Flaky Swirl Mooncake II

Not satisfied that I wrapped my moonies the wrong side up, I decided to attempt again with my durian lotus paste for my gal who loves durians. I purposely bought the durian lotus paste for her as she has been bugging me for durian mooncakes. So I tot why not home made for her as I can control the sweetness and freshly made.

I just realized I calculate wrongly for my oil dough, wondering how come my layers were not obvious and of cos, I wrapped the wrong way out. Today, I attempt again, 2X of the recipe used yday. I made 18 mini moonies today!

Today's Mooncake have more 'layering' looks. But it seems not perfect and as nice as those Ann made. Some other bloggers also have very nice swirls on their mooncakes as well. I need more practicing to perfect the looks. But at least my mini moonies looks better today!

Notes:

I 2X the same recipe used yday.

20g Water Dough + 10g Oil Dough + 10g Paste

Flaky Swirl Mooncake

I was wondering what to submit for Little Thumbs Up this month whereas the theme is Pandan. It came to my mind that I have been wanting to try and make the flaky Mooncakes but didn't have the chance. So I ended up using the recipe from AnncooJournal.

Anyway, it is my first time handling this type of dough, and I jus roll and fold twice, wrap based on 'agarration' (own estimations). I am pretty sure I did not do a good job in wrapping and doing justice to the recipe. Sorry Ann.

My end results, I wrapped the wrong side facing out. Readers, don't make the same mistake. After you flatten the dough, u wrap with the top facing outside!! Remember this. And I didn't wrap nice enough. But the taste is yummy, my kids are fighting over it. Will definetely attempt it again..

I'm linking this post to Little Thumbs Up : Pandan, hosted by Joceline from Butter, Flour & Me and organized by Zoe from Bake For Happy Kids and Doreen from my little favourite D.I.Y.

Flaky Swirl Mooncake (adapted from AnncooJournal)
*I only did 1/5 of recipe. 12 mini monies*

Water Dough

50g Plain flour

13g Shortening

10g Warm water + 6g sugar = stir well

10g Corn oil

1) Mix sugar with warm water, leave aside. Rub shortening into flour and make a well. 

2) Pour water mixture and corn oil and mix into a dough. Leave to rest 15mins.

3) Divide into 15g each, into 6 portions.

Oil Dough

30g Plain flour

2515g Shortening

1/4 tsp Pandan Paste

1) Combine shortening and plain flour, add in Pandan paste and knead into dough.

2) It's very sticky so I spread a little plain flour to dust while dividing into portions. I divide into 10g each, into 6 portions.

Assembling:

1) Divide 12 portions of 10g Low Sugar White Lotus Paste. Wrap oil dough with water dough.

2) Roll the dough out, and roll it up again. Flatten and roll out again, roll up like Swiss roll again. Cut into halve.

3) Flatten dough and wrap lotus paste, seal the ends. 

4) Bake at 200deg for 15mins.

Salted Caramel Snowskin Mooncake II

Today I am trying the same Mooncake for the second time. Yesterday the filling was so yummy but the snowskin did not 'play' it's role well and compliment it. Just felt tt it gotta be improve.

It came to my mind that chocolate or coffee goes well with the salted caramel filling. And I remembered I bought a caramel chocolate coffee powder over the weekend and I can use that for my skin. I also decided to use the ice cream soda snowskin recipe that I tried last year. I think the ice cream snowskin texture, with my caramel chocolate coffee, it will go well? On top of that, I remembered that I bought a box of Reese Peanut Butter Balls the other time. So, I gonna plant a little surprise.

I feel that the skin is softer, with the aid of 7-up. (Oh, I can't find ice cream soda, seems out of stock) And the filling, after fridging it, it seems more easy to work with. But once I get to my 3rd filling to wrap around the balls, it soften aldy. So u need to work a bit at a time, and fast too. So now, resting in the fridge, waiting for tonight's verdict. 

Verdict: Skin is softer, in my views. But once again, the filling still overtake the skin's filling. As per what I tried at the Mooncake fair held at Taka. I saw 2 hotels selling Caramel Mooncakes as well. And yes, their skin also same, tasteless and all you can taste is the caramel filling.. 

