Butter Mochi

My apologies.  I wanted post this before I got too busy.  I'll do the write up in a little while if I'm able to.  I'll also try to do something with the photo.  Thanks for your patience and understanding.

Butter Mochi

1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups superfine sugar*
1 box (16 ounce) mochiko flour
1 can (12 ounce) evaporated milk + 1/2 cup water
1 can (13.5 ounce) coconut milk
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

**NOTE**

You can use up to 2 1/4 cups sugar without increasing the volume of the liquid ingredients.  It all depends on how sweet you want the mochi to be.

Add one stick unsalted butter to a microwave safe bowl and melt in microwave for 30 seconds.  Add sugar and mix until well combined.  Add vanilla extract, then add eggs, one at a time.  Mix until well incorporated.  Add in mochiko flour and baking powder, and continue to mix.

Combine evaporated milk and water in a separate bowl.  Whisk to blend.  Add to mochiko mixture in 2 parts, mixing well between addtions.  Next add in coconut milk,  whisking until well blended.

Pour mixture into a 9” x 13” pan and bake for one hour at 350F.  Promptly remove from oven, and let cool completely.  To serve, cut into 1“ x 2” bars.

Topped with shredded coconut if desired.

Comments

[milgwimper]

Reid,

Yeah it does test your tolerance for things that go wrong, but I'm happy to say i haven't had many where it wasn't recieved with open arms...the one time i decided to be really good and follow the recipe strictly *shudder* it was a disaster...ahh well.

Yeah my husband is pulling cable again today...fun fun *sigh* But he has to take me to the farmers market first, before we get started on that again. *sigh* Ahh well ^-^ (he made me put in the hot part...hehe well i think he sizzles ;P

Heya Reid I might be going to Hawaii in December for a friends wedding! YAY!

[allysther]

Wow, a mochi recipe just when I am ready to try one. Thank you so much. It looks delicious!

[Cheryl]

haha yes i do believe a good baker/cook never follows a recipe word for word, it's just too rigid sometimes. you've got a really creative streak there jo... your version sounds just as delicious! choc chips even.. yummy.

hmmm the rose syrup mochi i made was using the microwave. i didn't measure at all. haha i just decided to play around and mix the syrup with the flour... and popped it into the oven... it wasn't as soft as i would have wanted it to be.. but oh well, maybe i'll try adding milk next time...

[Reid]

Hi Obachan,

You're welcome. If you do try it, please let me know how it was for you.

Hi Milgwimper,

Cool. Let me know if/when you're coming and if I'm free we can get together! Hope to see you!

Hi Allysther,

Welcome to my blog!

I hope you like it. If you do make this, let me know how it works out for you.

Hi Cheryl,

I think maybe I'll try it with the rose syrup as well. It sounds like it might be nice. =)

[Jo Rutherford]

I have rose water, but not syrup. I'm kinda tempted to try it with the water, still use the other liquids then top it with pistachios. That would give it a "MidEastern" twist. I was also thinking about the exact same recipe but melting about a cup of chocolate with the butter...

[Samantha]

Hey Reid,

I made this yesterday and it is SO yummy! I gave a few pieces to my friend at work (who is from Hawaii) and she said it made her homesick. Aw! I'm wondering if mine should have been baked for a little longer, to make it chewier... though I do like it the way it came out. It's basically like a firm custard with such a delicate coconut vanilla flavor. What else can use the Mochiko flour for?

Hope you had a nice weekend!

[Reid]

Hi Jo,

Go for it and let me know how it turns out! =)

Hi Samantha,

Thanks for reporting back on how this worked out for you. I'm glad you, and your friend, both enjoyed this. You can also use mochi rice flour to coat chicken before deep frying. It will give it a slightly sweet flavor with a nice crunchiness.

BTW...you should bake this until it's firm, with crispy bits around the edges. Mmmm!

[Samantha]

Yum, fried chicken... that's a great idea. And I do think I needed to bake mine for a little longer... it could be crispier around the edges. Mind you, that didn't stop me from having a piece for breakfast. :)

[Jo Rutherford]

Hey Samantha, try the broiler trick for a crispy top. Be careful though, mine was perfect at 2 minutes and I left the oven door cracked open.

[Samantha]

Thanks Jo... I did try the broiler for a quick few seconds, which browned the top a bit. The mochi is a big hit at my office, so I know I'll make more soon. :)

[Jo Rutherford]

I took mine to church. They are not exactly in to Asian cuisine nor are they known for adventuresome culinary excursions. Sweet & Sour Pork and Almond Chicken are their idea of a wild time out. =o) Still, I got a chance to expand their horizons a bit and the ones that were willing to try it all commented that it was surprisingly good. I was rather interested in the fact that they commented positively on it being "not to sweet". These folks are sugar hounds and coming up with something they like that is not loaded with sugar is a big plus in my book!

