sweet cream and fresh strawberries that are a bit tart.  It's good.

The Trader Joe's white cake is drier and thinner, almost like an airy biscuit with many holes.  The whipped cream is thin - almost liquid, with a milky aftertaste.  The yellow custard layer in the middle tasted like nothing.  The strawberries tasted like jam or preserves, a mix of sweet and tart.

Above is a close-up of the Trader Joe cake.  The photo on the box is accurate.  My fellow taste tester only had about a forkful of the Trader Joe's cake before quitting.  I didn't finish it either.  

Trader Joe's has cute packaging and all, and for some reason many people online think it's so great.  BUT according to us, Wegmans is the clear winner.  It tastes way better.

UPDATE: I tried a piece of the Trader Joe's cake after it defrosted in the fridge for over 24 hours and yes, it is significantly better than the day before.  The cake turned soft, as if it absorbed the moisture from the surrounding cream and custard.  It's a mushy soft dessert now, and the strawberry part is a nice compliment to it.  I would not buy it again though.

Wegmans is still better.

sugar

 

The dentist said I have beautiful teeth, and the hygienist said to continue doing what I've been doing.  I guess that means I can continue consuming sugar at the same rate as before.

hello panda

Today we have the Hello Panda strawberry cookies from Meiji.  This bag is about 4 inches and has 21 pieces inside.  The cookies look slightly different from the package illustration.  Some of the designs are hard to make out.  Is the panda running, or is it riding a bike?  In any case, they're still cute and they taste okay.  The cookie tastes like a dense strawberry pocky stick.

happy valentine's day

 

It's a mini cake.  Maybe about the size of a small paper plate.  Kawaii!

chocolate candy flavors

The label says there are 10 flavors, but even if I combine the dark and milk chocolate versions of the maple nut butter, I count 11 flavors.

happy lunar new year

Happy Chinese New Year!  Here are some treats, purchased from Costco.  Both sets are made in Taiwan, from the company, Isabelle.  The first set is the Year of the Snake assortment.  It includes snake-shaped matcha & red bean cakes, 2 flavors of ice q cakes (peach and tangerine), and taro cakes.

The peach cake is squishy like gummy candy and mochi.  It has a slight peach flavor and tastes ok.  The tangerine one, which I'm guessing is the darker orange one, has more flavor than the peach.  The taro cake is sweet, flaky and powdery.  It tastes ok.  The snake-shaped cake is creamy, and has a hint of a perfume-y or floral flavor.  The shell is like a thin mooncake.  The taste is ambiguous and odd to me.  In general, the assortment is very cute, but I probably would not buy it again.

The second set is a box of pineapple cakes.  The cookie part is crumbly and buttery.  The inside is chewy and sweet.  I like these and rate them to be 7/10.  I've gotten these before and will probably get them again sometime.

1. chocolate advent calendar

 

Although this Lindt advent calendar is cute and full of nice milk chocolates, I should probably avoid buying it again next year.  My intention was to share it with other family members, but they didn't want them as much as I'd expected.  The box says there are 28 chocolates for 24 doors.  Well, some doors had more than one surprise.  In addition to other holiday candy, I ate most of these.  Yesterday, I decided to take a break from chocolates.  I ate too many and got very sick.  Let's see how long I can go without them.  I'm also decluttering and snapping photos of some of the more interesting (imo) things to let go, starting with this item.  Happy New Year!