Nian Gao is a sticky, glutinous cake that is filled with red bean paste. To make it more cupcake-like, I frosted the cupcakes with a red bean buttercream frosting.
1poundglutinous rice flourI found this at an international supermarket. The flour came in a 1 lb bag, which made it easy.
2 1/2cupsmilk
3large eggs
1cupvegetable oil
3/4cupbrown sugar
3/4cupgranulated sugar
1/2cupred bean pasteI also found this at an international supermarket. They were out of the can, though, so I bought a bag of it from the refrigerated section. The clerk told me that it was the Japanese version of red bean paste, but that it would work just as well.
Fill cupcake liners 1/3 full. (As noted above, I would recommend silicone liners or paper liners sprayed with a non-stick spray.)
Bake at 350 F for 8-10 minutes or until just set.
Remove pan from the oven and put spoonfuls of red bean paste all over the baked batter. This doesn't need to look pretty, as you'll see when you get to my step-by-step photos below.
Pour the remaining batter on top of the red bean paste, filling cupcake liners to the very top.
Bake for another 20-25 minutes or until top bounces back when touched.
Notes
Follow the step-by-step photos and find my original Red Bean Buttercream Frosting recipe in this post.