Kudzu Mochi Modoki - Arrowroot Mochi Style Soymilk Jello

Easy to make Japanese style gelatine dessert. I used jelly made with Soymilk instead of Kudzu (or Kuzu) Mochi, molasses instead of Kuro Mitsu (Japanese style brown sugar syrup).


What I used (Makes 4 servings):

• 2 envelopes KNOX unflavored gelatine
• 1/2 cup cold soymilk
• 1 1/2 cup soymilk, heated to boiling
  
• 1/2 cup of unsweetened Kinako (click for the recipe)
  
• 1/4 cup of molasses

Directions:

1. Sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup of soymilk in a small container or bowl and let stand 1 minute. Add hot soymilk and stir until gelatin completely dissolves, about 5 minutes.
   
2. Refrigerate until firm, about 3 hours. Cut into 1-inch squares.
3. Devide jelly cubes into four dishes. Sprinkle unsweetened Kinako and molasses over the cubes to your liking.

"It taste like sweets grandma serves at her house in Japan!" is my daughter's comment. You can use green tea or coffee in place of soymilk for variations.

Please check my other posts for Japanese Desserts also! If you have a chance to try out any of the recipes, please let me know how you liked it.

Kinako Mochi Recipe - Japanese Rice Cake covered with Soy Bean Powder

These are Kinako Mochi made with my whole wheat Mochi!


You just cover Maru-Mochi (round rice cake) while they are still moist and soft with Kinako (soy bean powder with sugar). I would like to keep mochi in a dish full of powder for about 1 to 2 hours and roll them occasionally. With the moisture from Mochi, Kinako makes a nice thin paste over mochi this way!

I have recipes for Mochi and Kinako in separate blogs.

Please check my other posts for Japanese Desserts also! If you have a chance to try out any of the recipes, please let me know how you liked it.

Kinako Recipe - Soy Powder for Japanese Sweets

I'm not sure if you can call this a recipe, but I thought some people might want to know how to make them....


What I used:

• 1 cup of dried soy beans
• 1 cup of sugar

Directions:

1. Roast soy beans in a pan slowly in a medium heat on a stove top for about 10 minutes. Be careful not to burn them. You want to make them nicely browned. Once you count more than 10 beans pop, you are done.
   
2. Grind the roasted beans in a grinder.
3. Add sugar and mix.

The above is a photo of Kinako Mochi (Rice Cake covered with Soy Bean Powder). If you are lucky enough to live close to a Japanese/Asian grocery store, you can buy pre-made Kinako powder. You can also check Japanese Food Gifts. Asian Food Grocer offers great variety in Asian foods and food-related items, including utensils, cookware, recipes, snacks, candy, and much more.

Please check my other posts for Japanese Desserts also! If you have a chance to try out any of the recipes, please let me know how you liked it.

Whole Wheat Mochi Recipe - Japanese Rice Cake Recipe

This is a non-traditional recipe for a pretty traditional tasting mochi using a grinder and a pressure cooker. You can use a microwave instead of a pressure cooker also. 5 to 10 minutes depends on microwaves.

What I used:

• 1 cup of whole wheat sweet brown rice (you cannot use regular short grain sushi rice )
  
• 3/4 cup of water
• 1/8 teaspoon of salt
  

• Some cornstarch to keep mochi from sticking to each other

Directions:

1. Grind sweet brown rice with a grinder. (you can use store bought sweet brown rice powder if you want. I just can't get them at where I live.)
2. Mix the ground rice with water well. Use a mixing bowl you can put in a pressure cooker.
3. Add some water in a Pressure cooker, put the bowl with the rice mixture in the cooker. Cook the mixture for 10 minutes after the pressure regulator begins to rock. Let the cooker cool - do not put a cold water to let it cool faster.
4. Put the hardened mochi dough onto a hard surface. Use water to keep the dough from sticking to things. Add salt and kneed dough by folding for 3 to 5 minutes. Add water if necessary to make the dough moderately stiff, but still elastic. Now your Mochi is done!

How to make Maru-Mochi (round mochi):

1. Divide the dough into 12 pieces.
   
2. Shape each portion into round. Use water to keep the dough from sticking to your hands.
   
3. Dust them with cornstarch.
   

How to make Noshi-Mochi (flat square mochi):

1. Move the dough onto a baking sheet, plastic wrapped and powdered with cornstarch, and spread it flat by hands to about 1/2 inch thick.
   
2. Sprinkle cornstarch on top, cover the top with a plastic wrap as well.
3. Once the dough is hard enough - 2 to 4 hours in a fridge should do - cut them into about 2 inchs by 3 inchs rectangles. Dust the cut surfaces with cornstarch.

