About NINGYOYAKI
NINGYOYAKI is one of the most famous Tokyo confectionery. It has over a hundred years of history.
It contains Anko(sweet pasted sauce made from red beans) coated with light sponge cake.
Each detailed charmy face are represented the seven gods of lucky.
All the ingredients used in Ningyoyaki is additive free.
Especially, Anko made from azuki is a well-balanced nutritious food source; it contains linolenic acid, which helps to lower cholesterol, anti-aging Vitamin E, protein and calcium.
Because of its sweetness, some people think it is mass of fat, it is actually full of fibre and contains much less fat than confectionery made with cream.
ITAKURAYA uses only Tokachi, Hokkaido brand which contains much more nutritious and rich flavor.
Development of Ningyoyaki was actually encounter of West culture and Ningyocho culture.
Go back to 300 b.c., there was sponge cake called "Castellia Boro" in Castellia, Spain.
This Castellia Boro was introduced to Japan by Portugues missionary around mid 15th century.
It was soon became popular cake in Osaka and Tokyo bit later.
However, wheat flour and egg were still expensive foodstuffs in Japan because of poor productive technics.
When the productive technics was gradually getting higher around late Edo period, Edo town food culture was highly flourised.
Castellia boro lately called "Castella" also widespreaded to Edo town people.
At that time, Ningyocho was well know as a place where many pupet theater and pupeteer atelier located.
Ningyocho people, with their skills of creating pupet could easily formed castella as "ningyo" means pupet.