Songpyeon “Apples”

These adorable rice cake “apples” are a festive and creative take on songpyeon, a Korean filled and steamed rice cake that’s commonly eaten during Chuseok, the Korean mid-autumn harvest festival. Songpyeon are traditionally formed in a half-moon shape, but Jennifer Ban of Rice Blossoms fashions her gorgeous songpyeon in the form of different fruits and vegetables, such as apples, peaches, pumpkins, and persimmons. These are filled with a mixture of crushed and whole sesame seeds, honey, and brown sugar, which offers a subtle sweetness when you bite into the rice cake. Set aside a full weekend afternoon for this project, as filling and shaping each apple will take time. This is a great project to do with kids, since the rice cake dough is similar in texture to play dough. Songpyeon are best the day they’re made.