Apart from coffee, our favourite bean would have to be the humble azuki bean. The azuki bean is used in a range of Japanese desserts but the tastiest form of azuki must be Tsubushian.

Tsubushian is a chunky style of red bean paste where the beans are mashed with the skins left on. It’s simple to make – the beans are cooked, drained, mashed and then sweetened. You can vary the methods and amounts of mashing to create various textures. A little kuzu starch may also be added. Basic recipe follows…