Mizhi Date-Filled Pastry

Mizhi Date-Filled Pastry

　　The date-filled pastry is a type of snack and one of the local delicacies of Mizhi County in Shaanxi Province. It is a pie with filling made from the famous flat jujubes of Northern Shaanxi, which are extremely delicious. The flaky pastry dough is wrapped around a sweet jujube paste filling, then pressed with a wooden mold that imprints a red dot in the center. The outer edge puffs up round like a wheel. After forming several pieces, they are placed in a flat-bottomed griddle pan and baked over low heat until golden brown. Its crust is crispy and the inside is sweet, with a pleasant jujube aroma. In ancient times, it was often used as an offering to ancestors or gods, hence it is also called "fruit offering." In the southern part of the county, it is a local custom for grooms-to-be to give 8 to 24 date-filled pastries as a betrothal gift to the bride’s family, and they are also commonly given as gifts to relatives and friends.