KLUANG MOONCAKE BISCUIT

 Kluang Mooncake Biscuit

Mooncake Festival is approaching

and 

many bakers have already started baking Mooncakes.

Just feel like baking one for the season,

so I bake this,

following Kenneth Goh's recipe

As you can see,  Kluang Mooncake has a biscuit skin

which crumbles and melts in your mouth.

Kluang Mooncake Biscuit

400g self raising flour

80g powder sugar

1/2 tsp salt

80g butter

2 eggs, beaten

600g filling (red bean paste) - divide into 3 portions

                                                 & roll into 6" rods

egg wash:1 egg + a little water

Method:

1. sift flour, mix in sugar and salt

2. rub in butter

3. add beaten egg to combine (may need a little milk if the egg is small)

4. divide into 3 portions, roll flat & wrap the filling & shape

5. score the top of biscuits & brush with egg wash

6. bake in preheated oven 190'C for 30-35min

BRAISED SEAFOOD

Braised Seafood

This is an elaborate seafood dish,
not to be missed, especially during celebrations and festive seasons.
It was my late mom's favourite.

There is a variety of seafood used.
Many of these need tedious preparation.
Luckily all these can be prepared well ahead of time.

Sea Cucumber - takes 3-4 days to prepare

1. pour boiling water over the sea cucumber and soak overnight

2. next day, change the water & bring it to a boil, leave to cool

3. need to repeat (2) until the sea cucumber is soft enough to slit open

4. slit open the sea cucumber & clean the inside

5. boil in clean water again, cover & leave to cool

6. repeat (5) until the texture is right for cooking

7. once done, freeze the sea cucumber until required

Chinese Mushroom - 1 day ahead

1. soak the mushroom overnight

2. next day, drain and cut away the stems

3. add clean water to boil or steam until soft

Dried Scallop - 1 day

1. clean & steam the scallop with water until soft

2. freeze in its water

Fish Maw (I used fried ones) - prepare the same day

1. soak in hot water to soften

2. cut into bite size

Roast Pork

used for added flavour & fats (makes the mushroom soft & smooth)

Chicken Broth

Canned Abalone

1. open when ready to serve

2. keep the water & slice the abalone, or cut into cubes

3. no cooking required as cooking will toughen it

To bring together:

1. in a claypot, heat up a little oil

2. fry some whole cloves of garlic & few slices of ginger

3. add a few pieces of roast pork to fry

4. add the rest of the ingredients

5. pour in chicken broth, and bring to a boil

6. add abalone water from the can

7. taste & adjust the flavour with oyster sauce & dark soya sauce

8. if your prefer thick soup, add some corn flour mix with water to thicken

9. mix in the sliced or cut abalone to serve

PANETTONE II

Panettone

If you love sweet loaf with dried fruits,

you will love its

super soft,

mildly sweet shredded crumbs!

I love its colour too.

The original Panettone takes days to make.

This one takes 2 days.

I wish to express my thanks to

Ng Mee Teng 

for sharing this easy recipe.

Panettone

(enough dough for 3 x 13cm mould
or 5 x 11cm mould)

(A) Sponge Dough

185g bread flour

1/2 tsp instant dry yeast

115g water

(B) Fruits

180g sultanas or raisins

40g rum or orange juice

100g mixed peel

(C) Main Dough

500g bread flour

1&1/2 tsp salt

115g sugar

1&1/4 tsp instant dry yeast

zest from 2 oranges

1&1/2 tsp orange juice

1&1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

140g egg yolks (about 7 Nos)

120g water

115g butter, softened

Method

1) To prepare sponge dough 

     - mix all ingredients to form a dough

     - place in a bowl, cover & leave at room temperature min. 8 hours or overnight

2) To prepare fruits

     - mix all and toss to coat

     - cover & leave overnight

3) Next day, into the bread maker 

     - add main dough ingredients and sponge dough

     - bread dough cycle 1.30 hours including proofing time

     - last 2 min, add soaked fruits 

     - remove dough and place in an oiled large bowl, cover & leave for 45min

     - after 45min, fold the dough onto itself from 4 corners (twice)

     - leave to proof a second time for 30min

4) transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and divide dough into 3 portions

5) shape into a boule and place into a panettone mould

6) cover & leave to proof for 2 hours

7) cut a cross on the top of the risen panettone 

8) bake in preheated oven 170'C for 50-60min. Tent bread if brown too quickly

9) remove panettone from oven and brush its top with melted butter.

