Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Super Easy Uiro Mochi 【ういろう作ってみた】

Yesterday I tried making uirou (ういろう)which is a Japanese traditional sweet, or wagashi (和菓子). Uirou, a specialty of Nagoya, is a mochi-like confection that is firmer than mochi (it holds the shape of its mold better), and has been said to be somewhat similar in texture to konnyaku.

The recipe was ridiculously simple - mix and microwave. It was so simple that I was convinced it would turn out to be a fabulously troublesome monstrosity of goo, but no. It actually did become what I believe it was supposed to become. Boy was I fascinated when I took my wobbly Ditto out from its mold :3

My uirou may be pink but don't be fooled - it's vanilla-ish flavoured. I added pink food colouring on a whim. Here's what my uirou looked like, all cut up and ready to serve ↓


The ingredients I used were as follows:

★ 80g of all-purpose flour (you can also use rice flour)
★ 60g of sugar
★ 250ml of water
★ A pinch of salt
★ 1/2 a tablespoon of a flavouring of your choice (I used vanilla xD)
★ Pink food colouring just for fun.

1. Sift all dry ingredients together in a bowl, then gradually mix in water while whisking. Mix until all lumps are gone.

2. Strain the mixture into a heat-proof container (I used a round Pyrex container). I think it's better to use a square one if you have it. Make sure the liquid sits a few inches away from the top of the container.

3. Cover the top of the container with plastic wrap (leave some parts unwrapped on any two sides of the container) and pop it in the microwave. Mine was cooked in 6 minutes using a 700W microwave.

4. Let sit to cool completely then refrigerate, and you're done! :)

To make these, I took reference from these two recipes:
http://lunulata.tumblr.com/post/54725914806/uiro-an-easy-delicious-japanese-confection-you-can
https://en.cookpad.com/recipe/189420

It's a really simple recipe, and really fun to make and eat. You can try it out with all sorts of flavourings - matcha, strawberry, chocolate, red beans, etc. I wish I had matcha powder on hand! This would have been perfect xD

昨日「ういろう」作ってみました!
意外と作り方は簡単すぎて、上手く出てくるのかなって不安がありました。笑
見た目は微妙ですが味とテクスチャーはよく出てきました(^^)
材料はシンプルで、簡単に電子レンジで作れます!

詳しいレシピはこちらです↓
http://cookpad.com/recipe/189420

作るのは簡単で楽しいんで、みんなさんも作ってみてください♬

アリシア

Now listening: I Swear - All 4 One

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

My Top 7 Songs of the Month

Hi all!

Welcome to the end of March 2014. Time really does fly.

Within this month I've encountered and rediscovered quite a lot of amazing songs, and so I thought I'd list seven (because it's my favourite number) of them here to share with you. So without further ado, here are the songs I have been in love with this past month, in no particular order!

1. Top of the World - Carpenters



I'd never listened to the Carpenters before I heard of this song, but I realized it was somewhat familiar as I listened to it. The modest yet charming intro pulled me in immediately, and Karen's voice had a lovely twang to it that made me enjoy the song even more. I've listened to this so many times, yet I'm still not tired of it. Never had I been so exasperated because a song was only three minutes long.

2. To Zanarkand - Final Fantasy X



Ugh. Beautiful and touching. Why oh why hadn't I discovered this song earlier?

3. Tong Poo (東風) - Yellow Magic Orchestra



That intro. That bass line. That piano. That chorus. Too groovy, and I just had to dance. Absolutely love, love, love it x)

The English name made me laugh for a second, but only that one second. Tong Poo is another one of Ryuichi Sakamoto's compositions. The piano version is the epitome of cool, I highly recommend that you look it up :) I'd never heard anything quite like it - it was its own genre.

*Edit: I had to replace the old video with this new one because the other one got take down due to copyright issues. The sound quality and video aesthetics in this one is not as good, but I hope you still enjoy the song nontheless!


4. Eurodancer - DJ Mangoo



My brother told me about this song one afternoon, and I was hooked by the first listen! Apparently this is what quality techno sounds like.