This baked rice cake recipe stands out for its delightful texture, balanced sweetness, and quick preparation, making it an easy alternative to Chinese New Year cake.
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About the dish
Today’s recipe, Baked Rice Cake with Dates, is a delightful alternative to Nian Gao (aka Chinese New Year Cake), a festive delicacy traditionally steamed. After perfecting this baked version through multiple trials, it has become a family favorite whenever we crave something sweet.
Recently, I brought this cake to a charity fund-raising bake sale in London, where it received many compliments for two standout qualities: its pleasingly gooey texture and its “not too sweet” taste. As I mentioned in my post on Almond Cookies, this is high praise for Chinese treats.
The cake’s sweetness partially comes from Chinese dates, which have a natural, honey-like sweetness with hints of caramel and a warm, fruity depth. For the London bake sale, I enhanced the recipe by blending Chinese dates with Medjool dates to reflect the event’s cross-cultural theme. The “Double-Date” flavor was a hit, and I must say, it added an irresistible twist!
Why this recipe
- This cake is vegetarian and gluten-free
- You can customize it with other dried fruits and nuts
- It tastes delicious both warm and at room temperature
Ingredients
Here is a list of ingredients you need for this recipe:
- Glutinous rice flour. It’s ground, extra fine powder of glutinous rice (糯米, aka sticky rice or sweet rice), a popular ingredient commonly found in Chinese sweet treats, such as Tang Yuan, Snow Skin Mooncake, and more.
- Coconut milk. It adds a pleasing fragrance. Regular milk can be used as a substitute.
- Eggs
- Neutral cooking oil, such as sunflower, canola, corn, and vegetable oil.
- Sugar. Both white and brown sugar work well.
- Baking powder
- Dates. A mixture of Chinese dates (aka Jujube or red dates) and Medjool dates creates an outstandingly sweet and fragrant flavor. You can also use either one on its own.
- Toasted sesame seeds (optional)
Note: See the recipe card at the end of the post for quantities.
Cooking procedure
Step 1: Make the batter
Begin by lightly beating eggs in a mixing bowl, then add coconut milk and cooking oil. Mix until all is well incorporated.
Add sugar, glutinous rice flour, and baking powder. Gently stir them into the wet mixture until a thick, smooth, and lump-free batter forms.
Step 2: Add the dates
The next step is to cut the dates into small pieces. I like using scissors for this job, but a knife will work too. Discard all the pits.
Put the chopped dates into the mixing bowl. Stir well to evenly distribute the pieces.
Line a small baking pan with parchment paper, making sure to cover the sides as well. For shooting this recipe, I use a rectangle pan measuring 11” x 7” (28 cm x 18 cm). You may also use a square one measuring 9” x 9” (23 cm x 23 cm) or a round pan with a 10” (25 cm) diameter.
Pour in the batter and level it with a spatula. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds all over the surface.
Step 3: Bake in the oven
Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C), or 300°F (150°C) if it’s fan-assisted.
Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven and bake for about 25 minutes until the top turns slightly brown.
🌟 NOTE: Since ovens vary, check for doneness at 22 minutes by inserting a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean, the cake is done; if not, bake for a few minutes longer.
Step 4: Cool and slice
Transfer the baked cake to a wire rack. Once it’s cool enough to touch, cut it into bars. They taste good both warm and at room temperature.
How to store
Store the leftover rice cake in airtight containers once they are completely cool. It’s fine to keep them on the counter for a day, away from heat sources and direct sunlight.
Otherwise, keep the container in the fridge for up to 5 days (they’re so delicious, I doubt they’ll last that long, though!). Bring the cake back to room temperature before serving, or warm it up in the microwave for 20 seconds at a time.
Other Chinese treats
Looking for more classic Chinese sweet treats? Try these popular recipes:
📋 Recipe card
Love this recipe? Please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating and a comment. Thank you!
Baked Rice Cake with Dates
Video
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- ⅘ cup coconut milk
- ¼ cup neutral cooking oil
- ¼ cup sugar, white or brown
- 2 cup glutinous rice flour
- ½ tablespoon baking powder
- 8 Chinese dates, aka jujube, red dates (see note 1)
- 3 Medjool dates
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C), or 300°F (150°C) if it’s fan-assisted.
- In a mixing bowl, lightly beat the eggs until the whites and yolks are well incorporated. Add coconut milk and cooking oil. Stir well to combine.
- Put in sugar, glutinous rice flour, and baking powder. Mix until the mixture becomes thick, smooth, and lump-free.
- Use a pair of scissors to cut Chinese dates and Medjool dates into small pieces and discard all the pits. Add the dates to the batter. Stir to ensure even distribution.
- Use parchment paper to line a rectangle baking pan (11” x 7” / 28 cm x 18 cm), or a square/round pan with a similar volume (see note 2 for conversion), making sure to cover both the bottom and sides.
- Pour the batter into the pan. Spread it with a spatula until it appears level. Sprinkle sesame seeds evenly over the surface.
- Pop the baking pan into the preheated oven. Leave to bake for about 25 minutes until the top becomes lightly golden (see note 3).
- Transfer the cake onto a rack to cool. Then, cut it into 10 bars and enjoy them warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Your Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
My mom really enjoyed this. I used raisins (it was what I had) and brown sugar. Such an easy treat! Please do more treats 🙂
That’s wonderful to hear! Thank you for sharing your own twists.
This was amazing and easy even for a novice like me! I’ve started to make Chinese recipes since having children to reconnect with my roots and Wei’s recipes are my favourites! Accessible and achievable even for a busy mama of 2! Thank you Wei, great job!
That’s so wonderful to hear, Victoria! Cooking is such a beautiful way to reconnect with your roots, and I’m so glad my recipes have been helpful. Keep enjoying the journey!
This looks very interesting but is NOT vegan since the recipe includes eggs. I’ll use a vegan egg replacement but recommend you correct that statement.
Thank you so much Geetu for pointing out the typo. I’ve edited it. Hope you’ll enjoy cooking this recipe.
Hi Wei
Thank you for taking my comment as it was meant – as helpful feedback. I’ve been exploring your site and am excited to see such wonderful recipes to try out. Cheers and best wishes.