10) leave to cool and enjoy

TEOCHEW SPIRAL YAM MOONCAKE

Mooncake Festival
is just round the corner.

This time Kenneth Goh's
Teochew Spiral Yam Mooncake
has attracted me,
and I have made it with slight modifications.

Teochew Spiral Yam Mooncake

This recipe yields 6 mooncakes.

Filling Ingredients:

250g yam, peeled and sliced 

75g caster sugar

40g cooking oil, fried with sliced shallots for extra umph!

5-10g wheat starch 澄 粉 (optional, depend on the texture of yam after blending)

6 salted egg yolks, steam until cooked

1. steam yam until soft and tender

2. while yam is still hot, mash together with sugar & 1/2 of the oil 

    (Mash as fine as possible) can use a food processor to do the job.

3. if necessary, add wheat starch

4. in a wok, heat up the other 1/2 of the oil 

5. add yam paste to fry @ low to medium heat until it dries up and comes together in a ball

6. remove & set aside to cool 

Pastry:

Oil Dough

90g plain flour

50g  shortening

1) combine all ingredients and knead till well mixed, set aside to rest

Water Dough

100g plain flour

25g cooking oil

15g caster sugar

50g water

1/4 tsp vinegar

1) combine all ingredients and knead till well mixed, set aside to rest

Method:

1. divide yam paste into 6 portions, wrap the egg yolks and set aside

2. divide both the oil dough and water dough into 3 portions each

3. press flat the water dough, and wrap one portion of oil dough in each.

    You should have 3 balls of dough now.

4. take one ball and roll lengthwise as in the photo

5. then roll up as a swiss roll.

6. roll lengthwise a second time to create more layers, roll up again

7. use the spatula, cut the rolled dough in half, total you get 6 rolled dough 

8. press the roll dough down, and roll into a round

9. wrap a ball of filling into the rolled dough, seal the edges

10. place on a small pieces of parchment paper & continue with the rest

11. bake in preheated oven 170'C for 25min until slightly brown

12. leave to cool on wire rack

Note:

Originally, these spiral mooncakes were deep fried until golden brown 

to get that crispy outer skin. For health reasons, many have opt to baking them instead.

BREAD MACHINE MEAT FLOSS

A specialty 

enjoyed during Chinese New Year

and

As gifts to relatives and friends

This is a simple bread machine recipe 

which requires no fuss at all.

Bread machine Meat floss

400g meat, chicken or pork
2 Tbsp light soy sauce
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp Fish sauce
salt & pepper to taste
Knorr Aromat or chicken granules

Method:
1. boil meat until cook, let cool & shred into pieces
2. all ingredients into bread machine, JAM cycle
3. check on it every 20-30min to make sure it is evenly spread
4. floss is ready when cycle completes

Note:
I have prepared another version, in chunks!

 The meat is coarsely shredded & marinated before going into the bread maker.

Enjoy!

PEANUT PUFFS

Peanuts 

are popular during gatherings and get-together.

Skilful fingers of the olden days Chinese

 have their  peanuts roasted and

wrapped into sweet and crunchy little puffs.

These Kok Chai has passed down from generations.

These are definitely a traditional Chinese New Year Goodies,

still found in many homes

during this auspicious celebration.

It is a sign of abundance and wealth!

Filling:
to combine

100g peanuts, toasted & grounded
60g sugar

Dough

150g plain flour

1/4 tsp salt

45g oil

50g water

1. combine salt and flour
2. mix in oil
3. add water slowly until the dough comes together, knead awhile
4. rest dough while preparing the rolling tools
5. divide dough into 24 parts & roll to flatten each ball
6. put a teaspoon filling into the dough & fold 1/2, sealing the edges
7. pinch the sides as if pleating
8. deep fry puffs, strain & store in air tight container.

SINGLE PROOF PANETTONE

Single Proof Panettone

I tried Iginio Massari’s panettone recipe

Found in wildyeastblog.com. 

The panettone was so flavourful, nice and spongy, 

even though I did not get it done properly.

The 1st dough rose beautifully.
I thought maybe I could do something to shorten the waiting time
by incorporating some of the ingredients in the Final dough to it.

