Vegan Bunny Elle

This is a bowl of literal black gold that is not only a decadent sweet treat, but will also nourish your skin, hair, and body from within.

Did you ever notice the concept of dessert is quite different in Eastern and Western cultures? In North America and most European countries, desserts are often indulging and high in carb, fat, and sugar. Not that there’s anything “wrong” with that, I myself love all the classic western desserts don’t get me wrong.

Whereas in China and many other Asian countries, desserts are not only a sweet-tooth satisfying treat but more importantly, they serve as medicinal remedies for our health. Like the iconic snow ear soup beloved by expresses, concubines, and princesses for its collagen-boosting and anti-aging properties.

This sweet black sesame soup is another popular traditional Chinese desserts with medicinal benefits. Black sesame is rich in antioxidants, zinc, iron, and fatty acids, among other nutrients. It can reduce oxidative stress in our liver, promote heart health, help regulate blood pressure, and nourish our skin and hair. And at the same time, it is such a decadent delight! It’s aromatic, velvety smooth, silky, rich, and not too sweet, which believe me is the highest compliment for sweet courses in Chinese culture.

I made this recipe following the authentic traditional method, using whole black sesame seeds and whole-grain sticky rice instead of any pre-processed flour. You can enjoy the soup just as is or add any toppings you prefer, like goji berries, nuts, or these mini mochi aka sticky rice balls for a an addition of chewy bouncy texture.

Black Sesame Soup for Healthy Hair and Skin

Eat your hair care with this decadent, creamy, and velvety smooth sweet treat. This traditional Chinese dessert provides so many medicinal benefits to our body, nourishing our hair and skin from within and takes only two ingredients to make.

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Ingredients Method Video Notes

Ingredients

  

This amount makes two bowls or four cups of soup

• 50 gram whole raw black sesame seed
• 60 gram sticky rice
• 500 ml water
• 4 tablespoon brown sugar or adjust to your taste

For the Mochi

• 1/2 cup glutinous rice flour
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoon monk fruit extract or sugar

Method

 

1. Wash the sticky rice once or twice to remove any dust or dirt, the water does not need to come out completely clear. Then soak the rice in 200 ml of water for at least 4 hours up to overnight, we will be using the water that the rice is soaked in so use drinking water;
2. In a nonstick pan, dry toast the sesame seeds over low heat until you can smell the aroma, stir and flip frequently, this process will take about 5, do not burn them!! Otherwise your soup will be bitter. And do not skip this step, toasting first is the only way to fully release all the amazing aroma;
3. When the sesame is done toasting, let them cool down, then transfer the soaked sticky rice plus the water the rice had been soaking in, sesame seeds, and rest of the water (300ml) to a blender, you can add more or less water depending on your preference of thickness, the amount of water is flexible here;
4. Blend on high speed until smooth, if it looks too grainy, give it a shake and blend again, you’ll achieve better result with a powerful high-speed blender;
5. Pour the blended mixture over a fine-mesh strainer into a nonstick pot, if it’s blended properly, there should be barely any scraps left on the strainer;
6. Add brown sugar or sweetener of choice to the pot, cook over low heat, keep stirring do not step aside at this point! The soup can easily burn at the bottom if not being stirred. you will start to see the mixture thickening, and the color will darken as well, from a gray color to almost black, it’s ready to serve at this point, but if you are add the mochi, then take it off heat, cover and keep the soup warm;
7. To make the mochi, add rice flour and sugar to a bowl, gradually add the water into the dry ingredients while stirring with the other hand;
8. Then knead till a smooth dough forms, the dough should be soft but not sticky, different brands of glutinous rice four has different levels of moisture in them, so if the dough feels too wet, add a touch more flour, if it’s too dry, wet your hands then continue to knead more moisture in;
9. Cover and let the dough rest for 30 minutes;
10. When the dough is rested, roll it into a thin cylinder shape, then cut into bite-size, you can either use a mold or channel your childhood self and shape them with your hands like play dough, let your whimsy run wild here any shape you like!
11. Bring a pot of water to boil, gently drop the mochi inside, cook till they are floating on the surface, strain them out and drop them in an ice water bath to cool down;
12. Serve the black sesame soup warm or cold, it’s good both ways, with tang yuan on top, enjoy!

Video

Notes

1. About the rice, I like sticky rice or sweet rice the best for this soup, but you can also use regular long grain rice.
2. For the amount of water, you can add more depending on your preference consistency of the soup. If the soup is getting too thick while cooking, you can add more hot water to thin it out, just make sure to stir and mix it evenly;
3. Other great ingredients you can add to the soup mix: Chinese red dates, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, goji berries, etc.