Nian Gao - Chinese New Years Cake

February is quickly becoming the month of dessert. And why not? It's a month for love, a month for warmth, and being the heart of winter, and between the cold temperatures and short days, it's a month wherein we need things to look forward to. 

Therefore, before the month is out, I will have brought you practical a weeks worth of sugary confections, baked goods, and pastries. For what's probably the calendar's most despised month, February is surprisingly full of holidays. From Valentines Day to the Chinese New Year, from Presidents' Day, to well, my birthday, there's a lot to celebrate. So pull up your chair, loosen your belts, because February going to be filled with a month of carbs you'll love to eat, bake, and share. 

...I think March might be a month of salads. 

Until then, though, let's talk cake. 

It's been years since I've really traveled anywhere, and I thank my gluten free stars I had the good fortune to go to Japan when I did. At 16, I was still young enough have the experience of being immersed in a culture so different than my own leave a lasting  impression on my global understanding, my sense of history, and my palate. 

 

Without my trip to Asia, I imagine I would never have be bold enough to try adzuki bean paste, be familiar with the sweet and utterly tart flavors of lychee and umibushi, respectively, or know the spongy joy of glutenous rice flour. And so, when I was invited to a Chinese New Years potluck party a mere 20 hours before I was expected to arrive, I was certainly glad to know my way around an Asian dessert. 

Not that I'm insinuating Chinese and Japanese desserts are the same - though their cultures share a long history of cross pollination - but having a little knowledge of one certainly helped in the creation of the other. 

Nian Gao is a Chinese dessert eaten in greatest quantities around the new year because (as wikipedia tells me) when written in chinese characters, "nian gao" is homonym for "every year higher and higher". I admit it freely, I'm a sucker for symbolic food.  In any event, this not too sweet cake is made either plain or with adzuki bean paste. As an updated, cross cultural variation, I filled mine with dates and added a little vanilla, but I imagine it would be lovely with an addition of orange zest, almond extract, and / or substituting part of the milk with coconut milk. 

Delicious, simple, and naturally gluten free. What a wonderful way to ring in any New Year. 

(Baked) Nian Gao with Dates

A note, this cake is typically steamed, but not being so savvy with my Chinese cooking, I choose to prepare a baked version of the cake, but was told it had the look and consistency of the real thing. However authentic, or inauthentic, this cake is quite delicious. Recipe adapted from chinatownconnection.com

16 oz of Sweet Rice Flour (I used Mochiko - you can get it at any local Asian food store) 

7 -8 Tablespoons of butter, melted (or 3/4 cup vegetable oil)

3 eggs

2 1/2 cups of skim milk (or whole milk, or coconut milk)

1 Tablespoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of vanilla 

11 - 13 shredded dates 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 13x9 inch pan and set it aside. 

Mix everything but the dates in a bowl. Beat with an electric mixer, first at medium speed for 2 minutes, then on high for two minutes. Pour half of the batter into the pan, cover the mixture with an even layer of the shredded dates, and then pour the rest of the mixture over the top. 

Bake for 45 - 50 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool, cut into squares, and have a happy, lucky, new year. 

Sun Luck Garden Is Back!!

I don't remember when I first went to Sun Luck Garden, but I do remember being quite little the first time I had Sizzling Rice Soup. A sumptuous vegetable broth laden with crisp veggies was set alive before my young eyes as crisped rice was added to the soup, sizzling away, more exciting than any Snap, Crackle, or Pop. At twenty-two, the thrill hasn't warn off. 

Sun Luck Garden is one of Cleveland's favorite restaurants. Winning several awards, it's a long standing neighborhood staple with loyal clientele. Now, you can probably guess the story before I say it: I didn't think I could eat there, then, lo and behold! Sun Luck Garden is gluten free friendly! There's a formula to these stories, I suppose. 

But the piece you weren't counting on is Annie Chui. Endeavoring to refine an already peerless menu, Annie makes routine trips back East, getting new ideas for her dishes and desserts. Owner, chef, and all around amazing restaurateur, Annie is such a Cleveland staple that when she underwent emergency heart surgery this summer, a community of friends held a fundraising event in her honor. You can view pictures of the party or continue to donate to her at friendsofannie.com. During this time, Sun Luck Garden was closed. But thankfully for all of us, Annie is better and Sun Luck has reopened it's doors. 