Ice Cream Soda Snowskin Recipe (adapted from AuntyYochana)

20g Kou Fen

1/2tsp Caramel Chocolate Coffee Powder

8g Icing Sugar

6g Shortening

40g Ice Cream Soda

1) Put dry ingredients in bowl, mix well. Add in shortening and mix together.

2) Make a well, pour in ice cream soda. Knead well to form a dough.

3) Weigh out preferred portion and wrap with filling. 

*i am using 23g dough for 1tsp salted caramel filling + 1 peanut butter ball

Salted Caramel Mocha Snowskin Mooncake

This is hubby's request and also 1 of the challenge posed to myself. We first tasted Salted Caramel Mooncake at SweetSpot from MBS. We both caught caramel poison, butterscotch or anything equivalent. 

The skin is not too sweet, so the overall taste is just nice. It is very fragrance, the caramel fragrance and it is so so soft. The texture of the caramel 'paste' or filling is much much softer than the usual Mooncake filling. Very nice!!

I told hubby I will take the challenge to replicate and has been browsing for caramel recipe. Anything tt catches my attention, anything tt could be 'solid' enough for me to wrap. I tried 2 recipes before and it couldn't really harden. Finally I found this, it is supposedly to be able to use for tarts etc. So, can anot?

I first cooked with caution, very scared cos it is very hot if u come into contact with the sugar syrup when u r cooking it. And I also scared it will splatter. Stress!! Finally it thickens, brownish in colour so I off the fire, strain and leave aside. I wrapped for the very first time, still too liquid and it keeps breaking up the Snowskin. 

I return to boil again, trying to make it thicker. (Source says to re-cook again if it is not thick enough) So another 20mins of cooking, it seems harder.. And finally I can wrap but with caution cos it seems so soft. I left it in the fridge to 'SET'... 

Verdict: I am using mocha flavoring to add to RedMan Snowskin Premix. Super lazy, yes I know.. But in the process of trying so I just want to try. Taste wise, salted caramel is nice and not too sweet. But the Mocha Snowskin a bit bitter so doesn't really compliment the skin. So my nxt trial, to find another suitable skin.. Yummy!!

Thick Caramel (adapted from HowToCookThat.net)

*recipe is halve*

500ml Milk

1Cup Sugar

1/2tsp Baking Soda

Vanilla Extract

1) Put all together and bring to boil. Then simmer over low fire. Strain off the foam/froth as you simmer.

2) leave to cool and it will thicken up

***Do refer to video from source adapted from if you want visual aids***

Piglets visiting again, by special request from daughter

This year, I got special request. 1 from my gal, she has been asking about it ever since she saw them from bakery. She is asking me to make the little piglets again. 

I did them last year, moulding them freehand and got a lot of comments from hubby lo. He says look like cows! Alamak.. So this year, I gave up! I bought the wooden piglet mould from Phoon Huat at $4. I decided to just throw my dough in, mould them and he will have nothing to say! Ha~

This year, mummy added 1tsp of Nutella to the piggies. So, it will be the kids' fav snack.. Irisa simply can't stop eating.... She can easily pop 3 piglet at a time... =)

Snowskin Mooncake - Last Batch for 2012

With the remaining paste in the fridge, I decided to finish them up and make them for 1 of my GF with some new ideas and inspirations from my friends in MFWL. Reference to previous post on the Snowskin recipe from DequeenKitchen, I made the above combination and had so much fun. Here is what I have done for each mooncake.

Flavours of Mooncakes:

White Kitty - Snowskin with White Lotus Strawberry Mochi

Kitty Head - Snowskin With White Lotus Paste

Yellow Kitty - Durian Snowskin with White Lotus Paste

*added 1tsp of durian essence to snowskin dough*

Beige Pooh Head - Red Tea Snowskin with White Lotus Paste

*replaced water with Pokka Red Tea*

Brown Doraemon - Chocolate Snowskin with Strawberry Truffle

*added 1tsp choc essence to snowskin dough, wrap strawberry paste with home-made baileys truffle*

Pink Pooh - Strawberry Snowskin with Strawberry Paste

*added 1tsp of strawberry essence*

Purple Kitty - Blueberry Snowskin with Strawberry Mochi Paste

*replaced water with Blueberry Juice, wrapped strawberry with strawberry paste*

Yellow Pooh - Durian Snowskin with Durian Truffle

*added 1tsp of durian essence to snowskin dough, wrap durian paste with home-made baileys truffles**





Piggy Mooncakes II

Attempted this little pigs for the last attempt, using the original mooncake recipe. Felt that the version of Maple Syrup makes the dough slightly drier and the chocolate version too. Perhaps the Coco powder could have been a reason too.