These Mochi should stay soft for a couple of days in a fridge. You can freeze them also. When you are ready to use them, you can just pop them into a toaster oven for 8 to 10 minutes.

Please check my other posts for Japanese Desserts also! If you have a chance to try out any of the recipes, please let me know how you liked it.

Okara Waffles - Waffles with Soy Pulp

I got more Okara today, yeah! This recipe is based on the waffle recipe from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book. I added Okara, took part of flour and milk out.


What I used:

• 1 cups wholewheat flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup soy milk
• 1/2 cup cooking oil
• 1 cup Okara (Soy Pulp)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

1. Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a bowl; set aside
   
2. In another bowl beat eggs slightly; stir in soy milk, cooking oil, Okara, and vanilla. Mix well.
3. Add egg mixture all at once to the flour mixture. Stir just until moistened. (batter should be slightly lumpy).
4. Pour 1 to 1 1/4 cups of batter onto grids of a preheated, lightly greased waffle baker. Close lid quickly; do not open until done. Bake according to manufacturer's directions.

It will take a couple of minutes longer to bake than regular waffles.

Please leave me a comment and tell me how you liked the recipe! Please try out my other Okara Recipes also!

Okara Scone - Scone with Soy Pulp

Another batch of Soymilk and another try for a recipe with Okara!
This Scone turned out great! Both my husband and I like not so sweet scones, so you might want to add more sugar, or glaze it.


What I used:

• 2 cups of wholewheat flour
• 1/4 cup of sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger
• 1/3 cup of cold butter
• 1 cup of Okara
• 1/4 tablespoon of soymilk
• 1 egg

1. Preheat oven to 425 degree F. Lightly oil a baking sheet and flour them.

2. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl.

3. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

4. In a separate bowl put Okara, soymilk, and an egg. Mix them really well.

5. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients.

6. Put dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it into a circle (about 8 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch thick). Cut them into 8 pieces like you would cut a pie.

7. Bake for about 15 minutes. Cool them on a wire rack.

You can put powdered sugar over it if you want!

Please leave me a comment and tell me how you liked the recipe! Please try out my other Okara Recipes also!

Cute Caffe in Nelson, BC

We are on our annual Ski Vacation in Nelson, BC, Canada. The city of Nelson is in middle of nowhere, but their streets are like the ones in San Francisco. Very, very cute town.


We had nice espresso drinks and the best Chocolate Zucchini Bread this morning at "grounded - An organic coffee house" on Vernon street!

Sushi Rice Recipe & Asparagus Rolls!

My daughter wanted to eat Sushi Rolls today, but I didn't want to go out and get proper ingredients for them. I checked our fridge and found Asparagus!


Sushi Rice:

• 1 1/2 cups of short grain white rice
• 1 1/2 cups of water
• 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar (apple cider vinegar works too)
  
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt

1. Mix vinegar, sugar, and salt really well and put the mixture aside.

2. Wash the rice with cold water a couple of times in a pot and drain.

3. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to the pot and put it on a burner on high heat.

4. Once it starts boiling, put a lid on, reduce the heat to low.

5. Let it cook for 15 minutes or until the steam stops escaping from the lid.

6. Take the pot off of the burner and let it rest for 10 minutes.

7. Spread the rice in a big bowl, so it will cool quicker. Add the vinegar mixture while the rice is still hot. Mix it with spatula lightly while it cools.


Asparagus Rolls:

I used sushi mat to roll my sushi. It is made out of bamboo sticks and very flexible. If you don't have one, you can use plastic wrap about the size of sushi mat - 9 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches.

I don't know how to explain this, so I put some pictures.

You put Nori (dried seaweed) on the mat, spread the vinegered rice, and add the main ingredient (steamed asparagus this time).


Lightly hold Asparagus (or whatever you are using), so it will stay in the middle. Roll up the sushi using the sushi mat. Once you are done rolling, you can squeeze the roll while it is still covered in the sushi mat lightly. You take the roll out of the mat, and slice the rolls into 6 to 8 pieces!

Okara Chicken Nuggets with Teriyaki Sauce

I made soy milk today again. So I got more fresh Okara today again. Last Okara dish I tried was a disaster, but I decided to keep experimenting every time I get Okara. Today's experiment actually turned out pretty good!


What I used:

• 1 cup of Okara (Soy Pulp from Soymilk)
• 1 cup of ground Chicken
• 1/2 tablespoon of cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• pinch of black pepper
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  

1. Mix all the ingredients together well.

2. Pour the 1 tablespoon of olive oil into a large skillet. Preheat over medium-high heat. Drop the mixture on to the skillet using dinner spoon. (about the size and shape of chicken nuggets)

3. Cook them for about 5 minutes, turn them halfway to brown both sides evenly.

4. When both sides of nuggets are browned, pour well mixed teriyaki sauce ingredients below in to the skillet. Cook and stir until bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minitues more.

