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I'm Wu Jinxuan, a 22-year-old student majoring in Japanese Translation and Interpretation. Hailing from Yueyang, a charming city famous for Dongting Lake, I’m an enthusiastic and friendly person who enjoys connecting with others. In my spare time, I love watching TV dramas (especially Japanese and Chinese ones) and playing badminton, which keeps me energetic. I’m passionate about language communication and aspire to become a professional translator.
 
I'm Wu Jinxuan, a 22-year-old student majoring in Japanese Translation and Interpretation. Hailing from Yueyang, a charming city famous for Dongting Lake, I’m an enthusiastic and friendly person who enjoys connecting with others. In my spare time, I love watching TV dramas (especially Japanese and Chinese ones) and playing badminton, which keeps me energetic. I’m passionate about language communication and aspire to become a professional translator.
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 +
==Final Exam Paper==
 +
 +
===Yunnan Flower Cake===
 +
 +
====Introduction====
 +
 +
Food is a concrete carrier of regional culture. As a characteristic delicacy of Yunnan, Yunnan flower cake is baked with local edible flowers as filling and multi-layered crispy crust. It condenses the natural advantages of the "Kingdom of Plants" and the dietary wisdom of multiple ethnic groups. Its development trajectory extends from a royal pastry in the Qing Dynasty to an iconic cultural and tourism souvenir in contemporary times, deeply bound to regional culture and social changes. As a typical representative of China's "flower-eating culture (花食文化)", flower cake contains rich connotations such as the integration of dietary customs of multiple ethnic groups, the philosophy of "the integration of medicine and food (药食同源)", and the evolution of linguistic symbols. This paper will interpret the Chinese linguistic and cultural core it carries from multiple dimensions, exploring the in-depth connection between food and cultural inheritance.
 +
 +
====Historical Origin====
 +
 +
The history of Yunnan flower cake is rooted in China's long-standing "flower-eating culture" tradition, with a clear development path of "folk custom—royal pastry—regional inheritance". As early as the Tang Dynasty, the custom of using flowers as ingredients in food had taken shape; flowers such as peonies and chrysanthemums were often used in pastry making, laying the foundation for the birth of flower cake. The records of various flower-based food production methods in Shan Jia Qing Gong (A Collection of Refined Foods from Mountain Households) (《山家清供》) confirm that ancient people had already explored and applied the edible value of flowers.
 +
 +
In the Qing Dynasty, flower cake achieved a leap from folk delicacy to royal pastry. The rose cake made by folk pastry chefs with roses as filling was presented as a tribute by Yunnan local officials to Emperor Qianlong, who favored it greatly and even decreed it as a sacrificial offering to gods , reflecting the two-way interaction between royal and folk diets. The records of seasonal pastries such as rose cake in the Qing Dynasty in Yan Jing Sui Shi Ji (Records of Seasons in the Capital) (《燕京岁时记》) further confirm its important position in the royal dietary system, and its production process became more sophisticated due to royal regulations.
 +
 +
After the late Qing Dynasty, flower cake spread to the folk and took root and developed in Yunnan. Local brands such as Jiqingxiang (吉庆祥) adhered to traditional craftsmanship while improving it in combination with local ingredients. Relying on the Ancient Tea Horse Road (茶马古道), flower cake spread to regions such as Yunnan, Sichuan, and Tibet, becoming a dietary symbol of regional cultural exchange. The records in Yunnan's local chronicles clearly outline its evolution from a royal pastry to a regional characteristic delicacy.
 +
 +
====Formation and Development====
 +
 +
The formation and development of Yunnan flower cake are inseparable from the integration of local natural advantages and the dietary wisdom of multiple ethnic groups. In terms of natural conditions, Yunnan is known as the "Kingdom of Plants", and the abundant sunshine and significant temperature difference between day and night in the plateau area create superior conditions for the growth of edible flowers such as roses. Among them, rose planting in Bajie, Anning is the most representative; the double-petaled red roses produced here have plump petals and rich fragrance, which are the core source of the unique flavor of flower cake. Relevant records in Yunnan's local chronicles also confirm that this adaptive relationship between the natural environment and core ingredients is the key factor that distinguishes Yunnan flower cake from flower-based pastries in other regions.
