Banana Flavored Roll 香蕉糕

Glutinous rice balls, mochi, Chinese New Year steamed cakes and boba all have something in common. They are comprised of glutinous flour as the major ingredient. It is what gives them their chewy, gummy texture. Banana rolls are also one of these foods which fit the description. But it has a misleading name (just like bo lo bao/pineapple bao without pineapple). Anyhow, how I have missed this glutinous flour roll! Besides Hong Kong Style Waffle and Chinese Steamed Cake, this is my other favorite childhood snack.

It only has a few major ingredients--water, sugar, glutinous flour, and banana flavoring--but the right ratio is important to bring out the best texture. I have been searching and experimenting a long time for a good recipe. Some make it by steaming raw glutinous flour while others use cooked flour to make the roll without further steaming. The following recipe from another blogger has the best texture with the right ratio of glutinous flour, wheat starch, and tapioca flour and it is super easy to make.

Matcha Ice Cream 綠茶雪糕

Summer seems never end in Southern California. Mid Autumn Festival is over but it still has a few weeks before official Fall (Sept 23) arrives. This Asian flavor matcha ice cream is refreshing and full of green tea flavor. It greatly helps to relieve some summer heat.

Godiva's Chocolate Mooncake 朱古力月餅

The Mid Autumn Festival or August Moon Festival is the second most celebrated holiday in Chinese culture. If you live in an area highly populated with Chinese people, there will be some sort of celebration around this time of the year. This holiday, to the Chinese, is like Thanksgiving to Americans; the first thing that pops up in your head when it is mentioned is, most likely, food.

Custard Moon Cake 奶黃月餅

These exquisite moon cakes are created by innovative bakers from Hong Kong. A box of eight reportedly fetches almost HK$500 (~USD$65-70)!! The cake is filled with moist and rich custard with a nice coconut flavor. The recipe is straight forward but it takes some tricks and a lot of practice to create a nice and distinctive look.

I tried different recipes and finally came up with this one with modifications.

這款近年風靡香港的奶黃月餅，身價越來越貴，據報一盒八個要港幣近五百大元 !!
不過又真是很好食，奶黃餡香滑，加上一杯熱茶，真是一絕。

New Classes 又有新班啦

Custard Moon Cake 酥皮奶皇月餅

Date: 8/23/14

Time: 1pm~3pm

Place: Diamond Ba

In this hands-on class, you will learn how to make this popular and exquisite moon cake at home. No experience required. Moon cake molds and special gift packaging boxes are available for purchase.

Snowy Moon Cake 冰皮月餅

Date: 8/16/14

Time: 1pm~3pm

Place: Diamond Bar

This popular class is back by demand. Learn how to make this simple, easy-to-make and healthy moon cake. Moon cake molds and gift packaging boxes are available for purchase.

Each class is limited to 8 students. Questions and registration: phoebechow@morethanbread.net

Moon Cake Mold 月餅模

This year's Mid Autumn Festival is on Sept 8, less than two months away. In order to make homemade moon cake, either the baked traditional kind or easy-to-make snowy moon cake, you will need an indispensable tool. This plastic moon cake mold is so much easier to use than the traditional wood mold that it makes the whole process a breeze.

Sliver Thread Roll 銀絲卷

"Fun to eat and easy to make" is the best description of this dim sum bao. A variation of mantau, the sliver thread roll is made by cutting the dough into many thin strips and wrapping them together in a bundle. The most common way to enjoy it after breaking open the outer layer is to pull out and eat the threads one by one. Some people like to dip it in condensed milk. I like the deep fried version: the outer layer is crispy while the threads inside are still soft.

I have been searching for a good English translation for the name of this bread: sliced roll, bread roll, etc, but I've given up and am now using my own translation.

For a successful roll, please read the whole recipe and pay attention to the notes below.

Lychee Mousse Cake 茘枝慕斯蛋糕

Oh summer is here...this means there will be plenty of mangoes, peaches, plums, watermelons, and lychee around. Lychee is a tropical fruit that originates in China. Through global trading and local cultivation, many countries around the world can also enjoy this delicious, flavorful fruit.

Lemon Cream Tart 檸檬撻

When pastry chefs develop recipes, there are a few elements that they always have in mind. Being able to incorporate different textures is important in producing a delightful dessert. Furthermore, it would be wonderful if the dessert also has some acidity to balance the sweetness. Therefore this lemon tart truly satisfies all of the above: a creamy, smooth and tangy lemon curd with a sweet and crunchy meringue topping a flaky tart shell. A dessert made in heaven!!

一款美味的甜點，除了甜味之外，如能有不同的質地去提升口感，便能雙得益彰。就以這個檸檬撻為例，甜中帶酸，餡料幼滑，撻皮鬆化，加上脆口的法式蛋白餅，實在是一款絕頂的美點。

Seeded Whole Wheat Bread 全麥種子麵包

Since I started making my own bread a few years ago, I have almost exclusively been using the Tong Zhong method. It gives me consistently soft and fluffy bread that lasts up to four or five days at room temperature. However, I learned this is not the only method for soft, long-lasting bread.

I have been exploring new ways to make bread with a higher percentage of whole wheat. Most breads that are labelled as whole wheat in the market are made with only 30% whole wheat flour while the majority is white bread flour. I think the main reason is not so much the cost but the nature of wheat flour.