Sweet Potato Jelly (agar)

This is a different way to cook sweet potatoes. It's a refreshing dessert. A perfect finish to an Asian meal, especially after heavy stuff like curry. It's served cold, so it's great for summer too. And you can use up those leftover cooked sweet potatoes. Agar-agar powder can be found in Asian groceries store/market. I prefer making jelly-type desserts using agar rather than gelatin because of the IMHO, better texture. To make an impressive dessert, you can set the jelly in a pretty mold or cut it into cute little shapes using cookie cutters (I usually use metal ones). Adapted from Amy Beh's recipe. Cooking time = chilling time (approximation).

• Ready In: 3 hrs
• Serves: 10

Ingredients

• 200  g sweet potatoes, diced (I use the orange type)
• 200  ml low-fat coconut milk
• 20  g agar-agar, powder
• 100  g sugar
• 750  ml water
• 1  pinch salt
• 2  screwpine leaves, knotted (pandan) or 1⁄2 teaspoon pandan extract

Directions

1. Steam sweet potatoes until soft.
2. Combine the sweet potatoes and coconut milk in a blender.
3. Strain mixture through a fine sieve.
4. Combine agar-agar powder, sugar, water and pandan leaves in a saucepan and bring to a boil until agar-agar dissolves.
5. Stir in pureed sweet potato and coconut mixture and simmer over low heat.
6. Add a pinch of salt and pour the jelly mixture into a wet tray or mold.
7. Leave aside at room temperature to set, then chill well before cutting into desired shapes.