~ Anko Mochi / Daifuku

Taken from:

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Description:

Soft chewy glutinous rice balls stuffed with red bean paste~

Ingredients:

125 g glutinous rice flour

2 tbsp icing sugar

125 g water

250 g anko

Directions (12 mochi):

1) Split anko into quarters, and subsequently into 3 each to get 12 balls in total.

2) Shape each piece of anko into a ball and freeze for at least half an hour.

3) Dust baking sheet with potato starch.

4) Add glutinous flour and sugar together in a non-stick bowl. Mix in water with a spatula and make sure there are no lumps.

5) Steam the batter for 15min.

6) Stir the mochi until even and put it on the baking sheet. Dust mochi and hands with potato starch. Split the mochi into quarters and then into 3 parts to get 12 mochi balls.

7) Shape each piece of mochi into a flat circle, dust off starch with brush and add in the anko ball. Spread the mochi to cover the anko, dusting with starch if it gets sticky. Work quickly as the mochi will not stretch enough to cover the anko ball once it cools.

8) Store at room temperature, best eaten on the day itself.

Remarks:

I had some difficulty shaping the mochi and covering the honey anko balls as I worked pretty slowly resulting in the mochi losing their elasticity. Apart from that, I didn't freeze my anko enough so it was hard to contain them within the mochi skin. Making mochi is really demanding and requires a lot of skills! Oh, don't make them too immaculately rounded, since imperfection is the hallmark of hand-made goodies =p

However, if they appear as shown below, hide them well and don't let anyone catch sight of them to avoid embarrassment! =p

~ Frozen Yoghurt Popsicle

I love frozen popsicles! They are low-caloried (provided you chose the right ingredients), versatile, yummy and simply melt the sweltering heat away, always leaving one begging for more!

~ Anko II (Imitation with Kidney Beans, Honey)

Taken from:

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Description:

Imitation japanese red bean paste with honey~

Ingredients:

1 can kidney beans (15.25 ounce), drained and rinsed

3 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp honey

Directions (for 250g anko):

1) Boil kidney beans, sugar and water in saucepan, stirring constantly till water is almost dried up.

2) Mash up the beans till a paste is formed, and store in the fridge until use.

Remarks:

Eeks, why do I always forget to take a picture of my anko before stuffing it into some recipe? Anyway, the honey in this anko recipe adds a unique taste and complemented the saltiness of the beans. However, I found that it seemed too sweet, perhaps one tbsp less of honey will do the trick :)

~ The 3 Cs - Chinese Parsley v.s. Coriander v.s. Cilantro

I've always been stumped by recipes calling for cilantro and coriander... What are those? I only have chinese parsley on hand! And guess what, from this site, I've found out that they are all the same~! *hooray*

But do take note that there may be variations in the size and shape of the leaves. Well they pretty much impart similar taste, and rid some wind:

~ Chocolate-Coated Blueberries

From the title of this blog, I'm sure one would know how this gratifying treat is made - simply by coating blueberries with melted chocolate! I'd use the ginger chocolate that was bought recently, and guess what, I cldn't really taste the berries as the ginger was overpowering! Next time I shall just use dark chocolate :)

Here's a cute looking piece of coated gem that has little eyes and pursed lips, and resembles Patrick the Starfish from SpongeBob SquarePants Show: