Mochi Ice Cream #JapaneseSweets

Mochi Ice Cream

Japanese Mochi Ice Cream – a treat for all ages – is appearing in Southern California supermarkets. Just in case you have yet to discover the delights of mochi; it is a pounded sticky rice. During Japanese the New Year season, mochi is baked in squares (or rounds) with a bit of soy sauce and wrapped in seaweed. Mochi is also put into a hot red bean soup which is the ultimate winter treat. But in summertime the ultimate Japanese treat is Mochi Ice Cream.

By the way of a fabulous Irish professional baker, Gemma Stafford who now lives in Santa Monica, CA, the Ninja Baker can bring you the joys of Japanese Mochi Ice Cream. The following recipe is adapted from Gemma’s Bigger Bolder Baking.

Ingredients
• 1 ½ cups (8oz/225g) strawberry ice cream
• 1 cup (5½oz/160g) sweet glutinous rice flour
• 1/4 cup (2oz/57g) granulated sugar
• 1 cup (8oz/225ml) water
• Pink food coloring
• Cornstarch for dusting

Instructions
1. Line a small tray with parchment paper.
2. With a small ice cream scoop or spoon, scoop out twelve 2 tablespoon-sized scoops of ice cream (about .75oz /20g) onto the prepared and place in the freezer.
3. Whisk together the sweet rice flour, sugar, water, and pink coloring. In a large microwave-safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave for one minute.
4. Stir the mixture; cover again with plastic wrap. Microwave for another minute.
5. Dip a rubber spatula in water and stir the mixture again.  (Avoid the whisk this time as the contents of the bowl will be super sticky.)
6. Microwave the stirred mixture for another 30 seconds – with the plastic wrap covering the bowl. It will now be a sticky dough.
7. Place a large parchment paper on a sturdy baking sheet. Sprinkle cornstarch generously onto the paper.
8. With a wet spatula, scrape the dough onto the cornstarch covered sheet and dust the top of the dough with more cornstarch.
9. Roll the dough into a rectangle no less than 1/4 inch thick (about 12x14inches/30x35cm). Keep dusting the dough and the roller with cornstarch.
10. Once the dough is rolled out to about 12 x 14 inches, place in the refrigerator to set for 30 minutes.
11. Once the dough is firm, with a biscuit cutter 3 ¾ inch (9½ cm) create circles of dough. 
12. Brush off the excess cornstarch from both sides.
13. Working quickly, take one scoop of ice cream, place in the center of the circle flat side facing you. Press the edges of the dough together around the ice cream ball, squeezing to seal.
14. Wrap the mochi ice cream balls in plastic wrap (seam side down) in the freezer to set. Allow mochi to freeze totally for a minimum of 2 hours in the freezer.
15. When ready to eat, remove from the freezer and let sit for a few minutes to let soften.