Steamed spring onion flower buns (xiang cong hua juan)

It’s in the single digits here in Boston, and I am freezing. During times like these, I crave comfort food. I’m not talking about mac and cheese or lasagne, I mean Chinese comfort food, such as xiang cong hua juan. It literally translates to fragrant spring onion flower buns, but they are also known as steamed spring onion buns. This is an easy recipe and very, very satisfying. There are two ways you can shape the buns – one uses a knife, the other a chopstick. Both create layers, although I have to say the knife method creates more. Make sure to leave space between the buns when you steam them, because they grow just like flowers.