However, I still have to build The Stiff starter as stated in his recipe, no short cut!
This recipe yields 3 nos. 5.25” panettone.
Sharing with you this Single Proof Panettone adapted from Iginio Massari's recipe:-

Step 1
To build The Stiff Starter:
Sourdough is fed frequently & maintain at room temperature
to render it less acidic than a typical sourdough.
1. Convert SD to 50% hydration over several days
2. Once converted, continue feeding 4 hourly
3. Final feeding should be given 4 hours before mixing the dough

Method
1. convert sourdough from 100% to 50% hydration over several days.
2. Once achieved,
     mix 20g of 50% hydration sourdough with 20g flour & 20g water, ferment for 4 hours
3. Repeat feedings at 4 hour intervals,
     each time discarding all but 20g starter, and feed with 20g flour & 10g water
4. For nightly feeding before going to bed, use only 10g starter with 20g flour & 10g water
5. For last feeding (4 hours before mixing the dough),
     feed with 40g starter, add 40g flour & 20g water

INGREDIENTS

(A)  346g bread flour
        190g water
        1/2 tsp instant yeast
        83g sugar mixed with seeds from 1/2 vanilla pod
        55g egg yolk
        1.5 tsp diastatic malt powder
        83g salted butter, at room temperature
        86g stiff starter
        Zest from 1/2 orange

(B) 100-120g raisins, sultanas & orange peels

Glaze (optional)
83g granulated sugar
2 tsp ground almonds
1.5 tsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp corn flour
1,1/8 tsp cocoa powder
30g egg white

Topping (optional)
Powdered sugar
Swedish pearl sugar
Whole Blanched almond

Special supplies
Three 5.25” paper panettone mold
6 bamboo skewers to skewer through the molds

Method
1. Build sweet starter over a period of several days. Final feeding should be given 4 hours before mixing the 1st dough
2. In a stand mixer, combine all ingredients (A) and mix for 14-15min.
3. At the last 1 min of mixing, add the dried fruits & continue mixing until the mixer stops.
4. Divide and shape dough into 3 portions. Place into the panettone molds to Proof.
5. Proof for 5-6 hours,
     until the top of the dough dooms & the sides are about 1” below the top of molds.
6. Preheat oven 175’C with lower rack in the oven.
7. If glazing the panettone, whisk together all glaze ingredients.
     Brush generously over the top of the loaves.
     Sift powdered sugar generously over the top,
     then sprinkle with pearl sugar & garnish with blanched almond.
8. If not glazing, use scissors to snip an X on the top of the loaf & tuck a pat of butter inside.
     You can also leave it plain as shown in the photo above
9. Place loaves on the oven rack & bake for 35-40min until the tops are brown.
     Tent bread if the tops get too dark.
10. While the panettone is baking, set up the hanging apparatus.
       When bread is done, hang them as quickly as possible.
       Hang for at least 4 hours, up to overnight.

BAK KWA (PORK JERKY)

Bak Kwa

in Hockien is dried meat

is popular during Festive Seasons.

It is a must-have for Chinese New Year

These are sold in bags of 1/2 kg 

or 
boxes of one kilogram each

Nowadays, because of its rising cost,
it is also sold in pieces.

You can see them roasting the slices of meat in front of you

and you tend to believe they are fresh,

never realise that 

many of these were processed weeks ago or even months

Well, these meat slices are really tasty

and you will not stop at one slice!

You can eat it on its own,

with bread,
or as fillings for buns

You can actually make your own
at a fraction of the cost

baked in toaster oven 

1/3 of the recipe

Bak Kwa

400g minced pork
1 Tbsp cooking wine

2 Tbsp sugar

1/2 Tbsp dark soya sauce

1 Tbsp fish sauce

Glaze:

2 Tbsp maltose dissolved in some hot water (optional)

Or 

Honey or golden syrup

1) combine minced meat with all ingredients
2) stir with a spoon until the mixture turns gooey, takes about 2 min
3) leave to marinate in the fridge overnight, no need to cover

4) spread meat between 2 parchment paper, & roll to 2mm thick

5) peel off the top parchment paper & bake in preheated oven 150’C  for 3-5 min

6) glaze and bake again 3-5min 

7) drain away juice if any & turn over, glaze and bake 3-5 min

6) take care not to burn the meat!

