Mooncakes and Milk Bread

September 20, 2021
In this delightful debut, Eat Cho Food blogger Cho presents dozens of sweet and savory treats inspired by Chinese-American bakeshops. To start, she offers her recipe for Chinese milk bread (akin to brioche or challah), which is repurposed for several recipes, such as coconut jasmine cream buns and miso corn buns. As Cho explains, ovens and baking were only recently introduced to Chinese culture, and thus there are plenty of goods that are steamed (egg custard buns), fried (Chinese doughnuts), or boiled (including jook, a slow-cooked rice porridge). Readers will relish Cho’s sentimental introductions, which focus on family (“My goong goong always wanted to be a baker,” she writes before sharing her late grandfather’s almond cookie recipe) and fusing Chinese and Western cultures (“It cracks me up that Bisquick has been Pau Pau’s secret ingredient,” she confesses in an intro to her grandmother’s steamed cupcakes). Some other recipes—such as deep-dish pepperoni bread and chocolate Nutella loaf—are a bit of a departure from the Chinese fare, but will appeal to those more familiar with Western baking, as will her thorough instructions, including Chinese cooking basics such as how to set up a steamer. This is a terrific introduction to a seldom explored baking niche. Agent: Katherine Cowles, Cowles Agency.

Starred review from December 1, 2021

This vibrant cookbook by food blogger Cho (Eat Cho Food) draws inspiration from the diverse range of steamed, baked, and fried treats on offer at Chinese bakeries. Cho offers classics such as egg tarts, Chinese sponge cake, and BBQ pork buns, alongside her own innovations (Asian Pear Turnovers with Miso Glaze; Everything Bagel Bao). Mooncakes are treated with particular fondness; Cho's recipes for these holiday favorites span a range of styles and flavors (including Cho's inventive "ice cream sandwich" mooncakes). Cho also presents an appealing selection of (mostly savory) breakfast options, such as Hong Kong-style French toast and bacon and kale pot-stickers. Most recipes rely on ingredients easily sourced at American grocery stores, and Cho's clear instructions and step-by-step photos guide readers through processes of rolling and shaping dough. The majority of the recipes are appropriate for bakers of most levels, but familiarity with yeast dough is helpful. VERDICT Cho offers an authoritative and delectable treasure trove of recipes for Chinese bakery treats, which generally get little attention in American cookbooks. Highly recommended for all home bakers and anyone who enjoys Chinese food.--Kelsy Peterson, Brighton Grammar Sch., Melbourne, Australia

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 1, 2021
The art and craft of Chinese bakery has become much better known and appreciated in the U.S. in the past few decades thanks to an influx of emigrants from Hong Kong and other Chinese regions who have opened bakeries here. Cho grew up in Cleveland, where her family had to travel to purchase the breadth of Chinese baked goods that now appear in so many urban areas. After architectural training, she returned to her roots and perfected a host of steamed and baked breads and buns that she adored as a child. After explaining the science of creating tender milk bread dough, Cho shows the sometimes-intricate steps to transform doughs into an amazing variety of steamed, baked, fried, and stuffed creations with color photographs. Pork buns are familiar, but Cho introduces buns stuffed with corn or hot dogs. There's even a sort of Chinese tuna melt. Cho's grandfather's almond cookies are delightfully easy for first-time bakers. Access to a Chinese grocery goes a long way to making Cho's baked goods at home less daunting, but online sources can be nearly as helpful. Cho's documentation of the astonishing array of Chinese baking illustrates how much it equals any Parisian or Viennese rivals.

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