Teriyaki Sauce: For the teriyaki sauce I actually used 1/3 cup of left over Sobatsuyu with 1/2 tablespoon of cornstarch, but if you don't have it you can use these ingredients:

• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoon water
• 2 tablespoon sake (optional)
• 1/2 tablespoon of cornstarch

Please leave me a comment and tell me how you liked the recipe! Please try out my other Okara Recipes also!

Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls, An-Pan, and Cheesy Dinner Rolls

I was inspired by cafenelison's Baked Buns with Red Bean Paste! I tried out making Dinner Rolls stuffed with Anko and with Cheese (not together!). Japanese version's Baked Buns with Red Bean Paste are called An-Pan. They are usually wrapped in a dinner roll type of dough. They turned out pretty good.


I used a recipe from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book for a reference and changed it around a little.

What I used:

2 cups of wholewheat flour
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup soy milk
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 beaten egg

1. Heat up soy milk until warm. Add yeast to the milk and let it rise for 10 to 15 minutes.

2. Mix all the ingredients along with the yeast and milk.

3. Kneed the dough for 6 to 8 minutes till it is smooth and elastic. (I used my KitchenAid mixer for this.)

4. Shape dough into a ball. Place in a greased bowl. Turn once. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double.

5. Punch dough down. Divide dough into 24 balls. Cover; let rest for 10 minutes.

6. Shape dough into your desired shapes. The ones in the photo are butterhorns. I made small wedges and loosely rolled them from the wide ends toward the points.

7. Place them on lightly greased baking sheets. cover and let rise in a warm place until nearly double in size.

8. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 15 to 18 minutes or until rolls sound hollow. Immediately remove from pan. Cool on wire racks.


An-Pan Recipe: At step 6, Roll each portion of dough to 4 inch circle. Put 2 tablespoons of Anko in the middle. Pull edges and pinch them together and place them pinched side down on to baking sheets. Move on to step 7, then 8.

Cheesy Dinner Roll Recipe: At step 6, put a cheese stick cut into 2 inches at the wide end of the wedges and roll them with it. Make sure cheese is covered all the way around by dough. move on to step 7, then 8.

Please check my other posts for Japanese Desserts also! If you have a chance to try out any of the recipes, please let me know how you liked it.

Cheese Pockets with Wanton Wrappers

I was making Wantons with Okara as part of ingredients for the stuffing. The end result was horrible, we had to go out to eat that night.... I think I have to change the ratio of Okara...

Anyway, I had some left over Wanton Wrappers from it, and decided to wrap some mozzarella sticks and toast them in a toaster oven. (for about 10 minutes) It turned out pretty good. My daughter enjoyed them as her afternoon snack!

French Baguettes!

I was so happy with my pizzas and pita breads; now, I'm trying French baguettes! My wholewheat flour run out, so I used about 1/2 wholewheat 1/2 white flour. It turned out great! I'm getting really into baking now!

Soba Salad with Sesame Dressing!

I am making a Soba Salad today with left over boiled Soba from yesterday. I love eating Soba as a salad with crunchy veggies!

What I used:

• 1 cup boiled Soba noodles
• 1/4 cup halved grape tomates
• 1/4 cup sliced red radishes
• 1/4 cup chopped English cucumber (English cucumbers are cruncher than regular cucumbers)
• 1/4 cup mung bean sprouts
• 1/4 cup sprouted seeds (I used clover sprouts today)
• 2 tablespoons of chopped green onions
  

Recently I started to pour boiling hot water over any sprouts to kill bad germs on it for in case. Sprouts still taste fresh and crunchy this way.

Mix all the ingredients together and eat them with your favorite dressing! Here is how to make my personal favorite - Sesame dressing!


What I used for Sesame dressing:

• 2 tablespoons of Sesame seeds (I used hulled white sesame seeds)
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons of Soy Sauce
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon of Wasabi powder

Mix Sesame seeds and olive oil in a food processor until Sesame seeds are chopped into small pieces. Put the rest of the ingredients and mix them till the mixture is creamy.


Enjoy!

Over baked Pita Bread!

I was baking Pita Breads with left over Pizza doughs today. I started to talk with my daughter's friend after I put the last bread in the oven, then I forgot about it a bit too long.


This is what came out of the oven! All other Pitas went flat after they came out of the oven, but not this over baked one! It kept its shape. My daughter and her friend were so excited to see it. I will have to make some hummus, so they can eat it with this strange looking pita.

