As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, supermarket shelves are filled with various types of mooncakes, but I haven’t purchased them in a long time. The reason is simple: the mooncakes on the market are too sweet and rich for my taste. The meaning of the festival lies in the warm atmosphere; since the bought ones don’t meet my expectations, why not cook them myself and make a batch?
The ingredients needed are: 200 grams of flour, 15 grams of milk powder, 50 grams of blended oil, one egg, and 2 grams of lye water.
The process of making homemade mooncakes is both simple and fun. First, sift the flour and milk powder for later use, then mix the softened syrup with the lye water and oil until well combined. Next, knead this mixture with the sifted dry ingredients to form a dough, cover it with plastic wrap, and let it rest for 20 minutes to relax.
After the time is up, divide the relaxed dough and the pre-prepared filling into equal portions. Take a piece of dough, flatten it, place a small ball of filling in the center, and slowly wrap the edges of the dough up, pinching tightly to seal it and gently rolling it into a ball.
Next is the crucial step of shaping: first, sprinkle some flour inside the mooncake mold to prevent sticking, then gently knock out the excess flour, place the wrapped dough ball in, press it down firmly, and then remove it. This is how a mooncake shell is formed.
Lightly spray the surface of the mooncake shells with water mist and place them into the preheated oven. The first batch of mooncakes may not be bright in color and the surface may be a bit dry. Don’t worry; put them in a resealable bag and place them in the refrigerator’s cool section. After about a day or two, the mooncakes will go through a “retaining oil” process, at which point not only will their color become more appealing, but the surface will also become soft and delicious.
By making them myself, I can control the sweetness to suit my personal taste, and I can enjoy the festive fun during the making process, allowing this traditional delicacy to carry more warmth and memories of home.
