Mooncakes with Red Bean Filling

This classic mooncakes with red bean filling recipe is a softer milky style. It is less sugary, and in a perfect bite size. It is great to pair with a cup of tea or coffee while enjoy the beautiful view of moon. The legend tells the moon on the Mid-Autumn night is the most beautiful one in the year.

Why It Is Classic?

To the millennials and boomers, the classic mooncakes are the golden pastry with sweet paste fillings. The fillings could be vary, the most popular ones are red bean paste, lotus seeds paste, and five nuts. Back in the early 90’s, the Guang Dong style mooncake with the salted egg yolk filling flushed into the market. It is so delicious and delicate, and becomes popular drastically in China over night.

What is Mid-Autumn Festival?

There are many legends about mid-Autumn Festival. I always believe the most romantic one is the true one. Long long time ago, there were 10 suns, one of them comes out each day, and the 10 suns rotates. One day, the 10 suns want to come out play together in the sky. It caused the entire earth to become so hot and dry, the corps cannot survive and people are dying. Hero Hou Yi climbed up to the top of Kun Lun mountain, and used all his power and energy to shoot nine of the suns down by bow and arrow. Then he ordered the last one to come out in the sky every single day on time and goes back at night.

Hero Hou Yi soon got married to Chang E, she is beautiful and lovely. One day, the queen of the gods granted a reward to Hou Yi with a magic medicine, which can make human becomes god and live forever. Hou Yi loves  his wife Chang E, but he only has the magic medicine for one. So he asked Chang E to keep it in a safe place, and not to take the medicine alone. Since Hou Yi’s braveness and excellent skills, many students are coming from far places to take lessons. One of them is Peng Meng, he heard about the magic medicines and plans to steal it. One day, when hero Hou Yi is out, wife Chang E found Peng Meng was sealing the magic medicine, she tried to stop him, and accidentally took the medicine herself. She becomes the goddess right away and flew to the moon.

Hou Yi tried to chase the moon, but when he runs towards to the moon, the moon backs down. No matter what, he cannot catch up the moon. He looks at the moon, and vaguely can see Chang E’s shadow. He misses Chang E so much, and set up the table with fancy fruits and pastries at Chang E’s favourite back yard to worship to the moon.

Since then, people worships to the moon on Mid-Autumn Festival.

Ingredients for Mooncakes:

Filling:

Red Beans: 1 cup
Sugar: 3 tbsp
Heavy Cream: 1/2 cup
Butter: 2 tbsp

Wrapper Dough:

Cake Flour: 2 cups
Unsalted Butter: 1/2 cup
Icing Sugar: 1/2 cup
Egg Yolk: 1
Vanilla Extract: 1/2 tsp
Condensed Milk: 2 tbsp

Egg Wash:

Egg yolk: 1
Water: 1tbsp

Equipment:

50g Mooncake Press
Kitchen Scale (Optional)

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cooking Time: 80 mins
Total Time: 1hr and 40 mins
Serving: 16 bite size mooncakes

Instructions for Making Mooncakes:

1. Wash the red beans, then soak it with 2 cups water over night.
2. Steam the red beans for 60 mins on medium high heat.
3. During the time, prepare the wrapper dough.
4. In a medium bowl, add 1/2 cup half melted butter (I microwave the butter for 30 seconds).
5. Then add icing sugar, condensed milk, vanilla extract, and 1 egg yolk, mix well.
6. Add cake flour, and knead it into a dough, then cover it with a plastic wrap, set aside.
7. Once the red beans are steamed. Heat a pan in low heat (as low as possible), add 1 tbsp butter, then add all red beans in the pan.
8. The red beans are very soft at this point, add 3 tbsp sugar and 1/2 cup cream, then mush it all together. I prefer the red bean paste with a little bit lumpy texture, so I will leave some of the red beans in small chunks.
9. Once it is all mushed, add 1 tbsp butter after turn off the heat, mix well.
10. Then place it in a medium bowl, let it cool down, cover with a plastic wrap.
11. Preheat oven to 375F.
12. Weigh 25g of the filling, and roll it into a ball shape. Repeat to complete the rest 15 filling balls. Same with the dough, weigh 25g of the dough, and roll it into a ball shape, repeat to complete the rest 15 wrapper balls.
13. Press the wrapper dough ball in the palm, and make it into a wrapper. Then wrap it over a filling ball, seal it to a ball shape. Roll the ball in the palm to make it round and firm. Repeat the process, and complete the rest 15 balls.
14. Brush the mooncake mold with a bit cooking oil, then place the ball into the mold. Press the mooncake down on a back sheet in a baking pan.
15. Repeat the process and complete the rest 15 mooncakes.
16. Bake 8 mins at 375F.
17. In a small bowl, add 1 egg yolk and 1 tbsp water, mix well to make the egg wash.
18. Take the mooncakes out after 8 mins till the shapes are set, then brush the egg wash, place it back to the oven for another 8 mins.
19. Once it is done, ready to serve. leave it over night in a sealed container for the best result.

Tips for Making Mooncakes:

• The dough is a bit sticky at first, I use gloves when knead it into a dough. I will become non-stick once the dough set aside for a while.
• If you do not have a kitchen scale, use a table spoon for the dough and filling balls.
• For the fillings, if you prefer the smooth style, mush the filling by using a mixture or a blender.
• If you over cooked the fillings, no worries, add 2 tbsp milk to the filling, it will become softer.
• To prevent the stickiness of the mooncake mold, brush a little bit cooking oil before first use. I only brush once, this is to avoid over oil the mooncake.
• When pressing the mooncake, make sure it is firm, press twice, then push the mooncake out slowly to make a nice and clear pattern.
• Brush the egg wash after 8 mins baking, this is to set the patterns on the top of the mooncakes. If the mooncakes are too soft, the patterns would be ruined easily.
• Mooncakes are easily burn, keep an eye on it when it reaches 15 mins. Some ovens are little bit warmer. I use middle rack for backing. Once the bottom of the mooncake are turning golden, it is ready to be taken out.
• Heavy cream can be replace with regular coffer cream or table cream.

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