On a recent family trip to Japan, I was amazed at Sapporo’s New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido. It’s probably the most unique airport I’ve seen.
Part carnival, part shopping mall, it has everything to keep waiting passengers entertained, prodding arriving passengers to spend a few hours there before proceeding to their hotels in the city, and departing ones to arrive there early, so they can have time to enjoy all the facilities before boarding their flights.
Imagine a world of chocolates, for instance, which occupies an entire section of the airport. Here, one shop after another sells pastries, ice cream and chocolates, particularly Japan’s famous Royce brand.
There’s also a showcase factory where visitors can view the many stages of chocolate making, as well as a museum that traces the origins of cacao.
My daughters were ecstatic over the Hello Kitty Happy Flight, which reminded them of their childhood. Here their favorite Sanrio characters such as Hello Kitty, My Melody and Little Twin Stars greeted them in every corner.
In the pretend airplane, Hello Kitty was dressed as a flight attendant, while at the European Plaza, Sanrio characters posed beside replicas of famous landmarks, such as the Eiffel Tower and the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
There was also a short musical presentation starring Sanrio characters.
Back in the Chocolate World, we viewed a display of vintage chocolates cans and packages. Some of the chocolates may no longer be in the market, while others have modernized their wrappers and packaging.
I was especially drawn to Whitman’s chocolates in the familiar yellow sampler box, with its assortment of nougats, chocolate-dipped nuts and vanilla cups.
Milky Way and Baby Ruth bars in old-fashioned wrappers also triggered feelings of nostalgia.
Also on display was a recipe for King Mallows, made with marshmallows and Nestlé’s milk chocolate bar. I remember that chocolate bar well—a thin block of chocolate emblazoned with the word Nestlé on it, its wrapper clearly branded Nestlé in bright red color.
Unfortunately, Nestlé seems to have stopped production of this variant.
Still, the recipe looked so enticing. Hence, soon after returning to Manila, I tested it in my kitchen, using Nestlé’s semisweet chocolate morsels as substitute for the chocolate bar. Not only did the recipe work, the chocolate marshmallow bars were also scrumptious.
Here’s the recipe. With only two ingredients (plus the shortening for greasing the pan), it’s easy and simple to make. The hardest part is waiting for it to chill in the refrigerator before cutting it into squares and gobbling it up.
Nestlé’s King Mallows
The original recipe for this used king-size Nestlé milk chocolate bars. Since it’s no longer in the market, you can use Nestlé semisweet chocolate morsels instead.
Ingredients
Shortening, for greasing the pan, or nonstick cooking spray
2 12-oz packs Nestlé semisweet chocolate morsels
2 c mini marshmallows
Use the shortening to lightly grease the bottom and sides of an 8x8x2-inch pan, or use a pan of similar size. Alternatively you can spray the pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Melt one pack of chocolate morsels in a double boiler over hot (not boiling) water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate is smooth.
Spread the melted chocolate on the greased pan. Sprinkle the mini marshmallows on top of the chocolate. Melt the second pack of chocolate morsels in a double boiler, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Spread over the marshmallows.
Cover the pan and chill in the refrigerator for a few hours, or until firm. Before serving, cut into squares. Makes about 16 squares.
Cook’s tips:
Make sure the chocolate morsels are at room temperature, not cold, before you melt them. If the morsels are cold, or have been chilled, they won’t melt easily.
If you’ve chilled the chocolate morsels, take them out of the refrigerator and let them rest at room temperature for one to two hours before melting them.
Melt the morsels one pack at a time so they’ll be easier to stir.