 +
 +
In terms of cultural integration, ethnic minorities in Yunnan such as the Dai and Bai nationalities have a long tradition of eating flowers. flower-eating is a common dietary custom among various ethnic groups. The emergence of flower cake is not a simple reproduction of this folk custom, but a refined and standardized upgrade of this simple dietary tradition. Taking the peony flower cake of the Naxi nationality as an example, it not only inherits the preference of ethnic minorities for flower ingredients but also optimizes the taste and appearance through sophisticated baking techniques, becoming a vivid carrier of cultural exchange and integration among multiple ethnic groups. This integration is not a one-way cultural penetration, but the condensation and symbiosis of the dietary wisdom of various ethnic groups, making flower cake an important dietary symbol carrying Yunnan's diverse ethnic cultures.
 +
 +
In addition, the production of flower cake also implies the traditional Chinese dietary wisdom of "the integration of medicine and food". In Dian Nan Ben Cao (Materia Medica of Southern Yunnan) (《滇南本草》) compiled by Lan Mao in the Ming Dynasty, it is clearly mentioned that roses have medicinal effects such as "being warm in nature, sweet and slightly bitter in taste, capable of regulating qi and relieving depression, and harmonizing blood to dispel stasis". With roses as the core filling, it skillfully combines delicious taste with health-preserving needs, conforming to the traditional dietary concept of "simultaneous treatment and nutrition (食疗兼顾)". Relevant research on Guangming Net also points out that the cognition of the edible value of flowers among Yunnan's folk people is based on this traditional wisdom of "the integration of medicine and food", and flower cake has transformed this wisdom into a form of daily diet more acceptable to the public.
 +
 +
====Production Process====
 +
 +
The production process of Yunnan flower cake is not only the key to forming its flavor but also carries the craftsmanship spirit passed down from generation to generation, becoming an important embodiment of regional cultural inheritance. Among the core links of the traditional process, the production of the "36-layer crispy crust (36层酥皮)" is a concentrated manifestation of craftsmanship. It requires repeated rolling, rolling up, and folding to form a layered and crispy texture in the mouth. The pickling of the filling also emphasizes timing and techniques: flowers must be picked with dew in the early morning, ensuring harvesting is completed before 9 o'clock, and then the floral fragrance is locked through precise sugar-preserved fermentation process (糖渍发酵工艺). This extreme attention to details is not only to ensure the taste and flavor but also implies the reverence of traditional craftsmen for ingredients.
 +
 +
After this craft was included in the list of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) (非物质文化遗产) at the provincial level, inheritors represented by Li Jianying have always adhered to the core traditional craftsmanship while exploring innovative paths. Faced with the impact of industrial production, manual craftsmanship once faced the dilemma of inheritance interruption and insufficient market competitiveness. Through methods such as setting up craft training courses and optimizing the process in combination with modern preservation technology, inheritors have not only retained the core essence of manual production but also improved production efficiency to meet market demand, realizing the inheritance of traditional craftsmanship.
 +
 +
Behind the localization of ingredient selection is the strengthening and adherence to regional cultural symbols. The core raw materials of flower cake are all sourced locally in Yunnan: double-petaled red roses from Bajie, Anning lay the foundation for the unique floral flavor, Yunmai 39 flour ensures the delicate texture of the crispy crust, and local rapeseed oil endows the pastry with a mellow flavor base. This dependence on local ingredients is not only a choice based on natural endowments but also endows each flower cake with a Yunnan regional mark, becoming an important feature distinguishing it from flower-based pastries in other regions and further consolidating its attribute as a regional cultural symbol.
 +
 +
====Linguistic and Symbolic Culture Connotations====
