It’s that time of year again: The stores are filled with Christmas cakes, festive cookies and other delectable baked goods. But what if you feel like baking your own goodies to treat your friends and family, or just yourself?

In Japan, ovens do not come as standard equipment in kitchens, especially in small rental apartments meant for singles and couples. However, it is possible to make simple baked goods with just a stovetop at your disposal.

The recipe below is for a classic American treat — a chocolate walnut brownie — that is "baked" on the stove. I have used a rectangular tamagoyaki pan, which is used to make rolled omelettes for bentos, but if you don't have one, you can also make this brownie in a small, round frying pan and cut it into wedges. The key is to cook at a very low temperature so that everything slowly steams before setting into a dense, fudge-like texture. Dusting the surface with icing sugar will give it a suitably festive look perfect for a post-Christmas dinner dessert.

Note: For this recipe, you’ll also need kitchen parchment paper, aluminum foil and a tea strainer.

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes, plus resting time

Ingredients:

  • 100 grams milk chocolate
  • 45 grams unsalted butter
  • 30 grams
  • 30 grams granulated sugar
  • 25 grams cake flour
  • 10 grams cocoa powder
  • 3 drops vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 large egg
  • 45 grams walnuts, roughly chopped
  • Icing sugar for decoration

Directions:

1. Line the tamagoyaki pan with kitchen parchment paper. Cut a piece of aluminum foil that can be used as a lid on the pan. Measure out the ingredients, then beat the egg in a small bowl.

2. Break up the chocolate into a heatproof bowl, then add your butter. Put the bowl in a large frying pan half filled with water, then place both on the stovetop over low heat. Stir the chocolate and butter in the bowl until both are melted and smooth. Next, stir all the other ingredients except the walnuts into the melted chocolate-butter mixture until smooth. Add half the walnuts and stir well.

3. Pour the mixture into the lined tamagoyaki pan, then smooth out the surface of the batter. Scatter the rest of the walnuts over the top. Cover the pan with the aluminum foil, folding the ends down to enclose the pan.

4. Heat the pan over medium-low heat (the no. 2 setting on an induction cooktop) for 10 minutes. Next, lower the heat to the lowest possible setting, turn the pan around so that the handle is facing the opposite side from its original position and cook for another 15 minutes — when you pierce the mixture in the middle with a toothpick, just a little batter should stick to it and the surface should be dry. When fully cooked, take the pan off the heat, but leave the contents in the pan until it has cooled down completely (about another 30 minutes).

5. Lift the contents of the pan out by grabbing onto the sides of the kitchen parchment paper. Scatter the top with icing sugar passed through a tea strainer. Cut into squares and serve, or wrap well in plastic to store.