By Request Betty Shimabukuro

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Tofu byproduct
makes cookies
soft and chewy

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This request was so odd it was fascinating. Ernelle Leong is looking for a recipe for cookies made with okara, or soy bean meal. She had the cookies at Vim and Vigor, which no longer sells them and doesn't give out recipes anyway, but two versions turned up the Internet at a site called www.recipecottage.com.

Okara is a leftover product of tofu-making, mealy and sawdust-like. But it has lots of nutritional value -- protein, calcium and fiber -- and because it's cheap, okara is used in a number of traditional Japan dishes and as a filler in meat patties.

Baking with okara is relatively new territory, but not entirely uncharted.

"I found the cookies delightful and find the main ingredient very interesting," Leong wrote. "I only know how to cook it with veggies and would like to use it in other nourishing ways."

For these recipes you'll need plain okara, sold in bags at Japanese markets such as Daiei. Another version of okara is sold in tubs and includes bits of vegetables and seasonings.

The okara works as a substitute for part of the flour. It seems to mellow the whole wheat flour, making cookies that are quite soft and chewy.

The almond cookie is only slightly reminiscent of a Chinese almond cookie, with a strong almond taste but none of the light flakiness of the Chinese version. It's probably not sweet enough for kids.

The oatmeal cookie has been adapted to make it more moist and fruity. It turns out more like an oat cake, similar to those so popular in coffee bars.

Okara Oatmeal Cookies

1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup okara
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1-1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup dried fruits (raisins, cranberries, chopped dates, etc.)
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine oil, honey, sugar and vanilla. Stir in okara, flour, oats and baking soda. Mixture will be dry. Use hands to fold in fruit and sunflower seeds. Moisten with milk, a little at a time. Dough will be crumbly, but should hold together when formed into a ball.

Roll balls of dough 2 inches across and place on a greased cookie sheet. Flatten to 1/2-inch thickness. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until light brown. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Variation: Carob or chocolate chips may be substituted for some or all of the dried fruit.

Okara Almond Cookies

1/4 cup oil
2/3 cup honey
2 teaspoons almond extract
1 cup okara
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
18 almond halves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine oil, honey and extract. Stir in okara, flour and baking soda. Roll dough into 18 balls and place on greased cookie sheets. Flatten to about 1/2 inch thick. Press almond half into center of each cookie. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until light brown. Makes 18 cookies.

Nutritional information unavailable.

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Send queries along with name and phone number to:
"By Request," Honolulu Star-Bulletin,
500 Ala Moana, No. 7-210, Honolulu 96813.
Or send e-mail to bshimabukuro@starbulletin.com

Asterisk (*) after nutritional analyses in the Body & Soul section indicates calculations by Joannie Dobbs of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.