Recipe: The Regent Singapore’s Signature Mooncakes
Celebrate Asia’s Moon Festival with this Parma ham and nut mooncake recipe from The Regent Singapore, a Four Seasons Hotel.
Asia’s Mid-Autumn Festival, or more popularly referred to as Moon Festival, is an annual celebration that falls on the 15th day of the Chinese lunar calendar’s eighth month, when the moon is full (this year September 12th). The festival is a time for celebration that traditionally includes music and dancing, lantern lighting, and mooncakes. Mooncakes are intricate pastries that come in a variety of flavours. Here is one signature creation from The Regent Singapore, a Four Seasons Hotel that you can try at home. Several of the ingredients can be found in Asian supermarkets or specialty food stores.
Parma Ham and Pork Floss Mooncakes With Assorted Nuts
Mooncake Skin
400 g (4⅓ cup) cake flour
70 g (4¾ Tbsp) peanut oil
250 g (1 cup) Golden Lion syrup or corn syrup
3 g lye water
Mooncake Filling
Roughly 40 g (¼ cup) chopped roasted almonds
Roughly 100 g (¾ cup) chopped roasted walnuts
40 g (3 Tbsp) dried orange peel
150 g (1 cup) sesame seeds
100 g (3.5 oz) winter melon seeds
150 g (⅔ cup) sweet winter melon or honeydew
80 g (⅓ cup) sour plums (pits removed)
200 g (7 oz) Parma Ham or Prosciutto
150 g (5 oz) diced pork fat
50 g (1¾ oz) pork floss
5 g (1 tsp) chopped lime leaves
160 g (⅔ cup) water
2 tsp powdered sugar
3 tsp peanut oil
30 g (2 Tbsp) white rice wine
3 g (½ tsp) 5 spice powder
5 g (1 tsp) salt
10 g (2 tsp) sesame seed oil
300 g (1¼ cup) sugar
15 g (1½ Tbsp) Soya Sauce
2 tsp glutinous rice flour
1 tsp light soy sauce
Egg mix (1 egg yolk + 1 tsp water)
Preparation:
For the mooncake skin, mix those ingredients by hand and let it rest for an hour. Divide into portions of 45 g each.
For the mooncake filling, set aside the egg, Parma ham and pork floss. Mix the remaining ingredients in a bowl. Add just enough water to bind the mix. Divide into 140 g balls and set aside.
Add Parma ham and pork floss into the centre of the portion.
Wrap the mooncake skin dough over the filling. Spray a mist of water over the mooncakes and bake in a preheated oven at 200℉ for 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let them cool slightly (for 3 minutes) before brushing the mooncakes with the egg mix. Return the mooncakes into the oven and continue baking at 200℉ for another 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool on a wire rack and let them sit at room temperature for 3 days. The mooncakes produce oils during this time to bring about a rich, robust taste.
Serves 12
