Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Dorayaki Recipe and Collaboration with Alissa of Connoisseurus Veg



I love food blogs. I think it goes without saying people who blog food love to drool over other people's recipes and photos. This is how I found Alissa's blog Connoisseurus Veg.
I was on Tastespotting one day and clicked on a recipe she had posted. Since then I've been eyeing her recipes like Charlie eyeing Wonka Bars in the candy shop, except I feel less guilty because her recipes are veg and full of wholesome ingredients!
I contacted her immediately and we set off to do a collaboration. Since we're in the fall season, we decided it would be best to use an autumn ingredient. I had seen Persimmons (or Kaki as the Japanese and Germans call it) around the Farmer's Markets and thought it would be perfect!

I always associate Persimmons with Japan because as a kid, my father sometimes brought home dried persimmons which are a well known Japanese snack. I decided to go with that and instead infuse it in the batter of another one of my father's favorite sweets: Dorayaki. Except of course I put an extra spin on it and made it vegan and gluten free.

A few tips on preparing this batter:


-Keep the Dorayaki moist after cooking because the gluten free and vegan batter tends to dry a bit faster. You can either cover them or wrap them individually in plastic wrap.
-The consistency of the batter should be like pancake mix. If it's a bit thick after letting the batter set, mix in a bit more water or vegan milk.
-I find it tastes best slightly warm after making!

The Dorayaki is the perfect amount of sweetness and the persimmon gives it just the right note at the end.

Anko (Sweet Red Bean Filling)
Ingredients
3/4 cup of azuki beans
2 - 2 1/4 cup of water
1/2 cup sugar





Put beans and just enough water to cover the beans in a pot. Bring to a boil and then discard the water to get rid of bitterness. Now measure out new water and pour over the beans and bring to a boil once more. Once boiling, lower the heat, cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. The beans will be soft yet firm. Drain out the excess liquid and put it back in the pot. Add the sugar and stir on medium high heat for about 10-12 minutes until it forms a chunky paste. Transfer to a bowl and let it cool.


 Vegan and Gluten Free Persimmon Dorayaki

Serves 5
Ingredients
1 cup gluten free flour
(I got the flour as a gift but please feel free to use any blend you're comfortable with. A recommendation would be 1/2 cup Sorghum, 1/4 Cup Tapioca, and 1/4 Cup Almond)
1/4 cup raw sugar
2 tablespoons ground flax seed + 6 tablespoons hot water
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 ripe persimmon (medium size) + 1/2 cup water










Put in a bowl the sugar, flour, and baking powder and mix it all together until it's well combined. In a small cup, mix together your ground flax seed and water to make the flax "egg". Set it aside so it has time to become gel-like. Now wash your persimmon and stick it in a blender with the water (you don't need to cut the persimmon if it's ripe enough, however I did it for show). Blend until the mixture is smooth and add it to the dry ingredients. Mix your batter and put it in the fridge for 20 minutes uncovered to rest.

Towards the end of the 20 minutes, heat your stove up to medium low heat. Make sure your pan is well heated before coating it with cooking spray or oil. Then take out your batter and make a pancake about 3 inches in diameter. Cook on one side until bubbles form (about 2-3 minutes) then flip and cook for another 2 minutes. At this point, you can check if the middle is cooked by pushing the center with your spatula and seeing if batter comes out of the sides. If it doesn't, great! If it does, just cover and let it sit for another minute or two. Transfer to a plate to cool and cover with a damp towel.

When all the pancakes are done, set up a sandwiching station. Take one pancake, put enough Anko in the center so there is about 1/2 inch around the edges, place another pancake on top, and press the sides to seal. Do the same for all and you're left with a pretty platter of Dorayaki!




Please also check out Alissa's lovely and savory take on Persimmons! She takes such lovely photos of her food and when she sent me a picture of her dish (an avocado and tempeh salad with persimmon sauce just to give you an idea), I was instantly hungry!

Happy baking and ciao everyone!

1 comment:

  1. Hi Aya! I've been anxiously awaiting this recipe ever since you told me about it - looks and sounds like it turned out fantastic! I can't wait to give it a try :)

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