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Moon cakes are traditional Chinese pastries that are made during the Moon festival (or Harvest Festival), which is celebrated in China, Vietnam, and other countries in Asia. The 15th day of the Eighth month in the Chinese calendar marks the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the moon is claimed to be the fullest and brightest of the entire year. As a tradition, family members will get together to admire the full moon and the beautiful lit lanterns, as well as enjoy pomeloe and mooncakes with tea.

Moon cakes are usually round and contain a sweet filling, with the most common one being red bean paste. Serve mooncakes with Chinese tea to aid digestion. Chinese tea contains no calories. Teas such as Oolong Tea and Green Tea provide antioxidant effects, thus providing double health benefits.

Green Tea Recipes

Makes 10 Moon cakes

Nutrition Facts:
Serving Size: 50 g (1 moon cake)

Calories  170
Fat 4.3 g
Carbs 27.7 g
Protein 5.1 g
Sodium  12.4 mg

Green Tea Flavored Layer Moon Cake Recipe

Ingredients:

Water dough

100 g all purpose flour
1/4 tsp white vinegar
25  g shortening
15 g sugar
50 g water

Oil Dough

90 g all purpose flour
50 g shortening
1/2 tsp matcha green tea powder

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients for water dough until it forms a soft dough. Let rest for 20 minutes then divide into 4 balls. Set aside.

2. For oil dough, mix all the ingredients then divide into 4 balls. Set aside.

3. Wrap water dough over oil dough, repeating with the rest of the balls.

4. Take one dough and roll out flat to about 1/8 inch thin. Once rolled out, roll up like a swiss roll.

5. Roll out again and roll into a swiss roll (altogether two times). Divide the roll into 2.

6. Take the cut out dough with cut side up and roll into a circle, big enough to cover the filling.

7. Measure about 100 g of filling for each ball.  Wrap the dough over the filling. This will yield 8 mooncakes of about 2 1/2 inch diameter.

8. Bake at 400F oven for 15 minutes.

9. When done take out from the oven and remove from the tray and put on another plate upside down in front of fan or air cooler to cool.

10. This will help to cool the cakes and also the oil will drip to the top which will give the shiny look to the moon cakes.

11. Keep these mooncakes until completely cool and then keep in a covered box for atleast 2-3 days.

Green tea Cold Skin Moon Cake Recipe

Ingredients:

Cold Skin:
160g icing sugar, sifted
25g shortening
125g water mix with 1 tsp of green tea powder, strain)
1/2 tsp salt
50g evaporated milk
110g Koh Fun (cooked glutinous flour – method for homemade is at bottom of page), sifted twice
50g cornflour, sifted twice

Paste:
1kg Red Been paste

Instructions:

To prepare Cold skin:

Rub shortening into icing sugar until they resemble coarse breadcrumbs.

Stir green tea into icing sugar mixture and mix well with a spatula.

Add in evaporated milk, salt, Koh Fun and cornflour. Mix to a soft and smooth dough and stand it for 10 minutes.

Cook in the microwave on high 1 min at a time until dough is cooked and stir after every minute.

Let dough cool before moulding into mooncakes

To prepare mooncake paste:

Using small mooncake moulds, divide ping pei dough to 15g – 25f(depending on your preference of whether a thicker skin is desired).

Lightly flour your hands with koh fun. Knead each portion until it is not sticky

Roll into a ball .

Divide tau sar paste into 45 – 50 gm(the square mould need slightly more) Knead each portion a little and form each into a ball .

Lightly flour (using koh fun) your hands. Flatten a ping pei dough on your palm to be a 2-inch circle. Press to make the edges thinner than the central part . Place a ball of paste. Start pushing the paste against the dough . As you push the paste, the dough will start enlarging . Wrap up the mooncake. Roll into a ball .

Lightly flour the mooncake mould. Place mooncake, seam side up, in mould. Flatten mooncake to conform to shape of mould. Bang upper, lower, left and right sides of mould to dislodge the mooncake .

Repeat to shape remaining mooncakes.

Refrigerate ping pei mooncakes for at least 1 hour before serving.

HOMEMADE ‘KOH FUN’

Steam the plain glutinous rice flour for 1/2 hour.

Remove and put in a microwable glass bowl which has been lined with greaseproof paper.

Microwave on high 1 minute at a time until rice is slightly brown(time depends on the amount of rice flour)

Assembling your moon cake:

1. Wrap each portion of filling with a portion of snow skin.
2. Press into mooncake mould.
3. Knock out and chill before serving.

 

Green Tea Snow Skin Moon Cake Recipe

Ingredients:

For Snowskin Dough:

250g RED MAN Snow Skin Premix
100g Ice water
50g shortening
1 tsp Green Tea Powder

For Mooncake Paste:

500g Green Tea paste
25g Melon seeds, lightly baked
15g Pumpkin seeds (Optional)

Instructions:

1. Add ice water to the premix and green tea powder to form a soft dough. Do not add all the water at one go. Check for consistency before adding more ice water in.

2. Knead in the shortening. Ensure that no lumps are formed and the dough becomes smooth.

3. Leave the dough aside to rest for about 30-45 minutes in a cool, dry place (or chill in the fridge).

4. Meanwhile, spread green tea paste on a piece of plastic sheet. Spread melon seeds on the paste and roll the paste up like rolling a swiss roll. Spread the paste and roll it up again to make sure melon seeds are nicely “embedded” in the paste.

5. Divide mooncake paste into 20 portions of about 26g each. Knead each portion a little and form each into a ball.

6. Divide the rested dough into 20 portions of 20g each. Knead each portion a little and form each into a ball.

7. Flatten a snow skin dough on your palm to be a 2-inch circle. Press to make the edges thinner than the central part.

8. Place a ball of paste. Start pushing the paste against the dough. As you push the paste, the dough will start enlarging.

9. Wrap up the mooncake and roll into a ball.

10. Place the ball into the mould and press until a flat surface is achieved.

11. Knock out the shaped mooncake from the mould by lightly knocking in all directions with one hand and using the other hand to catch the dislodged mooncake.

12. Immediately chill the mooncakes in an airtight container.