 +
 +
The linguistic and symbolic cultural connotations of Yunnan flower cake are concentrated in three core dimensions: the evolution of names, folk narratives, and folk applications. In terms of names, the evolution from the early "rose cake" (focusing on a single filling) to "flower cake" (covering multiple fillings such as roses, peonies, and jasmine) not only broadens the semantic scope but also completes the cognitive upgrade from "a single category" to "a collection of categories". Its naming logic accurately combines the ingredient attribute of "flower-eating food" and the morphological attribute of "cake", ultimately forming a linguistic symbol with distinct regional recognition. In addition to the evolution of name symbols, folk legends have also injected an emotional core into flower cake. Among them, the legend of Jiqingxiang's apprentice creating rose cake for love is the most widely spread. The narrative of "expressing love through craftsmanship" not only makes the pastry-making craft tangible but also strengthens the symbolic attribute of flower cake as a "warm gift", effectively promoting its cultural popularization through word-of-mouth transmission. At the level of folk practice, flower cake is an important part of Yunnan's traditional activities such as the Torch Festival (火把节) and the March Street (三月街). It not only undertakes the solemn function of sacrificing to gods but also serves as a precious gift for relatives and friends to convey blessings. Its implication of "prosperity like blooming flowers" is highly consistent with the festival's theme of praying for blessings. For example, the Naxi nationality eats peony flower cake during traditional festivals, deeply integrating the auspicious imagery of flowers with ethnic rituals, making flower cake a vivid carrier witnessing the cultural integration of multiple ethnic groups in Yunnan.
 +
 +
====Modern Innovation====
 +
 +
In the process of modern social development, Yunnan flower cake has achieved cultural empowerment through multiple channels, successfully upgrading from a regional specialty to a cultural symbol with wide recognition. Its development path is deeply bound to the e-commerce economy, the integration of culture and tourism (文旅融合), and taste innovation. Driven by the e-commerce economy, mainstream brands such as Jiahua and Panxiangji have actively laid out online communication, built sales matrices through e-commerce platforms, and intuitively displayed the production process and regional characteristics of flower cake through modern communication forms such as live streaming e-commerce and short video popularization, expanding the sales scope while breaking regional restrictions.
 +
 +
In terms of the integration of culture and tourism, flower cake has become an iconic souvenir of Yunnan tourism, deeply integrating into the regional cultural and tourism industrial chain. Rose planting bases such as Bajie, Anning have launched cultural and tourism projects of "rose picking + flower cake making experience", allowing tourists to personally participate in the whole process from ingredient acquisition to finished product production, realizing the dual harvest of "taste experience" and "cultural perception". This mode of integrating culture and tourism makes flower cake an important carrier of regional cultural output, helping to widely spread Yunnan's diverse culture.
 +
 +
Taste innovation has injected vitality into the cultural inheritance of flower cake, realizing the adaptive development of traditional dietary culture. While retaining the classic rose flavor, brands have launched innovative varieties such as moringa flower cake (辣木鲜花饼) and Yunnan ham flower cake (云腿鲜花饼): the moringa flavor meets the contemporary demand for "healthy living", while the Yunnan ham flavor integrates the regional characteristics of Xuanwei ham in Yunnan, achieving a collision between the sweet taste of flowers and the savory flavor. These innovations are not a departure from tradition but a cultural adaptation based on contemporary consumer demand. They not only enrich the product system of flower cake but also make this traditional delicacy more in line with modern tastes, further consolidating the vitality of its cultural symbol.
 +
 +
====Conclusion====
 +
 +
