Water Chestnut Cake 马蹄糕

Water Chestnut Cake (马蹄糕) is a sweet, springy cake made from water chestnut, and a Fuzhou News Net (福州新闻网) food feature counts it among the traditional snacks of Fuzhou (福州). In Fuzhou the water chestnut is called weili (尾梨), so the cake also goes by the name weili gao (尾梨糕).

Flavour and texture

The Fuzhou feature describes the cake as sweet and fragrant, springy and smooth, with small pieces of water chestnut in it. Compared with New Year rice cake (年糕) or mala cake (马拉糕), it tastes lighter and more delicately sweet, and it does not harden as it cools. A spell in the refrigerator makes it chewier, and the feature pairs it with a cup of plain tea.

Ingredients

Chinese Wikipedia, which describes the cake as a traditional pastry popular in Hong Kong, says it is made from water chestnut flour, that is, water chestnut ground to a powder, with water chestnut, rock sugar, cornflour and water as its ingredients. In that account it is usually a translucent golden block studded with white pieces of water chestnut. The same article notes that it is best eaten chilled, or pan-fried from cold until golden and eaten hot.