Quick Kueh Muka

Pea flowers in frozen state about to turn to edible blue dye

 

More custard and less rice please!

I have 2 pots of blue peas that flowered continuously for many months and the only way to prevent the plant from depleting itself with new pods was to harvest the flowers everyday. It would be a waste to discard something as lovely as these and the next thing I knew, tubs and tubs of frozen flowers in cold storage has overtaken my freezer.

Since the kid back from London yearns for something nonya, it looks like some kueh is in order. At least I clear the freezer of these flowers and the kid gets her dessert fix.

Note : I prefer the rice base to be soft and slightly mushy. If you prefer the old fashioned steamed rice, soak rice overnight , drain, cut back the pea water to 50ml, combine the components in base and steam the rice until cooked.

Makes 4 mini tubs.

Ingredients :

Blue pea color water :

3 cups of blue pea flower steeped in 2 cups boiling water, drained and cooled

Rice base :

125g glutinous rice

250 ml blue pea water

50 g thick coconut milk

1/4 tsp of sea salt

2 Tbsp sugar

Custard :

4 whole eggs

120ml coconut milk

100ml whole milk

80g fine sugar

4 tsp corn flour

3 tsp plain flour

1 drop pandan paste

Method :

Prepare 4 mini containers, good for steaming.

Rinse rice.

Combine components for rice base.

Bring to a boil, uncovered.

Cook for 20 minutes on very low heat, covered, until rice is cooked soft and almost dry.

Stir.

Leave the  rice to rest for 30 minutes.

Cool completely.

Prepare 4 ramekins.

Spoon 2 spoonfuls of rice to the cups. 

Compact the rice with the base of another ramekin gloved in a plastic bag.

Reserve.

Combine components of custard in a pot.

Cook over medium-low heat, stirring gently with a whisk.

When the whisk makes lines on the custard , pour the custard on the rice base.

Steam on medium heat for another 10 minutes.

Serve cool.