Eric Snow joined the Hilton Hawaiian Village as pastry chef in May, and soon after his staff gave him his first taste of butter mochi. “It was gooey, squishy and the inside was dense and creamy,” he says. “I was hooked.”

Snow, who grew up in Alaska, is a veteran of the French kitchens of chefs Daniel Boulud and Alain Ducasse. He was the first American pastry chef to work in Ducasse’s New York kitchen, following two years at the French restaurant Joel in Atlanta.

Snow’s first experience with butter mochi inspired this recipe for pumpkin mochi, easily made with canned pumpkin puree and sweetened condensed milk.

The Hilton sent it along as a suggestion for a holiday dessert.

PUMPKIN MOCHI

Courtesy Hilton Hawaiian Village

• 2-1/2 cups mochiko (glutinous rice flour)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 (29-ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.

Sift mochiko, baking powder and sugar into a large bowl.

In a separate bowl mix together eggs, pumpkin, condensed milk, butter and vanilla. Stir egg mixture into mochiko mixture. Pour into prepared baking dish. Bake 1 hour. Let cool before serving.

Nutritional information unavailable.