Annie knows her customers. She values them like friends, and knows them by name, or in my case, food allergy. When I walk in, I'm always greeted with "You! I know I have some things for you. No dark tofu!" (The dark tofu is Annie's creation and is mixed with soy sauce, so it very much not for me.) 

Annie knows what gluten is. And she knows how to tell you to avoid it. 

Lucky for me, the Sizzling Rice Soup was, is, and hopefully will forever be gluten free. For dinner, my mom and I split the Mai Fun: angel hair like rice noodles with thinly cut mushrooms, sugar snap peas, carrots, bean sprouts, and heavy with white, safe, tofu. 

You can't - or at least, we can't, and you shouldn't - go to Sun Luck Garden without getting some of Annie's homemade sorbet. Made simply of ice and fresh fruit, it's a perfect, light ending to any meal and it's some of the best sorbet I've ever had. She routinely offers flavors like grapefruit, raspberry, and mango; though for my money, you can't beat the blueberry, even if it does turn your tongue and teeth blue - in fact, that the multicolored mouth might be part of the fun. 

I'll be honest. Sun Luck Garden was, in part, an inspiration for my blog. After my diagnosis, I figured Chinese food was all but lost to me, unless I made it at home. Thus, being able to share a normal meal out with my family - at a place they actually enjoyed - was really exciting. Annie made sure to stress that my gluten issues were not a problem for her and by the end of the meal I couldn't help but wonder why isn't there a way to connect this great restaurant and giving woman with the rest of the Cleveland Celiac community? 

Well, now hopefully there is. Thanks Annie. I'll be back soon. 

Gluten Free Chinese Food Exists! Pearl of the Orient in Shaker Heights

Through various channels (one of the Ohio celiac webpages for one, and a friend of my mother's eavesdropping on neighboring diners for two), I'd come to learn that long time neighborhood Chinese food standard Pearl of the Orient had gluten free options. That ubiquitous term could've meant anything. Would they offer me steamed veggies and rice without any sauce? Did they have one sauce that they'd pour over everything, which yes, would make it gluten free Chinese, but really would offer me one blander than bland option? Would I get lucky and have two choices - rice and vegetables or rice noodles and vegetables? 

Such are the pessimistic wonders  of a celiac going for dinner. Like beer, cupcakes, or freshly baked bread, Chinese food is lost to us. This is due to the fact that most soy sauces contain wheat, thus making an otherwise wonderland of gluten free possibilities completely poisonous. Sad but true, Chinese food is not for the gluten free amongst you. Most of the time, that is, because I have nine words for you: Pearl of the Orient has gluten free soy sauce. 

Wholly moly. As the manager explained to me, "the whole menu is open to you. ...well, I'd advise against the egg rolls." They are willing to adjust any of their sauces, making them personalized and fresh for you, with their gluten free soy sauce packets. That's right, free from cross contamination packets. Being able to eat practically anything on the menu? Yeah, I could live without the egg rolls. 

With four of five pages of options, the menu is pretty extensive. Frankly I was overwhelmed by the choices. We settled on vegetable-tofu soup for 2 (made vegetarian by a water-based broth!) and I, being so unable to choose, ended up with the Vegetarians' Delight with tofu - sauteed vegetables and tofu in a white wine sauce. Okay, maybe I wasn't so adventurous but it was my first time out of the gluten free gate here, cut me some slack. 

Both dishes were beautifully presented and perfectly yummy. Crunchy sugar snap peas, crisp carrots, golden firm tofu. I'd say I'd be going back for more, but that would be a lie. How could I could get the same old same old in the face of options like Szechuan Eggplant, String Beans in Garlic Sauce, Vegetable Soup Noodles, Pad Thai, Steamed Buddha's Dream, or Vegetables in Peanut Sauce? And for the non-vegetarian, the options open up ten fold. At Pearl of the Orient, they're even willing to serve the breaded chicken dishes un-breaded at the diner's request. 

As we left, we talked for a moment with the manager who mentioned Pearl can do their catering gluten free, too. It's enough to make you start planning your Chinese New Year party in September. Pearl of the Orient is an excellent find and while I'm looking forward to the opportunity to go back and try something new, I'm really looking forward to those left overs in my fridge....