"The purpose of our lives is to be happy." -Dalai Lama

Homemade Mochi.

Ever wondered where you could get your carb fix without the guilt? UM homemade mochi is the answer. So what is mochi anyway?

Mochi is a nutritious bake-and-serve rice snack made from whole grain brown rice. It is all-natural... without additives, preservatives or colorings. It's also wheat-free and gluten-free.

 

You can buy mochi already made at Whole Foods in the refrigerator section. It looks like a brown rectangle and comes in multiple flavors. My personal favorite is the raisin & cinnamon mochi. It looks like this:

 

 

Okay, so if you've decided to purchase the mochi, it's super simple to make. You preheat the oven to 450 degree fehrenheit, break the entire block into little pieces, place the pieces on a baking sheet, and bake them for 10 minutes. DONE. They come out warm and fluffy just like a doughy cinnamon roll! Then you can add whatever toppings you'd like. For example, I added honey and non fat cream cheese to mine. UNBELIEVABLE.

BUT, if you'd like to make your mochi from scratch rather than buy it from the store, here's how you do it (raisin & cinnamon flavor):

-1 cup organic sweet brown rice

-1/2 cup water

-pinch sea salt

-1/4 cup raisins

-2 tbsp cinnamon

Bring a pot of water to a boil and then add your sweet rice. Cook it and then let it sit for about 10 minutes. Once it's cooled off, fluff it with a fork and then put the rice and raisins into a blender. Blend it up just until it's fluffy. In another bowl, add the water, blended rice, cinnamon, raisins, and salt. Make sure your hands are washed because you're going to want to knead the mochi with them. Presto! There's your mochi :)