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I’ve been a Studio Ghibli junkie for over a decade. Though every single Ghibli film is richly told and gorgeously animated, Kiki’s Delivery Service is one of my all-time favorites. There’s just something about that plucky little witch striking out on her own that captured my heart and never let it go. My preschooler loves it too, so much so that on the morning of his birthday, we watched the movie while eating pancakes—just like Kiki!
Just a few months ago, I learned that one of my favorite food-in-fiction bloggers, Diana Ault, was coming out with an anime-themed cookbook called COOK ANIME. I asked Diana if I could make a recipe from her book for my fiction-themed cookbook post series, and guess what: she said yes AND she told me it had a recipe for Kiki’s pancakes! 😀
So far the weather has teased us with a few deliciously crisp days, but mostly it’s been muggy and rainy. Words cannot express how ready I am to be done with this ungodly heat! Plus, autumn is my favorite time of year (changing leaves! Oktoberfest! Pumpkin stuff! Halloween!), so I’m impatient for it to get started. Luckily, I’ve already started work on my September menu, which is making it easier to wait. But first let’s take a look back at what we did in August!
Considering I couldn’t choose just one Studio Ghibli movie for my menu this month, it’s not that surprising that I couldn’t make just one tea either. I mean, I felt I HAD to make a Totoro tea since Totoro is so awesome, but I also couldn’t stop thinking of how fun it would be to make a tropical Ponyo tea…or a tea based on the cake from Kiki’s Delivery Service! But which one to choose?
All of them. I chose all of them. And I’m not even a little bit sorry. 😉
I love Kiki’s Delivery Service so much! Granted, I can’t exactly relate to the part about being a witch, but I can definitely relate to being a young working girl out on her own for the first time. I remember my heart going out to Kiki as I watched her struggle to find a job and carve out a niche for herself in her new city home. It was great to see her grow and overcome bouts of self-doubt and failure to become a very happy little witch.
I think one of the best thing’s about Kiki’s Delivery Service is the emphasis it puts on developing relationships. At first, Kiki tries to do everything alone and struggles to make due, but as she makes new friends, their goodwill and helpfulness play a huge role in helping her on the way to success. A great example is the baker lady Osono, who is impressed by Kiki’s helpfulness to a stranger and offers her a place to stay and a job. And at the end of the movie, Kiki’s friend Madame bakes her a cake as a show of appreciation—and that’s the cake we’re making today!
This rich double chocolate cake is an exact replica of the one in the movie, and I had so much fun making it! The recipe was originally developed by Katerina at Diethood (and it was aptly named “Black Magic Cake”). The food in every Hayao Miyazaki movie looks delicious, and this cake is one of the Miyazaki dishes I’ve been dreaming about eating for years! Now I just need to find a plucky young witch to share it with! 🙂
Oh, Studio Ghibli. Not only are your stories amazing, but your characters are such a perfect combo of magic and true human spirit that they’ve become synonymous with childhood itself for many of us.
Making a marathon kit for Studio Ghibli movies was simultaneously one of the most difficult and most rewarding kits I’ve ever made. On the one hand, there are SO MANY options for what to include that it was downright intimidating. But all the Ghibli movies are so awesome, how can you possibly go wrong? 🙂
In the end, this kit turned out a little bit longer than some of my others, but I’m satisfied that I managed to include the very best. Enjoy! 🙂
