The Art of Moon Cakes

Bee DIY + Handmade

DSC01677 (1)Photos and recipe courtesy of i bake for you

If you’re Chinese or know anyone who is, you’ve probably noticed the big red boxes of mooncakes springing up in stores and homes around the world. The gorgeous boxes contain intricately made and packaged sweets that are sure to make you salivate! Thanks to the popularization of these decadent cakes, you can now find unique and modern adaptations, using chocolate, ice cream, pistachios, cheese or espresso beans! Seems like everyone wants to get on the moon cake train!

Mooncakes not only symbolize the moon at one of its roundest nights, but was used as a sacrifice for the upcoming change in seasons. If you’re interested in making your own and don’t mind a challenging (but oh, so worth it) recipe for “snow skin” mooncakes, we have just the thing!

Ingredients

makes about 21 medium moon cakes

Skin

  • 40g wheat starch (tang mien flour)
  • 300g fried glutinous rice flour (koh fun)
  • 245g icing sugar
  • 65g shortening (I used melted copha, a vegetable shortening)
  • 350ml cold water
  • matcha powder
  • yam/taro powder
  • vanilla extract

Custard (fake egg yolk)

  • 100g sugar
  • 25g corn flour
  • 20g low protein flour
  • 20g custard powder
  • 50ml coconut milk
  • 80ml milk
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 10g butter, melted
  • few drops of yellow coloring

Filling

  • 250g  of taro paste, or any other flavors you prefer
    Chinese markets generally sell pastes of lotus seed, green tea and red bean, to name a few

DSC01648Directions

  1. Make the custard first. Sift all the dry ingredients.
  2. Add the liquid ingredients apart from the butter.
  3. Add the melted butter when all is mixed.
  4. Steam for 30 mins or until cooked.
  5. Let cool, then roll into little balls that resemble egg yolks.
  6. For the snow skin, sift all the dry ingredients together.
  7. Split into bowls for as many flavors you’re making.
  8. Add matcha powder and other powders to bowls.
  9. Split the water into the bowls equally, as with the shortening.
  10. Add vanilla extract to taste.
  11. Mix until a dough is formed. If too sticky, add more fried glutinous rice flour until it can be handled.
  12. Wrap some of the filling around each ‘egg yolk’. Then wrap some of the snow skin around that. (I used the matcha snowskin with green tea paste, the vanilla snowskin with white lotus paste and the yam/taro snowskin with the taro paste). You should now have a three layered ball (outer snowskin, filling and inner custard ‘egg yolk’).
  13. Dust with fried glutinous rice flour. Dust the mooncake molds as well. Press gently into the molds and carefully remove.
  14. Refrigerate overnight, consume within a week.

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