Today I made Chocolate Piggy and Original Piggy, both recipe from Christine's Recipes, just adding a teaspoon of chocolate essence as I do not want the coco powder to 'dry' out the dough.

Piggy Mooncakes (Reference to my post)

100g Plain Flour

60g Golden Syrup

1/2tsp Alkaline Water

28g Peanut Oil

Mix wet ingredients well

Make a well and add in flour, mix til mixture come together

Rest for 40mins

Mould into 15g balls. Use melon seeds as ears, choc rice as eyes

Bake at 160deg for 10mins, cooled and egg wash then baked another 10mins



Another Snowskin Mooncake Session

Today I used another recipe which a friend is using and can stay up to 5 days of softness. So I am trying it for the first time as I am making Baileys and Coffee Snowskin and dont want the Ice-Cream Soda to interfere.

The top 3 mooncakes are Baileys Snowskin with Choco Mint paste & Rednoir in center (left and right), Coffee Snowskin with Choco Mint Paste.

Center Pic is Green Tea Snowskin with Green Tea, Coffee Snowskin with Choco Mint & Yolk, Baileys Snowskin with Choco Mint & Home-made Choc Truffles

Last Pic is Baileys Snowskin with Choco Paste & Truffles, Green Tea Snowskin with Green Tea paste, Coffee Snowskin with Choco Mint

Snowskin Mooncake Recipe (adapted from DeQueenKitchen)

32g Kou Fen

30g Icing Sugar

1tsp shortening

45g Cold Water

*essence optional*

Sift Kou Fen & Icing Sugar into mixing bowl

Rub in shortening. Add in cold water and knead into dough

Weigh and measure each dough

*I use 20g dough + 20g paste



Baked mooncakes (Piggy version)

A dear friend kept asking me to have a go at the piggy so here they are, not so nice as what she has done but I prefer the round pigs version. They are easier and looks much nicer... I tweak the original recipe and added coco powder. And on top of that I also made original flavour, just maintain 100g plain flour for that.

Piggy Mooncakes  - Chocolate version (adapted from Christine's recipe)

90g plain flour + 10g Coco Powder

28g Peanut Oil

60g Maple Syrup

1/2tsp Alkaline Water

Mix wet ingredients well. Add in flour and mix well

Rest for 40mins

Shape them according to the shape you want

Bake at 160deg for 10mins, cool then bake again for 10mins

Traditional Baked Mooncakes (II)

before return oil

before return oil - close up

Here is the part 2 of my traditional Mooncake post. I tried out Christine recipe and did it without the glaze. It gives a light shade of brown which I believe it will darken a bit after 3 days when it return oil. Reason being, I seriously don't want to spoil the hello kitty flawless face again. =)

This time round, I mould them carefully and tried 1 with the milk tea paste I bought from Kwong Cheong Thye. Can't wait for 3 days already. I'm a super big fan of milk tea, bubble tea blah blah..

And this time I didn't halve since 12 seems the right amount of mooncakes for me to make but I only manage to make 10 mini mooncakes though the recipe says 12.

Traditional Baked Mooncakes ( Recipe from Christine)

100 gm plain flour

60 gm golden syrup

½ tsp alkaline water (aka lye water), available at Asian grocers

28 gm vegetable oil

1. Mix all wet ingredients together in a bowl

2. Weigh flour and make a well. Pour in wet ingredient and mix to a dough

3. Rest for 40mins before weighing dough into 20g

4. Wrap with ready-roll 20g paste and mould

5. Bake for 10mins, cool for 10mins

6. Brush with egg wash then return to bake for 10mins 

*i didn't egg wash them so I baked for 15mins for a darker tone