Baked Mochi Food

BAKED MOCHI

Steps:

• Place frozen coconut milk in a glass mixing bowl and cook in microwave oven for three minutes.
• Break apart any frozen chunks and continue to cook one to three minutes longer, or till thawed.
• Add water and brown sugar; mix well.
• Stir in mochiko and baking soda; mix until smooth.
• Pour into buttered 8 inch square baking dish and cook 15 minutes, rotating dish a quarter turn every three minutes (if not turnable).

MATCHA MOCHI DOUGHNUTS

Steps:

• For the starter: Mix the rice flour and milk in a small microwave-safe bowl until smooth. Microwave for 20 seconds and stir (the mixture will be very thick). Microwave for 10 seconds, then stir. The mixture should now be very sticky (it will pull like a rubber band when stretched upwards with a spoon) and have gone from white to translucent. If not, microwave for 10 seconds more. Set aside to cool slightly.
• For the doughnuts: Combine the rice flour, granulated sugar, matcha powder, baking powder and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix with the paddle attachment on low just to combine. Whisk together the milk, butter, vanilla and egg in a spouted measuring cup. Add to the mixer bowl and beat on medium to combine. Scrape in all of the starter and mix until the dough comes together. Mix on high speed until very smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. (The dough will not clean the sides of the bowl and be slightly sticky to the touch.)
• Dust your work surface with rice flour and empty the dough onto the counter. Knead until soft and smooth (almost like Play-Doh). Cut 12 (4-by-4-inch) squares of parchment. Roll the dough to a scant 1/2 inch and cut as many circles as you can with a 1 1/4-inch ring cutter. Reroll to cut more circles. Group 6 dough rounds on a piece of parchment in the shape of a circle, with the pieces touching and a hole in the middle. Pat gently to seal the pieces together. Repeat with the remaining circles to get about 12 doughnuts.
• Meanwhile, heat about 2 inches of oil in a large Dutch oven to 340 degrees F.
• To fry, slide the doughnuts, still on the paper, into the hot oil in batches of 4. Let fry about 30 seconds, then remove the papers and discard. Continue to fry until cooked, 5 to 6 minutes total per batch. Let cool completely before glazing.
• For the glaze: Whisk the confectioners' sugar and matcha in a small bowl to combine. Whisk in the lemon juice, vanilla and 3 tablespoons of the milk to make a smooth, thick glaze. (Gradually add 1 tablespoon more milk if needed.) If the glaze is still too thick (it should run leisurely from a spoon), add more milk a teaspoon at a time to reach the desired consistency.
• Dip the top of each doughnut in the glaze and then into the sprinkles if using. Place on a baking rack to dry and harden.

HOMEMADE MOCHI

Steps:

• For the mochi dough base: Wash the rice gently until the water runs clear, 5 to 8 times, then drain. Cook the rice with 2 1/2 cups water in a rice cooker according to the manufacturer directions for sushi/sweet rice, about 30 minutes.
• Place the cooked rice in a wooden or stone bowl. (I don't recommend stainless steel or plastic bowls, which will make the rice wet or too soft.) Smash the rice with a thick wooden stick or pestle. Use your hands to turn the rice and continue to pound with the stick until it is a smooth and sticky dough, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Portion out 20 to 24 mochi, about 2 tablespoons of dough per portion. Have a small bowl of water nearby to lightly wet hands if the dough is too sticky. Shape each portion into a round patty about 1 1/2 inches thick and dust each side of the mochi with mochiko or potato starch.
• For the mochi toppings: To make a sweet miso sauce, combine the miso, sugar and sake in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Add your desired number of plain mochi and grill, brushing with soy sauce a couple of times on each side, until the mochi are caramelized, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
• Brush some of the remaining plain mochi (reserve some of them to serve with the sweet toppings) with about 1 tablespoon of the sweet miso sauce and top with a sprinkle of shichimi. To serve the savory mochi, wrap the soy-grilled and sweet miso-glazed mochi in nori and place on a plate or platter.
• For the sweet mochi toppings: Mix the kinako with the sugar in a small bowl. Dip to coat both sides of your desired number of mochi. Top each remaining plain mochi with adzuki paste, then sprinkle with the remaining kinako sugar, if desired. Serve on a plate or platter.

