Red Bean Mochi

                                                          Mmmmm... Mochi... Me want.

         And yes, those are chocolate Easter eggs. I swear, I only had 1... OK. Maybe I had a few more. But I definitely have not been sitting on the couch eating handfuls of these for the past 3 days. heh heh...
I blame companies who brainwashed us into thinking that we need chocolate for every occasion.

         So I made some mochi because it's the one thing people around here will eat, willingly. I don't have to take fake remarks about how "it's um... delicious?" But this is actually really good.

         Mochi is sticky rice steamed and pounded into a goopy substance and combined with sugar to make chewy, sweet cakes. They can also be wrapped around fillings. I took a shortcut because I'm too lazy to pound rice even though I could so easily do that, with my hands tied behind my back, and wearing a blindfold. So I used sticky rice flour instead. It was only $0.88 for a bag of the flour.

         Recipe adapted from  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/easy-mochi/

    Makes 8 mochi.
   Ingredients:
1/2 cup sticky rice flour
1/2 cup water
1/8 cup sugar
3 tbsp starch (corn, tapioca, potato)
1/2 cup red bean paste

   Instructions:
1. Divide the red bean paste into 8 equal balls. (1 tbsp each)
2. Mix the sticky rice flour, sugar, and water together in a microwave safe bowl. Make sure there are no lumps.
3. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap leaving a small opening for steam to escape.
4. Microwave the mixture on high for 3-4 minutes. Stir, partially cover, and microwave again for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
5. Scoop the mochi onto a surface dusted with starch and cut the mochi into 8 equal pieces. Stretch each piece thinner and larger but keep it thicker near the center.
6. Place a red bean paste ball into the center of each mochi piece and pinch the ends together to seal in the filling.
7. Dust the finished mochis with more starch and place them into cupcake liners.
8. Place them into a container and place them into the fridge to chill until you serve them.

Enjoy!
- Lori