Virtual Sefer Oven Mochi for Japan unit study

This is a dessert that was invented by a Japanese lady who was an English student of mine several years ago. She found herself with a combination of American and Japanese ingredients and an oven to play with! This feeds a crowd, so serve it at a group event unless you know your large adventurous family will eat anything.
Yoko's Oven Mochi
1 box sweet rice flour (white box with star on it, called Mochiko, from an oriental grocery store)
1 can sweet azuki bean paste (called Anko in Japanese but the Chinese version is the same thing)
4 eggs
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
Break eggs into a mixing bowl and beat them. Add sugar, oil, milk, and mix well.
Add sweet rice powder (about 3 cups, if I recall correctly), and baking powder all at once, and beat until smooth or nearly so. A few small lumps won't matter.
Oil a 9" x 12" cake pan and spread the mixture evenly. Dot with sweet bean paste in 1-teaspoon-or-so lumps all over the surface. (You don't have to use the whole can.) Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-50 minutes, until top is golden. Cool before slicing into squares and eating--it'll be VERY hot otherwise, and the flavor is better when cooled.
Variation: substitute shredded cheese for the sweet bean paste.

Sarah