BUTTER MOCHI

Steps:

• Make the mochi: Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9-by-13-inch cake pan, then line the bottom and sides with parchment paper.
• Whisk the mochiko, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Prepare the batter in a stand mixer or in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer or whisk: Whisk the eggs and sugar until pale yellow and thick. Continue whisking while pouring in the coconut milk, then the butter and vanilla. Continue whisking while gradually adding the mochiko mixture. Whisk until the batter is completely smooth. Pour into the prepared pan, then tap it against the counter to get rid of any air bubbles.
• Bake until golden brown and crackly, 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 1/2 hours. When you press the center, it should bounce back but not indent at all. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Use the parchment paper to slide the cooled mochi out of the pan.
• The mochi is delicious plain, but you can add a glaze if you'd like: Mix the confectioners' sugar with 2 tablespoons passion fruit pulp until smooth. It should be thick but drippy. If needed, add another 1 to 2 tablespoons pulp. If you'd like to create an ombré or sunset effect, scrape some into another bowl or multiple bowls and tint with food coloring. Spread the glaze evenly over the mochi, in stripes if you'd like, and let stand until set.
• Cut the mochi into squares or bars. Serve immediately, or keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

MOCHI

Steps:

• In a bowl (I use a souffle-size bowl, around 2 cups) stir together the rice flour and sugar.
• While mixing with a spoon or small stiff spatula, pour in the boiling water.
• Stir in clockwise direction until the lumps disappear, and the batter is slightly elasticky, about 2 minutes (note: it will become difficult to stir, but try your best anyway!).
• Cover the container with plastic wrap, and microwave on HIGH for 2-4 minutes, depending on your microwave.
• Meanwhile, grease a ziploc bag well.
• Invert the bag (oil side out), and remove the mochi from the bowl into the bag (you can let it cool a bit before you do this, but the more you cool it, the harder the bowl will become to clean =/). Don't burn yourself!
• While the mochi is still warm, start kneading. To knead: Stretch and flatten the dough inside the bag with the palm of your hand, then pick up the bag at one corner, shake it so that it rolls into a ball again, then repeat. You can also knead it by placing the mochi into a greased bowl, and knead it as you would a normal dough. Knead for about 7~10 minutes, or to the consistency (chewiness) you want.
• To prepare the coating: Process the peanuts in a blender or food processor, and spread the powder out in a plate. Do not add sugar to the coating! Because the sugar will dissolve with the moisture in the mochi, making it super sticky.
• Pull off a teaspoonful-sized mochi ball with your hand, and coat in peanut powder. Alternatively, if you prepared it inside a bag, cut off a 1/4" corner, and squeeze from the bag. Separate the balls with greased scissors, or with chopsticks =P.
• Enjoy!
• Variations: Instead of using a coating, you could also wrap sweet red bean paste inside the mochi for daifukus =).

MOCHI CAKE, ANY WAY YOU WANT IT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter a 9"-diameter cake pan or an 8x8" baking pan or 14 cups of two standard 12-cup muffin pans. (If you only have 1 muffin pan, you can bake the extra batter in a small loaf pan or mini muffin pan, or just discard it.) Generously coat pan with sugar, tapping out excess (about ¼ cup should do it).
• Place 1½ cups (300 g) sugar and 6 Tbsp. butter in a large bowl. If using coconut milk, heat in a small saucepan over medium, whisking constantly, until no clumps remain, then whisk into sugar mixture. If using half-and-half, whisk directly into sugar mixture. Add eggs, vanilla, and salt and whisk to combine.
• Whisk rice flour, powdered flavoring of choice (or 3 Tbsp. more rice flour), spice of choice, and baking powder in a medium bowl to combine, then whisk into egg mixture. Scrape batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with coconut or sesame seeds.
• Bake until top begins to crack and cake springs back when gently pressed, 55-65 minutes for cake and 45-55 minutes for cupcakes. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cake cool in pan 10 minutes. Run a knife around perimeter of cake, place a plate over pan, and invert cake onto plate. Hold wire rack over cake and invert cake onto rack (simply turn cupcakes out onto rack and turn over). Let cool completely.
• Do ahead: Cake can be baked 5 days ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.