Awa Manju (粟饅頭)
"Awa-manju" is a local sweet of Yanaizu Town, Kawanuma County, Fukushima Prefecture.
Summary
It is a bun prepared by first wrapping smooth bean paste in a dough of millet mixed with glutinous rice, and then steaming it. The color of awa manju is yellow like millet, and the texture is characterized with the unique balance of the roughness of the millet and viscosity of the glutinous rice.
Basically, awa manju is made by hand and in some shops, you can see pastry cooks making awa manju in sake cup-shaped molds. Although awa manju is one of the basic items in Fukushima's local food fairs, since they are made by hand and takes time to be prepared, customers almost always have to wait in line to buy awa manju.
The best before period of awa manju is short, and they become hard in about two days. They should be frozen if they are to be stored for a long period.