Chinese Moon Cakes with Lotus / Red Bean Paste

This is the recipe for the final, and successful, Moon Cake attempt.
Makes 8 small Cakes

Recipe


100g Flour
30g Peanut Oil
65g Golden Syrup
1/2tsp Alkaline Water (lye water)
Red Bean / Lotus Seed Paste

*Double boil Oil, Syrup, and Water until combined
let it cool
*When Oil mixture is just warm mix in flour
let dough rest, covered, for 30-45min
*Knead some Peanut oil into the desired
Paste. you want it to be slightly softer
than playdough
*Separate dough into 8 balls
*Roll out one ball, place 1-1 1/2 tsp
of Paste in the centre
*Wrap dough around paste and
gently push into mold, the idea
is to have the dough quite thin
*Using a hard surface, knock the
mold on each side, then knock the
Cake out
*Place on a baking sheet and bake
for 8 min at 325
*Cool oven to 200 then bake again
for 25-30 min
*Allow Cakes to cool, then place in
a container for 1-2 days to allow for
"the returning of the oil", this is when
the cakes regain their soft texture

** Alkaline Water can be found next to the sesame oil in most asian grocery stores, as can the pastes which are usually in the refridgerated section

The Chinese Autumn Festival is happening next month and you will always find Moon Cakes there. I made these ones last night.... although they look nice, the recipe wasn't the best, they came out quite hard on the outside.... I will source out another recipe and give it another go when I return from Portland.

This is Part 2 of the Moon Cake baking..... these ones are a combination of two doughs. They are very flaky and yummy, however they don't look so great. They puffed up during baking and don't look like the mould. Oh well... I'll keep looking for more recipes.

This is the third, fourth, and fifth attempts. I used yet another dough, this looking the consistency of marzipan. Here I tried a different thickness for each, as well as adjusting baking times. They all still managed to come out too hard or under cooked. In the end I believe that Moon Cakes are not my Forte. I would love to master them for the Mid Autumn Festival next month and for my friends birthday, but will let the task rest for now. If anyone knows of good recipe that results in an authentic Moon Cake please let me know.

Here is the sixth attempt at the moon cake. I confessed to my friend Elliot that I was trying to make Moon Cakes for him for his birthday, and the trouble I encountered with them. Elliot picked up his phone and immediately called his uncle who just so happens to make these yummy treats for a living!!! (I just love synchronicity) After a lengthy call and a few little notes I believe I have been given a couple of secrets that make these cakes possible. I have posted a pic here of this last attempt. You will notice the colour difference compared to the previous attempts, these look almost identical to the cakes you find in chinatown.