When I was growing up in a Chinese household in Australia, the rituals around food and cultural celebrations provided me with a deep connection to my heritage. Lunar New Year was by far my favorite celebration — not only because the kids were showered with lei see (red envelopes filled with money), but also because it was the time of year when we got to eat Chinese cookies.
Foods eaten around the new year are rife with symbolism and often served to visiting friends and family. Walnuts hold a special place in Chinese culture, as they are believed to nourish the lungs, relieve coughs and improve circulation, and during the new year, they are eaten for happiness. Chinese walnut cookies, or Hup Toh Soh, are my idea of simple happiness.
Nutty, crunchy and with a hint of savory, traditional walnut cookies are made with lard for that extra crumbly texture. My version is not traditional: I use butter, which makes them less crispy, but adds a richness that melts in your mouth. Rather than the traditional whole walnut to decorate the center of the cookie, I’ve gone with a crave-worthy crumble of walnuts, coconut and brown sugar, laced with five-spice powder. Many recipes will ask you to grind the walnuts in a food processor, but I prefer the texture and flavor of roughly chopped nuts in my cookies.
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Recipe notes: This cookie is easily amended to be gluten-free and vegan. Use gluten-free all-purpose flour, vegan butter and flax eggs, and brush with oat milk rather than an egg wash. This results in a cookie with more of a crunch. For the flax eggs, combine 2 tablespoons of ground flax seeds with 5 tablespoons of water.
If you want to simplify this recipe, you can simply add a whole walnut to the center, in place of the crumble.
This dough can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for 3 months. If freezing, roll into balls first and store in an airtight container.
The baked cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 week at room temperature or frozen for up to 1 month.
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