On the 15th day of the Chinese eighth lunar month is the time when the moon is said to be at its fullest. To us Chinese, this is also the time of the year where we get to taste mooncakes!

These days we can also expect a new tasty flavoured mooncakes every time! Honestly I’m amazed at the variety we have to choose from every year. My favourite is the traditional Baked Mother of Pearl Mooncake with Single Yolk & White Lotus Paste from Raffles Hotel. $45 per box. What’s your favourite? From where?

But mooncakes these days don’t come cheap, so I figured I’d better keep a record of how to make mooncakes just in case. Here are some recipes to get you started.

Syrup for mooncake
Ingredients: (A)

• 1200g sugar
• 1kg water
• 1 lime - cut into 4 pieces, squeeze in the juice and put in the skin as well.
• 3 tbsp maltose

Method:
Put ingredients (A) into a pot and bring to a boil till sugar has dissolved. Lower heat and continue to simmer till thick and syrupy. Switch off the fire and add the maltose. Stir well to dissolve. Leave to cool and keep for use as syrup for the dough (skin).

Mooncake Pastry
Ingredients:

• 400g golden syrup
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 1/2 tbsp lye water (kan sui)
• 100ml peanut oil
• 550g flour

Method:
Pour golden syrup, bicarbonate of soda and oil into a mixing bowl. Add in lye water and mix with a wooden spoon. Fold in flour gradually and stir to form a firm dough. Let dough rest for five hours.

Lotus Paste Filling
Ingredients:

• 500g lotus seeds (seong lin)
• 1 1/2 tbsp lye water (kan sui)
• 340ml peanut oil
• 450g sugar
• 1 tbsp maltose
• 1 tbsp kao fun (cooked glutinous rice flour)

Method:
Add lye water into lotus seeds, mix well and leave aside for 20 minutes. Pour in boiling water and cover up for 20-30 minutes. Strain and wash the lotus seeds to remove the skin. Boil lotus seeds till soft. Put them into a blender with some water and blend into a thick paste. Heat wok with a quarter portion of oil and a quarter portion of sugar. When sugar turns light brown, put in blended lotus paste and the remaining sugar. Stir constantly until paste is smooth and thick in consistency. Add in the rest of the oil gradually. Keep stirring the paste until thick. Lastly, stir in maltose and stir well to blend. Sieve in 1 tbsp kao fun for a thicker and firmer consistency in the paste. Leave orernight before use.

Making of Mooncakes
Method:
Divide your dough into even pieces of 40g each. Roll the dough into a ball and flatten out with your hand. Weigh the lotus seed paste. If you like the yolk of salted eggs, you can insert one in the centre. Place the filling in the middle of the flat dough and slowly wrap around it. Seal the edges and roll dough lightly between your palms until the filling is hidden. Dust mould lightly with flour. Press dough ball into the mooncake mould. Knock the mould against the table to dislodge the mooncake. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees C for 10 minutes. Remove and leave to cool for 5 minutes. Brush on beaten egg glaze. Return to bake for another 10 minutes or till golden.

I hope this recipe will help someone out there too… If you have a mooncake recipe to share, feel free to add it here too. I’d love to pick up a few tips here and there.

Categories: Tips
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