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["Soak the sakura buds and leaf in water for a while to remove some of the salt.", "Dry the sakura buds out in a microwave and rub them with your finger tips until they become powdery.", "Drain the leaf and chop finely after removing the stem.", "Place the shiratamako, white sugar, and trehalose in a heatproof bowl, and mix well with a whisk.", "Add the chopped sakura leaf and water, and combine.", "Loosely cover the heatproof bowl from Step 2 with plastic wrap, and microwave for a minute (at 700 W).", "Remove from the microwave, and mix with a spatula.", "Microwave for another 30 seconds, then mix again.", "Spread out the katakuriko in a tray and set the dough on top.", "Make the dough into a stick shape smaller than the mold diameter, and loosely cover the tray with plastic wrap.", "Place the finely chopped chocolate in a bowl, and warm up using a double boiler (a little under 60C).", "Remove the melted chocolate from the double boiler.", "(The chocolate temperature should be about 45C.)", "Place the sakura buds in the bowl from Step 5, and mix with a spatula.", "Let cool while stirring constantly, with the bottom of the bowl exposed to cold water (about 15C).", "(The chocolate temperature should be about 25C.)", "Warm up the chocolate again in a double boiler (about 35C).", "(The chocolate temperature should be about 28 to 30C.)", "Pour the chocolate into the molds about halfway up, and gently tap the molds a few times.", "*Store the remaining chocolate in a warm place and set aside.", "The bottom of the bowl should be barely touching the hot water underneath.", "Cut the stick from Step 4 with a pair of kitchen scissors (into appropriate thickness).", "Place the slices one by one into each mold from Step 7, and gently tap the molds again...", "Fill the molds with the remaining chocolate, covering the gyuuhi.", "Gently tap again... Store in a cold place to harden the chocolate.", "Chocolate shrinks slightly when hardened.", "Add more chocolate and let cool again if necessary.", "Scrape off excess chocolate from the molds with a spatula, and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.", "Take the chocolate out of the molds, and it's done.", "Place the chocolate on top of the sakura leaf, de-salted and dried.", "The aroma of the leaf should transfer a bit to the chocolates.", """Kinako Mochi Chocolate""
