Hanyin Rice Artemisia Cakes

Hanyin Rice Artemisia Cakes

　　Hanyin Rice Artemisia Cakes are a specialty snack from Hanyin County, Ankang City, Shaanxi Province. These cakes are made by steaming glutinous rice paste with wild sweet wormwood, resulting in a vivid green color, fragrant aroma, and delicate texture. They are a pure green food that is highly favored by locals.

　　Also known as Sweet Wormwood Cakes, Hanyin Rice Artemisia Cakes are a spring and summer snack in Hanyin. Made by steaming glutinous rice paste with wild sweet wormwood, they are vivid green, fragrant, and have a delicate texture. As a pure green food, they are very popular among locals. The sweet wormwood used in Hanyin Rice Artemisia Cakes is foraged from unpolluted mountainous areas, giving it high nutritional value. Sweet wormwood can help regulate qi and blood, warm meridians, dispel cold and dampness, and relieve cold pain. Modern pharmacological research has shown that mugwort leaves are broad-spectrum antibacterial and antiviral agents. They inhibit and kill many viruses and bacteria, help prevent and treat respiratory diseases, and enhance the body’s resistance to illness.

　　Hanyin Rice Artemisia Cakes can rival the famous mugwort cakes of Chengdu, Sichuan, though their preparation and flavor differ. In Chengdu, the mugwort is sourced from nearby plains and the cakes are stuffed with cured pork filling. Hanyin Rice Artemisia Cakes use wormwood foraged from unpolluted mountainous areas, are unfilled, and are a truly green food.

　　Originally an obscure folk food in Hanyin, Sweet Wormwood Cakes have gained recognition through the publications of Li Jiacheng, notably in the books *Hanyin Studies* and *An Interpretation of Hanyin Snacks*. Now they are served in the elegant dining rooms of local hotels and on the menus of rural homestays, winning the favor of visitors from Xi’an, Ankang, and beyond. During the recent May Day holiday, tourist numbers in Hanyin surged, and Sweet Wormwood Cakes became a hot item at the Southeast Agricultural Market—selling out before 8:30 a.m. due to high demand.