Butter Mochi

Butter Mochi - made June 29, 2013 from Miss Mochi's Adventures

I had a hankering for bibingka one day but I didn't make it myself because my mom always makes it when my niece comes for the weekend to visit.  Except the one time I really wanted some and my niece came over, my mom didn't make it because she thought we would be sick of it.  Um. No.  So that left me hanging and bibingka-less. Now I suppose I could have made it myself since I have my mom's recipe and I've made it before.  But somehow it's never as good as when my mom makes it.  So I thought I would try something similar but different with this recipe I found on pinterest.  The ingredients are similar although not exactly the same and I knew the rice flour would give it a chewy texture like bibingka.

It was just as easy to make as well.  I sprinkled the coconut on top before baking but some of it sank into the batter.  The picture makes it seem like this would have a fluffy, cakey texture but because it uses rice flour instead of wheat flour, it actually isn't cakey but more chewy and dense, similar to mochi if you've ever had it (or gummy bears if you haven't).  To be honest, I couldn't decide if I liked this or not.  On the one hand, it was similar to bibingka and I always like coconut.  But it was way too sweet which wasn't surprising given the amount of sugar in it.  I'm not well-versed enough in working with rice flour or coconut milk to experiment with the effect of cutting back on the sugar but I wish I had. I liked the texture and the coconut but the sweetness was too much, even for me.  I think I need to stick to bibingka after all.

1 stick of butter, melted and cooled (1/2 cup)
1-pound box of mochiko (3 cups, sweet rice flour)
1 12-13oz can of coconut milk
3 cups sugar
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon baking powder
5 eggs
Coconut for top layer, if desired

1. Mix all the ingredients together and pour into 9x13 inch pan sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle with coconut if desired.
2. Bake for 1 hour at 375 degrees F or until toothpick comes out clean. Cut into squares after letting it cool slightly.