[Reid]

Hi Samantha,

I like it crispy at the edges too. I never thought of the broiler trick....Hmmm.

Hi Jo,

Thanks for the tip. =)

I'm glad your friends at church tried this and almost liked it. =)

BTW...that's why I like this recipe -- because it's not too sweet.

[Jo Rutherford]

Nearly everyone in my church is diabetic thanks to horrible diets. Half again have kidney complications for the same reason. Finding special treats that are good for them is a challenge and a gift!

[Jo Rutherford]

Boy, did I ever do a mental 180! I just pulled a pan out of the oven. I dreamed of a sort of "Pina Colada" flavor mochi.

1. I substituted Mike's "Take Control" for the butter, 2 cups sugar, & zest of 1 lemon. Nuked it all together for 1min 30 sec.

2. Used juice of 1 lemon & enough pineapple juice to equal 12 oz. instead of evaporated milk.

3. Used 4 oz. 2% milk instead of water.

4. Added chopped pineapple slices (squeezed most of juice out of slices before chopping).

I also left it baking for 1 hr 10 minutes and allowed it to broil for 2 minutes for the extra brown on top. I haven't tasted it yet but it smells heavenly.

I'm still playing around with the idea of the chocolate butter mochi. I really want to incorporate cherries into it and while looking for the pineapple today I came across of jar of brandied cherries. I have the most surprising things in my pantry!

I'll post about the flavor of todays "Mochi Foray" later... =o)

[Jo Rutherford]

OH YUMMO! Yep, this is good stuff. The combination of flavors is very well suited to the lovely texture of this confection. The lemon and pineapple flavors melded beautifully with the toasty coconut topping. The extra 10 minute baking time plus the broiling made certain that there is a thick crusty ridge all the way around. Yea, Mike & I will be fighting over that ridge too!

[Reid]

Hi Jo,

I'm glad you're having fun with this. I like your experimental ideas, although I'm too much of a traditionalist in the kitchen.

I shall now crown you "Miss Butter Mochi and Baklava 2005"! =)

[Jo Rutherford]

::struts about kitchen in house dress waving black egg flippin spatula in a "Royal Scepter" fashion hopeing an imaginary servant will appear and clean the floor::

[Annette Pelletier]

On our last trip to Hawaii, my kids fell in love with butter mochi. We bought it at the local KTA market in Hilo. It had a fruit swirl in it. I can't find any recipes that tell me what the fruit ingredients are. Does anyone here know?

[Reid]

Hi Annette,

Welcome to my blog.

Unfortunately, I have no idea what kind of fruit they would have used in the mochi at KTA as I've never tried it. My apologies. You may want to check out some of the other forums such as e-Gullet or AlohaWorld Ohana Lanai, they seem to reach a large audience that may be able to help you.

[from Hawaii in the mainland]

did a search and your recipe came up numba one!
thanks for bringing a familiar flavor back into my life. it's a great recipe and easy to follow. da bugga was ono! :P It seriously made me happy.

[Kale Recaido]

Does this recipe really not need salt?

[Guan-Wen]

I made this twice so far and I realized how important the sugar was because the first time I put 1 3/4 cups sugar in between the 1 1/2 and 2 1/4 amount but it turned out not so sweet and I also used regular butter instead of unsalted which may have been a bit of a taste factor although my first result was not bad I felt it could have improved, on the 2nd try I used unsalted butter which was quite the cost and 2 1/4 cups sugar but I wanted it higher so I used a square pan 9 x 9 instead but I took it out too early so I put it back in but for too long and the bottom got hard nonetheless since I had made it I took it to church and everyone ate it. Thx for the great recipe and I was wondering how much difference does regular butter with about 105 mg of sodium compared to unsalted make, and is there a big difference between medium and large eggs? I used 5 medium eggs the first time and 4 large the 2nd

[Amelia]

Mine came out really cake-like (spongey) instead of glutinous. Could this have been the result of one or more of the following replacements I made: 1) "sweetened condensed milk" instead of evaporated milk, 2) Blue Bonnet (margarine?) instead of butter, 3) 2 cups granulated sugar instead of 1.5 "superfine" sugar? Also, I used a hand blender instead of "whisking" - could that have made a difference? Argh... I'm such a terrible baker!

[Clarissa]

I hope you don't mind a late comment, but I just made this for a New Year's Eve party. A Hawaiian classmate brought it to my Japanese class a year or two ago and its delightful juxtaposition of ingredients had me wanting to try it again. It came out just as I remembered it, and it was a hit at the party! Thanks very much for posting it.

[Candace Pfau]

This reminds me of a Puerto Rican dessert I made called Templeque. It uses coconut milk and is kind of like flan.
http://www.ricanrecipes.com/recipes/detail.php?category_id=10&id=34

http://www.flickr.com/photos/66013135@N00/771215223/