Yunnan flower cake is not just a regional delicacy, but a concrete carrier of Chinese linguistic and cultural core. From the perspective of historical context, it developed from the ancient flower-eating tradition and precipitated into a regional characteristic delicacy through the two-way interaction between the royal court and the folk. In terms of cultural connotation, its formation deeply relies on Yunnan's natural endowments, integrates the dietary wisdom of multiple ethnic groups, and implies the traditional philosophy of "the integration of medicine and food". From the perspective of contemporary value, the living inheritance of intangible cultural heritage, the diverse expression of linguistic symbols, and the communication paths integrating e-commerce and cultural tourism have transformed it from a regional specialty into a cultural symbol with wide recognition. In summary, the development trajectory of Yunnan flower cake is not only a vivid microcosm of the "inheritance and innovation"  of Chinese dietary culture but also confirms the important role of food carriers in regional cultural communication and the integration of multiple ethnic groups.
 +
 +
===References===
 +
 +
陈燕，王浩.非物质文化遗产视角下云南鲜花饼制作技艺的传承与创新 [J]. 食品工业，2022, 43 (7):256-260.
 +
 +
富察敦崇.燕京岁时记 [M]. 北京：中华书局，1981.
 +
 +
光明网.食上添花，秀色可餐 [EB/OL]. (2025-04-23). https://epaper.gmw.cn/wzb/html/2025-04-23/nw.D110000wzb_20250423_1-08.htm.
 +
 +
昆明市人民政府.昆明鲜花饼入选国家重点培育名单 [EB/OL]. (2025-06-06). https://www.km.gov.cn/c/2025-06-06/4986479.shtml.
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 +
兰茂.滇南本草 [M]. 昆明：云南科学技术出版社，2004.
 +
 +
林洪.山家清供 [M]. 北京：中华书局，2013.
 +
 +
马德娟，黄启超.玫瑰鲜花酥饼馅的研制 [J]. 食品研究与开发，2012, 33 (8):112-114.
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 +
马骞，刘云.舌尖上的鲜花 ——“云花” 打造 “美味产业”[J]. 农产品市场，2012 (34):30-31.
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 +
南方农村报.非物质文化遗产 | 云南鲜花饼：百年传承的非遗美食 [EB/OL]. (2024-03-14). https://epaper.nfncb.cn/nfnc/content/20240314/Articel11001MT.htm.
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 +
上游新闻.文史丨古人何时开始以花为馔？云南人为何爱吃花？[EB/OL]. (2023-06-20). https://www.cqcb.com/wenshi2/dalishi/2023-05-24/5271440.html.
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 +
云南省地方志编纂委员会.云南风物志・饮食篇 [EB/OL]. (2022-08-15). http://www.ynlib.cn/ynfwz/yinshi/.
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 +
云南省非物质文化遗产保护中心.云南鲜花饼制作技艺 [Z]. 2011.
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 +
张颖，李丽.云南鲜花饼的文化内涵与旅游开发融合研究 [J]. 云南民族大学学报（哲学社会科学版）, 2020, 37 (4):154-160.
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===Terms and Expressions===
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 +
flower-eating culture 花食文化
 +
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the integration of medicine and food 药食同源
 +
 +
Shan Jia Qing Gong 《山家清供》
 +
 +
Yan Jing Sui Shi Ji 《燕京岁时记》
 +
 +
Jiqingxiang 吉庆祥
 +
 +
the Ancient Tea Horse Road 茶马古道
 +
 +
Dian Nan Ben Cao 《滇南本草》
 +
 +
simultaneous treatment and nutrition 食疗兼顾
 +
 +
intangible cultural heritage (ICH) 非物质文化遗产
 +
 +
the Torch Festival 火把节
 +
 +
the March Street 三月街
 +
 +
the integration of culture and tourism 文旅融合
 +
 +
moringa flower cake 辣木鲜花饼
 +
 +
Yunnan ham flower cake 云腿鲜花饼
 +
 +
===Questions===
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1.What was the key opportunity for Yunnan flower cake to become a royal pastry of the imperial court in the Qing Dynasty?
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2.Where are the roses for the core filling of Yunnan flower cake mainly produced?
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3.What level of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) project has the production craftsmanship of Yunnan flower cake been included in?
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 +
4.How has Yunnan flower cake achieved modern innovation in contemporary society?
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===Answers===
 +
 +
1.The rose cake made by folk pastry chefs was presented as a tribute by local officials in Yunnan to Emperor Qianlong, who favored it greatly. It was even decreed as a sacrificial offering to gods, thus upgrading from a folk delicacy to a royal pastry of the imperial court.
 +
 +
2.The roses for the core filling are mainly produced in Bajie, Anning, Yunnan. The double-petaled red roses here have plump petals and rich fragrance, which are the key source of the unique flavor of flower cake.
 +
 +
3.It is a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage (ICH) project.
 +
 +
4.Through three main approaches: firstly, e-commerce communication—brands have laid out online live streaming and short videos to break regional restrictions; secondly, integration of culture and tourism—launching "rose picking + production" experience projects; thirdly, taste innovation—launching varieties such as moringa and Yunnan ham to meet modern needs and consolidate the vitality of its cultural symbol.

