Baked Rice Cake with Red Bean Swirl
vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free // makes about 20 servings
When I was little, my parents would bring me to church potlucks. Even though there would always be a banquet table piled with steaming dishes, I only ever wanted to eat one thing: Tsai Shushu’s nian gao (年糕), or baked sticky rice cakes. Tsai Shushu was a cool guy. He also happened to be my piano teacher’s husband. I’ve tweaked his OG recipe only slightly, the most significant edit being my addition of a red bean swirl.
This baked rice cake is the perfect gooey and chewy texture. You know it’s done when it puffs up and develops toasted edges in the oven. It’s not-too-sweet, but oh-so-fragrant, not to mention super easy to make and to share—the perfect contribution to a potluck.
what you need:
1 cup neutral vegetable oil (I use grapeseed)
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
⅛ tsp vanilla extract
2 ½ cups milk (I’ve made this recipe with whole cow’s milk, almond, oat, coconut, and combinations thereof, and they all work beautifully. I highly recommend a blend of coconut and oat)
1 1-lb bag of glutinous rice flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
⅛ tsp salt
¾ cup smooth red bean paste
how to make it:
preheat oven to 375 F. line a 9x13 inch pan with parchment. (the batter is liquidy, so the parchment needs to line the entire bottom and sides of the pan continously or it’ll leak!)
in a bowl, whisk together oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and milk.
into the bowl, sift rice flour, baking powder, and salt. whisk until lump-free.
in a separate bowl, add 1 ¼ cup of the batter you just made and the red bean paste. whisk together until smooth.
into the lined pan, pour in layers: first, half of the plain batter; then, roughly ¾ of the red bean mixture; then, the rest of plain batter. top with remaining red bean mixture and use a knife to create swirls.
bake for 35-40 minutes or until center is set and edges are browned.
when cool enough to handle, cut into squares and enjoy.
tip: rice cakes are best eaten day-of. Store at room temperature for up to two days afterward. if you still have leftovers after that, you’ll want to refrigerate and reheat to serve. 15 seconds in the microwave does the trick, or try grilling on the stovetop to bring back that crispy surface!
