Studio Ghibli’s cutest couple is now a sweet treat to eat for Valentine’s Day

Jiji and Lili join special Totoro Valentine’s Day cream puffs at the Ghibli-themed bakery in Tokyo.

Studio Ghibli may not make too many outright romance movies, but the production house’s anime films feature a number of memorable pairs whose love and devotion to one another is either explicitly stated or implicitly implied, from Whisper of the Heart’s Shizuku and Seiji to Spirited Away’s Chihiro and Haku and Howl’s Moving Castle’s Sophie and Howl. With Valentine’s Day coming up soon, it’s the perfect time for Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory, the Ghibli-themed bakery in Tokyo, to be whipping up a sweet salute to a Ghibli couple, but instead of any of the characters mentioned above, Shirohige is instead shining the spotlight on the cutest Ghibli anime couple of them all: Jiji and Lily.

Much of the kitty courtship between Jiji and Lily takes place off-camera during Kiki’s Delivery Service, but there’s no mistaking the feelings they have for each other. We get a few glimpses of the couple pairing off and spending time together as protagonist Kiki deals with the movie’s central plot points, but by the time the credits are rolling, Jiji and Lily are in an established relationship, as evidenced by their litter of four kittens, three who have inherited their mother’s white fur and one papa Jiji’s black coat.

Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory’s Jiji and Lily Chocolate Pudding perches the two lovebirds/romancecats atop a cup of pudding made from a blend of two types of Ghanian chocolate, accented by a light sweet and tart berry mouse. As for Jiji and Lily themselves, they’re made of nerikiri, a traditional Japanese confectionery that’s a mixture of sweet bean paste and mochi flour, and each one of the cats is handcrafted by the Shirohige staff. Even the mug, ringed with illustrations of the bakery’s mascot character chef and depictions of its flagship Totoro-shaped cream puffs, is special, as it’s a formerly limited-quantity item that’s just now being offered once again, making the 2,200 yen (US$14) set both a dessert and a souvenir.

Speaking of Shirohige’s Totoro cream puffs, they’re getting Valentine’s Day versions, covered with a chocolate ganache coating infused with either strawberry and raspberry flavors (red Totoro cream puff) or range caramel (white Totoro). The Choco Chibi Totoro cream puffs come packaged with a pair of chocolate madeleine mini cakes, for 850 yen

And if you want to keep things simple, but also, of course, delicious and adorable, there’s the Totoro and Heart cookie set (500 yen)…

…and the Catbus Chocolate Sandwich Cookie (850 yen), with a chocolate ganache filling, which is showing up right as at just about the same time as that heart-meltingly cute Catbus mini figure series.

As for availability, the Totoro and Heart cookies arrive first and will be on sale from February 5 to 14. Next comes the chocolate Catbus cookies, which will be purchasable from February 8 to 14 at both Hiroshige branches (in Tokyo’s Daita and Kichijoji neighborhoods), and then at the Kichijoji branch only through March 31. Finally, the Jiji and Lilly Chocolate Pudding and Choco Chibi Totoros will be offered only from February 11 to 14, and while a limited quantity will be available for same0day purchase, Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory recommends reserving your ahead of time by contacting the bakery ahead of time.

Shop information
Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory (Daita branch) / 白髭のシュークリーム工房（代田店）
Address: Tokyo-to, Setagaya-ku, Daita 5-3-1
東京都世田谷区代田5-3-1
Open 10:30 a.m.-6 p.m.
Closed Tuesdays (or Wednesday if Tuesday is a holiday)
Telephone: 03-5787-6221
Website

Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory (Kichijoji branch) / 白髭のシュークリーム工房（吉祥寺店）
Address: Tokyo-to, Musashino-shi, Kichijoji, Minamicho 2-7-5
東京都武蔵野市吉祥寺南町２丁目７−５
Open 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Closed Tuesdays (or Wednesday if Tuesday is a holiday)
Telephone: 0422-26-6550
Website

Source: Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory, Tabelog
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Insert images: Shirohige’s Cream Puff Factory
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