Subtly Sweet Chinese Pastries And Desserts

Growing up in a Chinese-American household, traditional sweets were a rare treat. Desserts usually appeared only on special occasions—during gift-giving holidays like the Mid-Autumn Festival, we’d receive ornate tins of mooncakes filled with smooth lotus paste, and major birthday parties meant sponge cakes infused with custardy durian.

Occasionally, homemade desserts emerged disguised as soups, spooned directly from bowls, such as silky ginger milk pudding with lychee or wobbly grass jelly straight from a can, along with my mother’s sweetened bean tong sui. Yet, these confections lacked the intense sweetness of typical American treats, and fresh fruit often satisfied any sugar cravings.

My favorite indulgences were found at dim-sum brunches in restaurants such as Wonton King in University City, Missouri, or the now-closed China Royal in Hazelwood, Missouri. The dining carts presented a rotating selection of baked and fried treats, perfect for sharing in small portions throughout the meal. Between bites of har gow and siu mai, I would watch each cart, hoping to spot golden sesame balls, shiny egg tarts, or custard buns topped with cookies. Paired with warm chrysanthemum tea sweetened with rock sugar, and shared with family, these brunches became my ideal Sunday ritual.

These early experiences—along with sneaking almond cookies behind the counter at my parents’ St. Louis chop-suey restaurant, La Chong Wah—gradually guided me toward pastry. I moved from experimenting on an Easy-Bake Oven to earning a culinary arts degree at St. Louis Community College-Forest Park. As I studied Western techniques, the subtle qualities of the desserts from my youth became clearer. That is why, at family potlucks, relatives often shy away from overly sweet American desserts, except for one staple that has become my contribution: a simple chiffon cake topped with fresh whipped cream and berries. In many ways, its restrained sweetness is reminiscent of a Chinese-style Swiss roll—a recipe included later in this collection.

At Lona’s Lil Eats in St. Louis, owners Lona Luo and Pierce Powers prepare Chinese comfort foods inspired by hill-tribe traditions from Luo’s upbringing. They, too, value delicately flavored desserts. To complement dishes layered with flavor—mushroom and steak dumplings, spicy eggplant, giant rice-paper rolls filled with marinated meats, and stir-fried vegetables and grains—I developed cookies that balance sweetness with fruit, salt, and spice.

The sweets I create at Lona’s, such as ginger-spiced cookies and buttery pineapple-coconut cookies, are not strictly Chinese, though they are less sugary than typical Western desserts. While my culinary education taught me classic pastry techniques, Asian desserts were rarely covered in formal programs. Through research, cookbooks, and online resources, I’ve since gained a deeper understanding of Chinese pastries, and I hope to introduce fusion-style creations at Lona’s in the future.

Another influence is my aunt Phan, who recreates Chinese and Vietnamese desserts from memory. Her approach emphasizes texture and flavor over sheer sweetness. Using rice-based doughs, she colors pieces with natural powders or sprinkles white sesame seeds, cooking them individually in hot water or oil to craft unique treats.

When I seek inspiration in baking, I often think of the pastries from St. Louis-area Chinese bakeries I visited as a child, many now closed. Wei Hong Bakery & Restaurant in South Grand still serves as a helpful reference. I adapt traditional ingredients like lard, shortening, agar, and custard powder to more accessible alternatives such as butter, oil, gelatin, and dairy. The recipes that follow use items like glutinous rice flour and steaming techniques common in Asian bakery goods.

Much like the cookies baked daily at Lona’s, these desserts are best enjoyed warm—whether as a snack, a sweet finish to a meal, or even for breakfast.