Revision as of 15:52, 28 December 2025

I'm Wu Jinxuan, a 22-year-old student majoring in Japanese Translation and Interpretation. Hailing from Yueyang, a charming city famous for Dongting Lake, I’m an enthusiastic and friendly person who enjoys connecting with others. In my spare time, I love watching TV dramas (especially Japanese and Chinese ones) and playing badminton, which keeps me energetic. I’m passionate about language communication and aspire to become a professional translator.

Final Exam Paper

Yunnan Flower Cake

Introduction

Food is a concrete carrier of regional culture. As a characteristic delicacy of Yunnan, Yunnan flower cake is baked with local edible flowers as filling and multi-layered crispy crust. It condenses the natural advantages of the "Kingdom of Plants" and the dietary wisdom of multiple ethnic groups. Its development trajectory extends from a royal pastry in the Qing Dynasty to an iconic cultural and tourism souvenir in contemporary times, deeply bound to regional culture and social changes. As a typical representative of China's "flower-eating culture (花食文化)", flower cake contains rich connotations such as the integration of dietary customs of multiple ethnic groups, the philosophy of "the integration of medicine and food (药食同源)", and the evolution of linguistic symbols. This paper will interpret the Chinese linguistic and cultural core it carries from multiple dimensions, exploring the in-depth connection between food and cultural inheritance.

Historical Origin

The history of Yunnan flower cake is rooted in China's long-standing "flower-eating culture" tradition, with a clear development path of "folk custom—royal pastry—regional inheritance". As early as the Tang Dynasty, the custom of using flowers as ingredients in food had taken shape; flowers such as peonies and chrysanthemums were often used in pastry making, laying the foundation for the birth of flower cake. The records of various flower-based food production methods in Shan Jia Qing Gong (A Collection of Refined Foods from Mountain Households) (《山家清供》) confirm that ancient people had already explored and applied the edible value of flowers. 

In the Qing Dynasty, flower cake achieved a leap from folk delicacy to royal pastry. The rose cake made by folk pastry chefs with roses as filling was presented as a tribute by Yunnan local officials to Emperor Qianlong, who favored it greatly and even decreed it as a sacrificial offering to gods , reflecting the two-way interaction between royal and folk diets. The records of seasonal pastries such as rose cake in the Qing Dynasty in Yan Jing Sui Shi Ji (Records of Seasons in the Capital) (《燕京岁时记》) further confirm its important position in the royal dietary system, and its production process became more sophisticated due to royal regulations.

After the late Qing Dynasty, flower cake spread to the folk and took root and developed in Yunnan. Local brands such as Jiqingxiang (吉庆祥) adhered to traditional craftsmanship while improving it in combination with local ingredients. Relying on the Ancient Tea Horse Road (茶马古道), flower cake spread to regions such as Yunnan, Sichuan, and Tibet, becoming a dietary symbol of regional cultural exchange. The records in Yunnan's local chronicles clearly outline its evolution from a royal pastry to a regional characteristic delicacy.

Formation and Development

The formation and development of Yunnan flower cake are inseparable from the integration of local natural advantages and the dietary wisdom of multiple ethnic groups. In terms of natural conditions, Yunnan is known as the "Kingdom of Plants", and the abundant sunshine and significant temperature difference between day and night in the plateau area create superior conditions for the growth of edible flowers such as roses. Among them, rose planting in Bajie, Anning is the most representative; the double-petaled red roses produced here have plump petals and rich fragrance, which are the core source of the unique flavor of flower cake. Relevant records in Yunnan's local chronicles also confirm that this adaptive relationship between the natural environment and core ingredients is the key factor that distinguishes Yunnan flower cake from flower-based pastries in other regions.

In terms of cultural integration, ethnic minorities in Yunnan such as the Dai and Bai nationalities have a long tradition of eating flowers. flower-eating is a common dietary custom among various ethnic groups. The emergence of flower cake is not a simple reproduction of this folk custom, but a refined and standardized upgrade of this simple dietary tradition. Taking the peony flower cake of the Naxi nationality as an example, it not only inherits the preference of ethnic minorities for flower ingredients but also optimizes the taste and appearance through sophisticated baking techniques, becoming a vivid carrier of cultural exchange and integration among multiple ethnic groups. This integration is not a one-way cultural penetration, but the condensation and symbiosis of the dietary wisdom of various ethnic groups, making flower cake an important dietary symbol carrying Yunnan's diverse ethnic cultures.

In addition, the production of flower cake also implies the traditional Chinese dietary wisdom of "the integration of medicine and food". In Dian Nan Ben Cao (Materia Medica of Southern Yunnan) (《滇南本草》) compiled by Lan Mao in the Ming Dynasty, it is clearly mentioned that roses have medicinal effects such as "being warm in nature, sweet and slightly bitter in taste, capable of regulating qi and relieving depression, and harmonizing blood to dispel stasis". With roses as the core filling, it skillfully combines delicious taste with health-preserving needs, conforming to the traditional dietary concept of "simultaneous treatment and nutrition (食疗兼顾)". Relevant research on Guangming Net also points out that the cognition of the edible value of flowers among Yunnan's folk people is based on this traditional wisdom of "the integration of medicine and food", and flower cake has transformed this wisdom into a form of daily diet more acceptable to the public.

