Changzhou sesame cake

Changzhou sesame cake (Chinese: 常州大麻糕; pinyin: Chángzhōu Dàmágāo)[1] is a type of elliptical, baked cake that originated in Changzhou, Jiangsu supposedly over 150 years ago.

Cakes are formed through several layers of yeast-fermented dough separated by lard that are flattened, stuffed, and baked with a coating of sesame seeds.

Commonly eaten as a breakfast food with congee or as a street snack, they are now often bought prepackaged and given as gifts.

Afterwards, dough is cut, stuffed with a lard shortening, flattened, and rolled into a tight spiral so that many layers of lard and dough are incorporated, thus obtaining the characteristic layered flakiness of the cakes.

The spirals are then filled, rounded into buns, and rolled flat into the characteristic large oval shape.