Pan Fried Chinese Pumpkin Cake with White Sesame 香煎芝麻南瓜饼

Inspired by tasty soups from Souper Sundays, a weekly blogging event hosted by Deb in Hawaii,  I bought a piece of butternut last week and intended to prepare a bowl of creamy pumpkin soup for my family.  One week has passed, the butternut still quietly lying in my fridge. Maybe we are really not a  "soup" family?  Nobody seems bothered to check with me about the soup.

 

 

Before the butternut started to rot, I decided to make my favorite Chinese pumpkin cake instead. I tasted pan-fried pumpkin cake for the first time during a trip to Shanghai few years ago. These small cakes were served as a dessert in a Chinese restaurant. They were orange in color, soft, chewy on the inside, and crispy on the outside. So delicious! 

 

I searched for the recipe immediately after the trip,  and found a good simple one. Made a few times at home, they are as nice as the ones I had at the restaurant.  If you like pumpkin and dish made with glutinous rice flour, this is a sweet treat that you don't want to miss!

 

 

 

 

CHINESE PUMPKIN CAKE WITH SESAME

(Recipe adapted here)

 

Ingredients

• 600g butternut, steamed and smashed (from ~900g raw butternut)
• 300g glutinous rice flour
• 50g custard powder
• 80g icing sugar
• vegetable oil (for pan fry)
• white sesame (for coating)

 

Directions

1. In a medium bowl,  place smashed butternut , custard powder, icing sugar and mix to combine. 
2. Add glutinous rice flour,  in two batches,  knead after each addition until the mixture is non- sticky and a soft dough is formed. No water is needed.
3. Divide the dough into 20 portions and shape into balls.  Coat evenly with white sesame. Flatten slightly with your palm.
4. Heat up a non-stick frying pan with some oil over low-to-medium heat. Cook, in batches, for 2-3 minutes each side, or until golden brown. 
5. Transfer onto a serving plate lined with kitchen tissue. Serve warm.

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