Cold Soba and Sobatsuyu - Buckwheat Noodles with Dipping Sauce

This is the very basic way we eat Soba (Buckwheat Noodles) at our house. We usually eat them cold with dipping sauce (Sobatsuyu). We top Soba with shredded Yakinori (Roasted Seaweed) and green onions. You can put Wasabi in your dipping sauce if you like.
1. Boil 4 bunches of Soba (about 16 oz) for 5-7 minutes in a pot full of water with 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

2. When it's chewy but firm in the center, it's ready. Empty the entire pot of Soba into a strainer. Wash the noodles with cold water. Makes about 4 servings.


How to make Sobatsuyu (dipping sauce):

• 2 cups of Dashi (Japanese Soup Stock)
  
• 1/3 cup of Soy Sauce
• 1/3 cup of Mirin (if you don't have Mirin, you can use 1/3 cup of Sake with 2 Tablespoons of suger)

Mix all the ingredients in a pan, and bring it to a boil. Stop the heat and cool the sauce.

Dashi - Japanese Soup Stock with Shiitake and Kombu

I am making Dashi (Japanese Soup Stock) tonight. I always use "Mizudashi" method which is to make Dashi by soaking dried ingredients in water overnight. I am using Dried Shiitake Mushroom and Kombu (kelp) tonight. If you have Dried Shiitake only, that will work also. Kombu only is good, too. Katsuobushi (bonito flakes) works well also.


What I used:

• 3 pieces of Dried Shiitake Mushrooms
• 1 piece of Kombu (Kelp cut down to about 4 inches)
• 3 cups of water
  

Rinse the Dried Shiitake Mushrooms. Wipe Kombu with dump paper towel. Put them in a bowl with 3 cups of water and let them soak overnight (8 hours or more) in a refrigerator.

The stock will be ready to use by the morning. I squeeze water out of Shiitake and Kombu and put them aside to be used for other recipes later on.

I am thinking about making "something Japanese" tomorrow, but not sure what. I will post whatever I decided to make tomorrow!

Okara Nuggets with Hijiki and Carrot trial

I made some soymilk today, so I got more Okara (soy pulp). Since the Okara Falafel I made last week was a big success, I decided to make something similar. Instead of putting parsley and garlic, I put Hijiki and carrots. My daughter liked it. I thought they are so so. I think everything taste good to my daughter if they are fried and with sweet chili sauce....

What I used:

• 2 cups of Okara
• 1/2 onion - finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons Hijiki
• 1/2 cup Carrots - finely chopped
• 1/3 cup Flour

I washed and drained Hijiki (I didn't soak it in water, since my Okara is pretty moiste), then mixed all the ingredients together and fried them for 5 to 7 minutes with 350 degrees F oil.

Hijiki is a brown sea vegetable growing wild on rocky coastlines. It is known to be rich in dietary fibre and essential minerals such as calcium(1400mg/100g),iron(55.0mg/100g) and magnesium(620mg/100g).

Next time, I might add green onions instead of regular onion, and maybe shelled edamame in the dough....

Please leave me a comment and tell me how you liked the recipe! Please try out my other Okara Recipes also!

Homemade Pizza Party!

Since I had a big success with Pita Breads, I decided to try making my own Pizza dough. Actually the recipe was almost exactly the same as the Pita Bread Recipe I used. I decided to let the dough rise twice instead of once after reviewing different recipes on Internet. I got premade Pizza Sauce, Pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, and 6 screaming girls. The party was a big success!

An Kibi Dango - Millet Dumplings with Sweet Red Bean Paste Topping

I'm not sure if I can call this a recipe.... I just pour my homemade Anko over Kibidango, It was great!


Please check my other posts for Japanese Desserts also! If you have a chance to try out any of the recipes, please let me know how you liked it.

Oshiruko with Kibidango - Sweet Red Bean Soup with Millet Dumplings

Traditionally, Oshiruko is made with Mochi or Shiratama (both of them are rice cakes - one made from steamed rice, the other made from sweet rice flour). I just replaced Mochi with my homemade Kibidango (Millet Dumpling).

You will need:

• 1/2 cup Anko (sweet red bean paste)
• 2 cups of water
• 6 Kibidango (Millet Dumplings)

1. Mix Anko and water in a pan and bring them to boil.

2. Stir the mixture till Anko is all desolved. Add Kibidango and simmer for a couple minutes.

You can use more/less Anko to adjust the sweetness to your liking.

Please check out my Mochi recipe! Please check my other posts for Japanese Desserts also! If you have a chance to try out any of the recipes, please let me know how you liked it.