No need to rely on the usual suspects of pumpkin and cinnamon for your fall baking. As China, Vietnam, and Japan bake mooncakes and other specialties packed with flavor for the Mid-Autumn Festival, these outstanding cuisines are inspiring our own autumn baking with everything from matcha to Vietnamese coffee.
Earthy and herbaceous, with a mildly sweet finish, matcha is a powdered ceremonial green tea made only in Japan. In our Battenberg Cake, it pulls double duty as a grassy complement to the almond and apricot notes and as a brilliant, natural dye for the sponge cake.
Coffee has been elevating the flavor of classic chocolate cake for years. The winning pairing continues with this layer cake take on the sweet and strong Vietnamese coffee. Black cocoa cake layers soaked in this strong brew are wrapped in a silky coat of sweetened condensed milk frosting.
Each year, China celebrates the brightest harvest moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival by baking mooncakes. These buttery cakes imprinted with beautiful patterns are exchanged with loved ones as an expression of respect and honor. The Mid-Autumn Festival is also celebrated across Vietnam and Japan, where mooncakes come in diverse fillings and decorations that reflect local cuisines. In the spirit of togetherness, we’re sharing DisplacedHousewife’s chocolate almond mooncake recipe, so you too can bake these for your nearest and dearest this September 24th.
