Xīn Nián Kuài Lè! 新年快乐 ! Happy Chinese New Year! Today marks the beginning of the Spring Festival as we welcome the rooster. What better way to celebrate than with these addictive Chinese Peanut Cookies.
These beauties are called Hua Sheng Bing, 花生饼 in Mandarin. It translates as peanut cake but clearly they are wonderful cookie bundles. One can find them in homes and markets in China during the Lunar New Year. If you love peanuts you will adore the texture and massive dose of peanut crumbs. In fact these Chinese Peanut Cookies take cookies to a whole new level of peanut. They are just fabulous!
CNY and Spring Festival
Today, January 28 2017, marks the Chinese New Year and the beginning of the Spring Festival. All over China families have gathered in home towns to celebrate with delicious foods, give red envelopes to kids, spend time together, and enjoy at least a full week off from work and school.
Red decorations hang everywhere and the evenings will be filled with firecrackers. This is to commemorate the origins of the holiday. The festival started off as a way to fight against the monster “Nian” who liked to eat children and livestock. The monster is afraid of the color red and loud sound, hence the firecrackers.
The sugared fine peanut crumbs is the base of these cookies
This year the rooster is the featured animal from the Chinese zodiac. I assume his glorification this year will spare him an appearance at the holiday dinner table. On New Year’s Eve family members gather for the Nian Ye Fan meal.
Traditionally a large and sumptuous meal of eight dishes is prepared and composed of traditional pork, chicken and fish dishes. Hotpots are very popular as well, think a Chinese fondue. It is considered good luck to keep some fish as leftover to signify always having surpluses and wealth.
Lantern Festival and Guess Who is Leaving for China soon!
The Spring festival last for 15 days. Every day has a set of traditions and celebrations. The fifteenth day is the Yuanxiao Festival, or the Lantern Festival. People eat tangyuan, a sweet glutinous rice ball cooked in a soup. The festival ends magically with families walking the streets holding candles and paper lanterns.
This year the Lantern Festival falls on February 11th. And guess who will be there to witness it and soak in the gorgeous atmosphere? Yes, yours truly. I am leaving for China in 10 days! I will be spending the week in Beijing exploring as many sites as possible. For the last two months all I have been saying over and over again is “OMG I am going to China”! And I have a long list of foods to try. I cannot wait!
A Small Chinese Peanut Cookie World
So last weekend I attended a small 5 a 7 with four other food bloggers. Kimberlie from thefinercookie.com mentioned how she was making Chinese Peanut Cookies and I said “me too”! Turns out we made the same recipe and both planned to post for CNY! I mean seriously what are the chances of that happening. So we thought thought is was a great chance to show you first hand what two bakers with the same recipe can make separately. Here you get a side by side of Kimberlie’s cookies (left) and mine (right). Check out Kimberlie’s Chinese Peanut Cookies as well!
Best Peanut Cookies Ever
These cookies were actually made during the 2016 Christmas bake-a-thon but I have been saving this post for the Chinese New Year! I came across this Chinese cookie recipe on Andrea’s Viet World Kitchen blog, who got the recipe from food stylist Karen Shinto.
I have to say out of all 6 cookies we made that day, these were my favorite hands down. They were everyone’s favorite. If you like peanut butter cookies you will fall in love this these Chinese peanut cookies. I think they may be in my top 3 best cookies ever!
Chinese Peanut Cookies | Hua Sheng Bing
Ingredients
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons unsalted roasted peanuts
- 1 1/4 cups confectioner’s sugar
- 10 3/4 ounces all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 2/3 cup fragrant peanut or canola oil
- 1 egg beaten
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 F and make sure the rack is in the middle position. Prepare 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Turn the peanuts into a coarse crumb texture in a food processor. To the peanuts add the powdered sugar. Process again until you get a very fine crumb. Be careful not to over process or you will get peanut butter.
- In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the peanuts to the flour and mix until combined.
- Drizzle into the mixture the melted butter and oil. Use your hands to knead the dough until it softens. If it feels too soft or greasy, refrigerate the dough for 15 minutes.
- Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place them 1.5 inches apart on the baking sheets. Flatten them gently with your palm, or if you want a decorative stamp use the cap of a marker.
- Brush the top of the cookies with the egg. Bake the cookies for 20 to 22 minutes until lightly golden. Cool the cookies completely on a wire rack before serving.
