Making Mochi Cake

Spongy and somewhat gummy, the classic texture of mochi hails from the glutinous, short-grain, sticky rice reserved for delectable desserts and sauces.  This cake is a delightful gluten-free alternative to any homemade chocolate cake. T and I had a slice (shhhhh....don't tell anyone, but I think we each had 3 slices) at a friend's birthday party a few weeks ago and lucky for us we walked away with the recipe.  If you are a fan of the texture of mochi ice cream then I think you will enjoy this cake especially served with a big dollop of your favorite frozen treat!

As most of you know, I love bittersweet chocolate, therefore I had to add a bit more chocolate and of course 70% to the batter, rather than the semisweet.....semisweet works just fine if you only have chips on hand.  Also, you can certainly use fresh whole milk rather than the called for evaporated milk, however the texture will not be as gummy or mochi-like which is what makes this dessert so unique.

Thank you Grace for sharing your recipe!  Grace believes this recipe came from the old Honolulu Star-Bulletin, she recommends using Koda Farms Mochiko Sweet Rice Flour as other sweet rice flours don't seem to yield the proper texture.  My alterations are in parenthesis.  This recipe halves well and bakes up beautifully in a smaller pan, just keep in mind the baking time will shorten drastically if you halve.  For example, I baked a half batch in a 9"-tart pan for 38 minutes.

Grace's Chocolate Mochi Cake
2 cups Mochiko sweet rice flour
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon baking soda
(1/2 teaspoon sea salt)
1/2 cup butter
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks, divided)
2-12-ounce cans of evaporated milk
2 eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
(1/3 cup powdered sugar)

Lightly butter and dust with rice flour a 9"X13" baking pan and set aside.
Sift together the Mochiko flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
Combine the butter and chocolate (if using 2 cups of chips, then use only 1 cup in this step and reserve the rest for later.  If using 1 cup of chips then melt all of the chips with the butter) in a heat-proof bowl and set over a pot of gently simmering water, stir until melted.
In a medium bowl whisk together the milk, eggs and vanilla extract.
Pour the melted chocolate into the milk mixture and stir until well combined.
Mix in the flour blend and stir until smooth.
If using 2 cups of chocolate chips, then fold in the remaining 1 cup of chips at this point.
Pour into the prepped 9"X13" pan.
Bake at 350 F for approximately 55 minutes or until baked through.
Cool to room temperature.
Lightly dust with powdered sugar before serving.