Shanghai Mooncake with Purple Sweet Potato Filling
These Shanghai Mooncakes have a tasty shortcrust pastry. Combined with your own preferred homemade filling, they are great to be eaten with Chinese tea. They are even excellent enough to be gifted to family and friends. Best of all, you don’t need any special moulds to make them. Try out the RECIPE today!
Recipe by Mama Ding
Total Time | 1 hr 40 mins
Prep Time | 40 mins
Cook Time | 30 mins + 30 mins chilling time
Servings : 8 mooncakes
Ingredients
For the Pastry
120 g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter(softened)/lard/vegetable oil
40 g (1/3 cup) caster sugar or to taste
25 ml (1 1/2 tbsp) milk
200 g (1 3/4 cup) plain flour
10 g (1 tbsp) corn flour
pinch of salt
For the Filling
300 g Homemade Purple Sweet Potato Paste or other preferred paste
8 salted egg yolks, steamed for 10 mins or baked at 160 C/320 F for 10 mins
For the Egg wash
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp milk
1 heaped tbsp sesame seeds/melon seeds (topping)
Method
01 In a large bowl, sieve and mix together the flour, corn flour and salt. Mix well and set aside.
02 In a separate bowl, whisk the butter/lard/oil with the sugar and milk until well-combined. Add the butter mixture to the flour mix.
Mix well with a spatula until a soft dough is formed. Remove the dough from the bowl, wrap with cling film and chill in the refrigerator for 30 mins.
03 While the pastry dough is being chilled, prepare the paste for the filling. Divide and roll the paste into 35 g (1.2 oz) balls each. *
Flatten one ball of paste and wrap over one salted egg yolk inside. Make sure the salted egg yolk is well sealed with the paste. Repeat until all 8 balls of paste have egg yolks in the center.
Place the filling balls into a bowl. Cover with cling film and refrigerate until ready to be wrapped with the chilled pastry.
04 When it’s chilled enough, remove the pastry dough from the refrigerator. Lightly flour your work surface. Knead the pastry dough for a few minutes until softened. Form into 45 g (1.6 oz) balls of pastry.
Flatten one ball of pastry dough and wrap over one ball of filling (from step 03). Make sure each ball of filling is well sealed inside the pastry dough.
Roll them round before placing on parchment paper/cupcake liners.
Place all the mooncakes on a baking tray.
05 Preheat oven to 180 C/350 F (top and bottom heat). Place your baking tray of mooncakes into the oven and bake for 10 mins.
Remove from oven, rest for 5 mins then egg wash and top with melon seeds or sesame seeds.
Return to the oven and continue baking until golden brown, about 20 - 25 mins more.
06 Remove from oven and allow to cool. Store in a covered air tight container at room temperature. Best consumed within 3 days. Store in the chiller for up to 2 weeks or the freezer for up to 2 months. Defrost then toast them before consuming.
Notes
If you are not using egg yolks, make the filling balls 45 g (1.6 oz) each. You may add 50 g (1.8 oz) of toasted melon seeds to the filling before forming into 45 g (1.6 oz) balls, if preferred.
It is recommended that a kitchen scale be used to weigh and form the filling balls and the pastry balls for uniformity.