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 Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:09 pm
A sweet rice ball similar to mochi; rice covered with sweet beans and sesame seeds. Typically served during autumn.
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Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:13 pm
Ingredients & Preparation I n g r e d i e n t s
For the mochi part:
* 1 cup regular white uruchimai or Japanese rice (the kind used for sushi and so on)
* 2 cups white mochimai or sweet rice
* About 2 cups of water (or the amount indicated for your rice cooker)
The tsuban:
* 1 batch of tsubuan
The kurogoma or black sesame coating:
* 3-4 Tbs. black sesame seeds
* 1 Tbs. superfine white sugar
* pinch of salt
The kinako coating:
* 2-3 Tbs. kinako (available at Japanese groceries and some healthfood stores)
* 1 Tbs. superfine white sugar
* pinch of salt
* Extra water for forming the dumplings
Equipment needed:
* rice cooker (you can cook the rice in a pot, but a rice cooker is much easier)
* plastic wrap / cling film (however you call it in your neck of the woods)
P r e p a r a t i o n
The day before, wash the rice well, and wash and sort the azuki beans. Soak the azuki beans and the rice (separately) in enough water to cover, overnight or at least 8 hours. Drain well.
Make the tsubuan following these directions:
Cook the rice in a rice cooker in the normal way, with the indicated amount of water for 3 cups of regular rice.
In the meantime, toast the sesame seeds in a small frying pan until the seeds begin to pop. Remove from the pan into another bowl and mix well with the sugar and salt.
Mix together the kinako and the sugar and salt in another bowl.
While the rice is still warm not not burning hot anymore, put it in a large ziplock plastic bag. Close the zip, pushing out as much air as possible. Pound the rice and squeeze it and knead it until it’s sort of half-crushed (it’s mostly paste but you can still see some rice grains in there). This state is called hantsuki, or half-beaten, mochi. Let cool a bit in the bag.
Divide the mochi into 24 or so equal pieces.
To make the kinako-coated dumpling: flatten a piece of mochi on a sheet of plastic wrap, trying to make the edges a bit thinner than the middle, with moistened fingers. Put a teaspoonful or so of tsubuan in the middle. Carefully gather up the mochi around the filling (just like you’d do with onigiri) to form a sort of oval-shaped ball, completely enclosing the tsubuan filling. (This oval shape is called tawara-gata, or rice bale shape.) Roll the dumpling well in the kinako-mix. You may need to roll it 2 or 3 times since the kinako tends to sink in to the rice.
Make the sesame coated dumplings in the same way. To make the sesame stick better you may need to lightly moisten the surface of the dumpling.
To make the tsubuan-coated dumplings, make a small oval-shaped ball with the mochi. Spread some tsubuan on a piece of plastic wrap, and gather up the plastic to make a ball. If the dumpling looks funny you can adjust it a bit after unwrapping it from the plastic wrap.
Serve with green tea, preferably while gazing at some beautiful spring (or fall) scenery.
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Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:54 pm
Ohagi: the GoGo Name: Ohagi
Nickname: Oh
Caretaker: Hidaka Kakeru
Type: Dezaato
Hair Color: White
Hair Style: [x]
Eye Color: Cordovan (#893F45)
Style: Japanese punk & gothic lolita; H.Naoto styled clothing
Personality: Ohagi has an impish personality. She is outspoken, opinionated and brutally honest. If you don't like what she has to say, then get over it; the truth hurts, but someone has to say it. Ohagi isn't one to patronize others so they feel better. Whenever she might fall or make a mistake, she just picks herself up and keeps right on going. As far as what she is passionate about, Oha loves music, art and fashion, especially in the street scene.
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Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 8:40 pm
Kakeru: the Caretaker  Name: Hidaka Kakeru
Nickname: K
Age: 21
Birthday: November 5th
Height: 6'0
Weight: Undisclosed; Kakeru doesn't want you to know.
Hair Color: Black with streaked with fire engine red
Eye Color: Naturally brown, but he wears colored contacts (one an icy blue, the other an eerie gold)
Hair Style: [ 2nd on the right ]
Clothing Style: J-rocker; H.Naoto styled clothing
Occupation: Musician
Likes: Rock music, bright colored hair dye, colored contacts, art, dark poetry, and horror movies
Dislikes: Pop music, overly hyper people, his natural eye color, uniformity, chick flicks, emo kids, and his family
Hobbies: Playing, writing & listening to music, going to concerts, hanging out with friends, drawing & painting, and watching movies
Personality: In school, Kakeru was definitely the cool kid. Everyone there liked him, and he was quite popular. Despite all of that, he kept close to a tight-knit group of personal friends. A large number of aquaintances isn't his thing. K works hard in everything that he does, having come from a rougher background. He has a job at a local music store, and pays for basically all of his things on his own. He keeps his personal life to himself, but if he trusts you enough, you'll learn more about him. He's generally friendly to other people, and he has an air of coolness about him when talking to others. It should be noted that if K finds you annoying, he won't talk to you. It's nothing personal, he just doesn't have the time to put up with your crap.
History: Kakeru was born into a lower class family, the only child of Hidaka Tomohisa and his wife, Reika. His childhood was a rough one. Growing up, his father worked odd jobs while his mother stayed at home, supposedly taking care of him. Money was something of which there was never enough, and food was scarce. This often led to long fights between his parents.
Finally, at age nine, his parents got a divorce, and he was taken into his father's custody. Kakeru's long road didn't end there. The divorce caused a strain on the relationship between him and his dad, which eventually led to long years of abuse.
Kakeru kept his home life to himself, however, going about school like normal as if nothing were going on. No one ever really seemed to pick up on it. During his first few years of high school, K managed to snag a job at a local music shop. This enabled him to become independant when it came to buying his own things - after all, he wouldn't have to ask his father for much anymore.
It was only after high school that he managed to get away. Now Kakeru lives by himself in his own apartment above the music shop. He works every day during the week, and when he gets off, practices with his band or ends up going to concerts. His biggest dream is to become a famous rock star, and hopefully all of his work and effort will finally pay off one of these days.
RP Color: Venetian Red (#C80815)
Font Size: 11
Kakeru Art © The Falen
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Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:40 pm
The Funds Preferred Chef: x___Doctor Ruri
Payment: Unknown
Q u e s t S t a t u s
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