For those of you who do not live in or near a city with a high concentration of people with Japanese ancestry, the above picture may be a little unfamiliar. So let me make an introduction.
This is daifuku. A rice cake if you will. The outside pastry is a very chewy rice dough (some would call it glutonous), the filling is called anko, a redish bean paste made from azuki beans and sugar. My understanding is that, while available all year round, they become quite popular around the new year celebrations.
As a person weened on cookies and pies, it's taste and especially it's texture came as a bit of a shock. But I found myself returning to them every so often when I would visit my local Japanese grocery store. They go quite well with hot tea.
They do have a certain aesthetic about them that draws me to them. As you can see, this one does have the dreaded green food coloring added to the dough, but I'm willing to give this a temporary pass, for the color may have some traditional meaning of which I am unfamiliar.
Ingredients
1 cup Mochiko (sweet rice flour) (160g)
3/4 cup water (180ml)
3/4 cup sugar (150g)
Katakuriko (potato starch) or cornstarch
Anko (half the recipe)
Instructions
Mix Mochiko and water in a glass (or other heat proof) bowl and mix well.
Add some more water if it's too dry, 1 Tbsp at a time.
Steam the Mochiko dough (leaving the dough in the bowl) in a steamer for 20 minutes.
Transfer the steamed Mochi into a pot and cook at medium to medium low heat with 1/3 of the sugar (1/4 cup). When the sugar is completely dissolved, add another 1/3 of the sugar and mix well. Add the last part of the sugar and cook some more until the sugar is dissolved. Take the time to melt the sugar, but be careful not to burn it.
Take the hot Mochi out from the pot onto a sheet pan liberally dusted with Katakuriko or cornstarch.
Cut some Mochi out, and wrap the Mochi around a ball of Anko (size of a heaping tablespoon). Pinch the end of Mochi to seal. Serve it with the seam side down.