Check out more peanut recipes here:
- Peanut Butter Fudge and Ganache Coffins
- Charred Broccoli Shrimp Pasta with Peanuts
- Roasted and Salted Peanuts in the Shell
Looking for another amazing cookie recipe to try. Check out these Argentinian Alfajores Cookies
I remember having these types of cookies when I was small. Loved them!
That is awesome, nice to confirm these are a real thing lol. Never saw them where I live.
Happy Chinese New Year – xinnian kuaile! Hope you have a fabulous trip in Beijing.
Love the recipe, and especially I love how you marked the tops of the biscuits with the marker. Such a simple idea, yet such a good use for something that might otherwise be just thrown away.
I am back (boo!) and with great posts to come. Yeah the marker was a brilliant idea I stole he he.
Peanut cookies bring such fond memories of my childhood in Malaysia. I love how they just melt and disintegrate in you mouth.
Yes, that is a great way to describe these cookie, crumbly disintegration…but in a good way!
How exciting! And these cookies are just fabulous. Love everything you make.
Thank you so much Sonali! I am back so watch out for post with Beijing pics!
I love peanuts, peanut butter and everything related to peanuts! Lovely recipe and a very informative post as usual!
Thanks Prateek, I really need to make these agin soon, so good!
These sound delicious, they look really cute too! Love the stamp on top.
Thanks Caroline, suprising what a marker cap can do 🙂
I really like peanut butter cookies, so I really need to try this recipe. Looks really interesting. Fun post — and I’m so happy for you that you’re able to visit China. Someplace I really need to go. Anyway, fun post — thanks.
I am willing to bet you will like these even more than pb cookies John! Thank you, looking forward to sharing my Chinese experience!
I was just thinking of how these things are made, looks like you read my mind. Now I have a recipe
Oh really Raymund, what a happy coincidence!
Ohh I can only imagine what these smell like when their cooking. Do elephants come a running? hahaha! Get it – Elephants. Peanuts. You know. Ha! I am good… HA!
Well actually I did get almost trampled by a couple, I was terrified. Fought them off with a spatula finally 😉
Oh Evelyne…you are amazing…these peanut cookies look awesome…so excited for you…I am sure you are going to have a great time in China…
Enjoy your week 🙂
Oh thank you Juliana! Glad you approve of these cookies 🙂 OMG, 7 days left before I go, 7 days! Have a great week.
WHOA, these look crazy good! I am not very informed on Chinese cooking or foods beyond the favorites found in American strip malls.. I have never even heard of these! Love your blog!
Thank you so much Gingi for your compliment! I think these are more common in China, lots of China food to come on the blog soon 😀
Wow I envy you girl… take me with you to China… One of my dreams is roaming the world and countries in the Far East are on top of the list. I saw the other day a recipe for a Chinese Cashew cookies and they looked adorable, yours even look better. Pinning.
Well come with me Amira lol, OK maybe a last minute. Oh cashew, no I have to try this recipe with cashews instead…sounds so good! Thanks!
Love this recipe. Wish I had seen it earlier so that I could have included them in our New Years party tonight. Luckily Chinese New Year celebrations last for 2 weeks so these are getting made during that time. Thanks.
Oh cool you are celebrating the CNY Wendy? I’ll be in Beijing for the last 4 days fo the Spring Festival. Cannot wait! Let me know if these cookies are a hit 🙂
I love peanut butter but cannot stomach peanuts and my husband is the opposite. Great informative post Evelyne.
Maybe you can try a half a batch with pb and half with peanuts lol, how funny you are opposites.
Ooh I’m so excited you made these! I haven’t eaten them in so long but as soon as I saw them I could taste them in my mouth from the memories. Great job! 😀
Thanks Lorraine 😀 seriously these are some of the best cookies I ever tasted, so peanutty!
I love peanut butter cookies but never knew there was a Chinese version! These are so pretty with the stamped top. I’m SO excited that you’re going to China—looking forward to the recap when you return!
You have to make them Liz these are hand down the best peanut anything cookies ever. I jut realized today only 6 work days left! Oh year recap and videos for sure!!!
Just realized that I didn’t bake any cookies for Chinese New Year…maybe I can snack on some of yours? These Chinese peanut cookies look fabulous.
Ha ha Angie sure come one over and get some (will have to make them before you arrrive, all gone!)
Hi Evelyne, Such an informative post. Love the bit about the color red during the Chinese New Year celebrations. Your cookies look great. Do you have any left? I’d like to taste yours. Mine are gone. Sorry.
Hi Kim, yes monster that east livestock and children, alwasy good knowledge lol. No I made mine in December but plan on making them again so will keep some for you at that time!