The Chinese are not known for their desserts, which include bad (as in flavorless) imitations of French pastries (you've heard the expression, "lipstick on a pig"? In this case, whipped cream is lipstick). But I've found one Chinese dessert I quite enjoy -- black sesame glutinous (sticky) rice balls (or simply, balls, as I like to call them; don't get any ideas, this is a PG blog).
Served hot, four (or so) balls arrive in a bowl of warm water or some kind of rice wine syrup (I prefer water; the Chinese aren't great at wine either, although there's been a recent push to market their liquor. I digress). You start by taking a nibble to make sure they've cooled. The outer layer is sticky rice, a lot like mochi if you've ever tried that (and if you haven't, order it after your next sushi meal). Unlike mochi, which comes cold and has ice cream at its center, these balls have a sweet black sesame filling that oozes out as you bite down. I love the contrast in textures, the sticky rice and the liquid center, and the sweet against the neutrality of the sticky. Our visitor liked them too (check out Kira's answer to the "best meal" question).
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Although I first had these at a restaurant, I quickly found out that you can find them in grocery stores and they've become a staple in our freezer ever since (boil water, drop a few in, and ta da!).
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