Monday 5 March 2012

Japanese Steam Cake for Kids

Mushipan Japanese Steamcake



I made these pretty steamed cake with my little helper last week, when she was at home with me.
Its really healthy and kid friendly. As you noticed, I am using both orange and purple sweet potatoes.


Currently, she enjoys all the stirring and mixing. I guess there is something intrinsically satisfying about creating something from scratch. Ying Yue is now very good with mixing all the ingredients. The baking process is really good for children to learn words. We had a good time spelling all the ingredients we use. This little activity complements what they learn in childcare these days, Montessori style, learn when the kids are ready and teach them what they want to know about.


Ingredients

1 egg
2 tablespoon milk
2 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
100 g of japanese steam cake flour

Topping
Steamed sweet potatoes


The best sweet potatoes that you can get are from Okinawan, Japan. These are pictures of those I found just before the Earthquake in Japan. These are very special and only available once a year from Okinawan when the Japanese Fair is on in Singapore. You can either get them from Isetan or Takashimaya. Why are they so special? Its really very sweet and the colour is absolutely brilliant.



I simply love the sweetness and texture of these sweet potatoes. There are other sources of purple sweet potatoes. I have found them from  Cold storage,NTUC Finest from Vietnam, organic shops from Singapore. The orange sweet potatoes can be found from NTUC Finest from Australia.

Colours make a huge difference for children, and somehow they are facinated by it. Ying Yue's favourite colour is purple. 

The smaller sweet potatoes, the less fibrous they are and they can be steamed whole or chopped into pieces.

One authentic Japanese recipe can be found here: http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/cooking/english/20110902.html

I love the sweet potatoes with the skin topping. Its got a rustic feel to it. Maybe I will try that next time.

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