A gentle sweetness perfect for little children
I’m sure many mothers want the everyday snacks their children eat to be just as nutritious as their meals. But we can almost hear you saying you’re busy and don’t have time to make snacks, too. Here, Komiyama Hitomi-san teaches us simple snacks made with amazake just right for such busy moms. Komiyama-san is a fabric accessories and children’s goods designer with a popular column and Instagram featuring her original recipes for children. A mother of a three-year-old herself, Komiyama-san says, “Children love sweet things. That’s why as far as possible I try to make snacks using natural ingredients. Amazake is a real boon when making snacks.” In this issue, she tells us how to make snacks that kids love using amazake.
Snacks should also be easy to make
Dishes featuring sugar-free amazake are a staple of Komiyama-san’s infant food recipe column and the Instagram account where she shares what she feeds her son every day. She has been making dishes with amazake for him since he was an infant, apparently.
“Small children have very delicate palates. Gently sweet, amazake is the perfect ingredient for snacks,” says Komiyama-san. “It is rich in nutrients, so it’s great not just for kids but for grown-ups, too, especially those who are pregnant. I recommend it to my friends who are pregnant right now.”
She says that it is crucial that recipes for everyday snacks be easy to make.
“Mothers are busy every day. So it’s important that they can whip snacks up in no time. I develop recipes by wondering how to make them quick and delicious.”
Shake amazake well before opening.
Komiyama-san’s recipes for everyday snacks using amazake
＜Avocado & Banana Amazake Sorbet and Amazake-Fruit Kanten Jelly＞
◆Avocado & Banana Amazake Sorbet
［Ingredients (Makes 2–3 servings)］
125 ml amazake
1 ripe avocado
1 ripe banana
2 tsp lemon juice
［Method］
【1】Place all ingredients in a freezer bag, seal the bag and mash to a paste using your hands.
【2】Freeze for around 2 hours or until hard.
【3】Transfer to serving dishes.
＊Be sure to use a fully ripe avocado and banana. If the banana is not sweet enough, add a little maple syrup to taste.
＊If you’d like to make an adult version of the recipe at the same time, place the ingredients, along with some fresh mint, into a food processor and blend until smooth. Freeze as directed above to make a cooling sorbet perfect for the summer.
◆Amazake-Fruit Kanten Jelly
［Ingredients (Makes 2–3 servings)］
250 ml amazake
200 ml milk
3 g kanten (agar-agar) powder
Fruit (I used tinned mango and kiwifruit)
［Method］
【1】Place amazake and kanten (agar-agar) powder in a small pot and heat, stirring, until the kanten dissolves just before it comes to the boil.
【2】Remove from the heat and stir in the milk.
【3】Once cool, strain several times to ensure a smooth texture.
【4】Cut the fruit into child-friendly pieces.
【5】Prepare a metal tin or plastic container by swirling water around the edges and pouring it out. This will make it easier to remove the kanten from the mold later.
【6】Place the fruit in the tin or container in an even layer.
【7】Gently pour the kanten mixture over the fruit to avoid forming bubbles.
【8】Refrigerate for 1–2 hours until set.
【9】Slice the kanten into bite-sized pieces then turn out of the mold.
【10】Transfer into serving dishes.
＜Amazake French Toast＞
［Ingredients (makes 2–3 servings)］
50 ml amazake
1 egg
1 thick slice of bread
［Method］
【1】Whisk egg and amazake in a bowl.
【2】Slice bread into 4–6 equal cubes. Soak in the egg mixture.
【3】Pour a little oil (see notes) into a frying pan and place the eggy bread in the pan.
【4】Fry over a low heat until lightly browned on both sides.
【5】Transfer to a serving dish.
＊I recommend using a mild-tasting oil. I used rice-bran oil.
＊Feel free to add sugar or maple syrup to taste for any adults eating at the same time.
＜Yogurt-Amazake Cream and Steamed Bread Trifle＞
［Ingredients (Makes 2–3 servings)］
◆For the Amazake Steamed Bread
80 g plain four
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
2 tsp rice-bran oil (or light sesame oil or other mild-tasting oil)
125 ml amazake
◆For the Amazake-Yogurt Cream
150 g plain yogurt
50 ml amazake
50 ml fresh cream
2 tsp light brown sugar
Fruit (I used peach, cherries, blueberries and kiwifruit)
［Method］
◆To make the Amazake Steamed Bread
【1】Place flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and mix with a whisk or fork .
【2】Add the amazake and stir until smooth and combined. Stir in the rice-bran oil.
【3】Pour the batter into a heat-proof dish (see note), cover with cling film and microwave at 500 W for 4 minutes 30 seconds. Allow to cool.
＊I used a 17 cm-diameter heat-proof dish. The batter filled it to a depth of 2 cm.
◆To make the Amazake-Yogurt Cream
【1】Line a sieve with kitchen paper. Pour in the yogurt and leave to strain for 2 hours to overnight.
【2】In a bowl, mix the strained yogurt and amazake until smooth.
【3】In a separate bowl, beat the cream and sugar with an electric mixer until soft peaks form.
【4】Beat the yogurt mix and the cream with a whisk to make a loose cream.
［To serve］
【1】Cut the fruit into child-friendly pieces. Tear steamed bread into small pieces.
【2】In glasses or bowls, place layers of steamed bread, Amazake- Yogurt Cream and fruit until all the ingredients are used up.
〔We used this amazake〕
『Plus Koji Koji-Amazake LL』
Made only from rice, rice kōji (malted rice) and salt, its mild rice and rice kōji sweetness is the result of rice kōji’s protease activity. Known as a superfood, amazake is rich in nutrients and an appropriate amount of salt, making it great for replenishing fluids in the summer.
See Marukome’s Amazake webpage for recipes for making and using amazake.