Production Process

The production process of Yunnan flower cake is not only the key to forming its flavor but also carries the craftsmanship spirit passed down from generation to generation, becoming an important embodiment of regional cultural inheritance. Among the core links of the traditional process, the production of the "36-layer crispy crust (36层酥皮)" is a concentrated manifestation of craftsmanship. It requires repeated rolling, rolling up, and folding to form a layered and crispy texture in the mouth. The pickling of the filling also emphasizes timing and techniques: flowers must be picked with dew in the early morning, ensuring harvesting is completed before 9 o'clock, and then the floral fragrance is locked through precise sugar-preserved fermentation process (糖渍发酵工艺). This extreme attention to details is not only to ensure the taste and flavor but also implies the reverence of traditional craftsmen for ingredients.

After this craft was included in the list of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) (非物质文化遗产) at the provincial level, inheritors represented by Li Jianying have always adhered to the core traditional craftsmanship while exploring innovative paths. Faced with the impact of industrial production, manual craftsmanship once faced the dilemma of inheritance interruption and insufficient market competitiveness. Through methods such as setting up craft training courses and optimizing the process in combination with modern preservation technology, inheritors have not only retained the core essence of manual production but also improved production efficiency to meet market demand, realizing the inheritance of traditional craftsmanship.

Behind the localization of ingredient selection is the strengthening and adherence to regional cultural symbols. The core raw materials of flower cake are all sourced locally in Yunnan: double-petaled red roses from Bajie, Anning lay the foundation for the unique floral flavor, Yunmai 39 flour ensures the delicate texture of the crispy crust, and local rapeseed oil endows the pastry with a mellow flavor base. This dependence on local ingredients is not only a choice based on natural endowments but also endows each flower cake with a Yunnan regional mark, becoming an important feature distinguishing it from flower-based pastries in other regions and further consolidating its attribute as a regional cultural symbol.

Linguistic and Symbolic Culture Connotations

The linguistic and symbolic cultural connotations of Yunnan flower cake are concentrated in three core dimensions: the evolution of names, folk narratives, and folk applications. In terms of names, the evolution from the early "rose cake" (focusing on a single filling) to "flower cake" (covering multiple fillings such as roses, peonies, and jasmine) not only broadens the semantic scope but also completes the cognitive upgrade from "a single category" to "a collection of categories". Its naming logic accurately combines the ingredient attribute of "flower-eating food" and the morphological attribute of "cake", ultimately forming a linguistic symbol with distinct regional recognition. In addition to the evolution of name symbols, folk legends have also injected an emotional core into flower cake. Among them, the legend of Jiqingxiang's apprentice creating rose cake for love is the most widely spread. The narrative of "expressing love through craftsmanship" not only makes the pastry-making craft tangible but also strengthens the symbolic attribute of flower cake as a "warm gift", effectively promoting its cultural popularization through word-of-mouth transmission. At the level of folk practice, flower cake is an important part of Yunnan's traditional activities such as the Torch Festival (火把节) and the March Street (三月街). It not only undertakes the solemn function of sacrificing to gods but also serves as a precious gift for relatives and friends to convey blessings. Its implication of "prosperity like blooming flowers" is highly consistent with the festival's theme of praying for blessings. For example, the Naxi nationality eats peony flower cake during traditional festivals, deeply integrating the auspicious imagery of flowers with ethnic rituals, making flower cake a vivid carrier witnessing the cultural integration of multiple ethnic groups in Yunnan.

Modern Innovation

In the process of modern social development, Yunnan flower cake has achieved cultural empowerment through multiple channels, successfully upgrading from a regional specialty to a cultural symbol with wide recognition. Its development path is deeply bound to the e-commerce economy, the integration of culture and tourism (文旅融合), and taste innovation. Driven by the e-commerce economy, mainstream brands such as Jiahua and Panxiangji have actively laid out online communication, built sales matrices through e-commerce platforms, and intuitively displayed the production process and regional characteristics of flower cake through modern communication forms such as live streaming e-commerce and short video popularization, expanding the sales scope while breaking regional restrictions.

In terms of the integration of culture and tourism, flower cake has become an iconic souvenir of Yunnan tourism, deeply integrating into the regional cultural and tourism industrial chain. Rose planting bases such as Bajie, Anning have launched cultural and tourism projects of "rose picking + flower cake making experience", allowing tourists to personally participate in the whole process from ingredient acquisition to finished product production, realizing the dual harvest of "taste experience" and "cultural perception". This mode of integrating culture and tourism makes flower cake an important carrier of regional cultural output, helping to widely spread Yunnan's diverse culture.

Taste innovation has injected vitality into the cultural inheritance of flower cake, realizing the adaptive development of traditional dietary culture. While retaining the classic rose flavor, brands have launched innovative varieties such as moringa flower cake (辣木鲜花饼) and Yunnan ham flower cake (云腿鲜花饼): the moringa flavor meets the contemporary demand for "healthy living", while the Yunnan ham flavor integrates the regional characteristics of Xuanwei ham in Yunnan, achieving a collision between the sweet taste of flowers and the savory flavor. These innovations are not a departure from tradition but a cultural adaptation based on contemporary consumer demand. They not only enrich the product system of flower cake but also make this traditional delicacy more in line with modern tastes, further consolidating the vitality of its cultural symbol.

Conclusion

Yunnan flower cake is not just a regional delicacy, but a concrete carrier of Chinese linguistic and cultural core. From the perspective of historical context, it developed from the ancient flower-eating tradition and precipitated into a regional characteristic delicacy through the two-way interaction between the royal court and the folk. In terms of cultural connotation, its formation deeply relies on Yunnan's natural endowments, integrates the dietary wisdom of multiple ethnic groups, and implies the traditional philosophy of "the integration of medicine and food". From the perspective of contemporary value, the living inheritance of intangible cultural heritage, the diverse expression of linguistic symbols, and the communication paths integrating e-commerce and cultural tourism have transformed it from a regional specialty into a cultural symbol with wide recognition. In summary, the development trajectory of Yunnan flower cake is not only a vivid microcosm of the "inheritance and innovation" of Chinese dietary culture but also confirms the important role of food carriers in regional cultural communication and the integration of multiple ethnic groups.

References

陈燕，王浩.非物质文化遗产视角下云南鲜花饼制作技艺的传承与创新 [J]. 食品工业，2022, 43 (7):256-260.

富察敦崇.燕京岁时记 [M]. 北京：中华书局，1981.

光明网.食上添花，秀色可餐 [EB/OL]. (2025-04-23). https://epaper.gmw.cn/wzb/html/2025-04-23/nw.D110000wzb_20250423_1-08.htm.

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Terms and Expressions

flower-eating culture 花食文化

the integration of medicine and food 药食同源

Shan Jia Qing Gong 《山家清供》

Yan Jing Sui Shi Ji 《燕京岁时记》

Jiqingxiang 吉庆祥

the Ancient Tea Horse Road 茶马古道

Dian Nan Ben Cao 《滇南本草》

simultaneous treatment and nutrition 食疗兼顾

intangible cultural heritage (ICH) 非物质文化遗产

the Torch Festival 火把节

the March Street 三月街

the integration of culture and tourism 文旅融合

moringa flower cake 辣木鲜花饼

Yunnan ham flower cake 云腿鲜花饼

Questions

1.What was the key opportunity for Yunnan flower cake to become a royal pastry of the imperial court in the Qing Dynasty?

2.Where are the roses for the core filling of Yunnan flower cake mainly produced?

3.What level of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) project has the production craftsmanship of Yunnan flower cake been included in?

4.How has Yunnan flower cake achieved modern innovation in contemporary society?

Answers

1.The rose cake made by folk pastry chefs was presented as a tribute by local officials in Yunnan to Emperor Qianlong, who favored it greatly. It was even decreed as a sacrificial offering to gods, thus upgrading from a folk delicacy to a royal pastry of the imperial court.

2.The roses for the core filling are mainly produced in Bajie, Anning, Yunnan. The double-petaled red roses here have plump petals and rich fragrance, which are the key source of the unique flavor of flower cake.

3.It is a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage (ICH) project.

4.Through three main approaches: firstly, e-commerce communication—brands have laid out online live streaming and short videos to break regional restrictions; secondly, integration of culture and tourism—launching "rose picking + production" experience projects; thirdly, taste innovation—launching varieties such as moringa and Yunnan ham to meet modern needs and consolidate the vitality of its cultural symbol.

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