8) when the desired colour is reached, cool on wire rack

Note:
I used my toaster oven to bake the bak kwa on 21Jan 2021 (2nd photo)

FOOCHOW PEANUT DUMPLING

It is the time of the year again

5th Day of the 5th month of the Lunar calendar

Duan Wu Zei

or

Zhongzi Zei as many prefer to call it


There is a story behind it, as Ellie Lee puts it:

Foochows 

make their rice dumpling with 2 simple ingredients,

glutinous rice & peanuts.

Today in Sitiawan

you can find Foochow dumplings with red bean paste filling

sold throughout the year

My late mother in law 

usually bought one big bundle of 30 dumplings 

to celebrate the occasion

My mom likes to make her own dumplings.

Foochow Dumplings is not readily available in Ipoh where we reside.

It is also the time of the year that all of us girls in the family
sit together to help wrap these dumplings.

If  you are interested 

I would like to share you the following recipe

Foochow Peanut Dumpling

1 kg glutinous rice, soaked overnight or at least 4 hours

200g peanuts, with skin on (boiled until soften)

2 tsp salt

2-3 tsp alkali water

400g red bean paste, divide into 20 balls of 20g each (optional)*

Bamboo leaves & hempstring

soaked in boiling water overnight to soften, cleaned

1. drain rice, add salt & alkali water, mix well

2. mix in 1/2 soften peanuts

3. fold bamboo leaf into a cone, add 1 Tbsp rice

4. put 1 ball of red bean paste in, & cover with more rice

5. fold the leaf to cover the cone & fold in the sides

6. use a hempstring to secure the sides. 

7. cook in a pressure cooker (beans function)

8. when cooked, remember to hang the dumplings up so that it will not be soggy

Homemade red bean paste filling

250g red bean

165g sugar

50g oil

Day 1

1. boil red bean until soft, use pressure cooker

    let cool overnight

Day 2

1. blend the beans until fine

2. fry blended beans with sugar & oil until mixture leaves the side of pan

3. let cool overnight

FOOCHOW (FUZHOU) NIAN GAO

Nian Gao in Mandarin
is New Year Cake, by direct translation.

Nian Gao
is a delicacy only available during Chinese New Year.

Foochow (Fuzhou) community
make their Nian Gao
different from other dialects.

It has additional ingredients
like taro (yam), peanuts and red dates.

Unlike traditional Chinese Nian Gao,
these are made with tapioca flour instead of glutinous rice flour.

Foochow like to cook with tapioca flour.
Their noodles Lonn Yen are also made from tapioca flour.

If you like to taste this authentic
Fuzhou Nian Gao
here is the recipe:

Foochow (Fuzhou) Nian Gao

(A) 8 oz yam, shredded

      1.7 oz peanuts, pre-boiled to soften

      some red dates, slit & soak awhile to soften

(B) mix together: 3.5 oz tapioca flour

                             1 Tbsp glutinous rice flour

                             1/2 tsp 5-spice powder

(C) 2.5 oz brown sugar

      1.5 oz white sugar

      6.75 oz water

      0.6 oz oil

      pinch of salt

1. Bring (C) to a boil, add peanuts

2. add yam & bring to simmer until almost dry, do not stir

3. remove from heat, mix in dry ingredients (B)

4. pour into a parchment lined steaming pan

5. arrange some red dates on the top of the cake & steam for 1-1.5 hr

6. let cool completely and chill until required

 Sliced Nian Gao

Pan fried Nian Gao

To serve:
1. slice nian gao into 1/4" thick
2. dip in beaten egg
3. pan fried until soft, serve

NIAN GAO

Nian Gao
年糕

A must for the Chinese New year celebration

especially the elderly

Nian Gao 

has the same sound as

'Every year growing'
連年高升

for children, it means growing taller every year
快高長大

for businesses, it means going to new heights every year
步步高升

Such an auspicious word

how can one miss it!

Nian Gao

200g glutinous rice flour

180g caster sugar

150g water

To prepare tins for steaming:

1. line tins or ramkins with either scalded banana leaves or parchment paper

2. if you are using banana leaves, make it double layer & secure with strings
3. Parchment paper can be easily removed from Nian Gao after 2 or 3 days

To prepare batter:
1) put 100g sugar into a small saucepan, heat up slowly to caramel

2) stir if you need to, to get a nice golden colour evenly

3) when sugar has melted, add a few spoons of water (from the 150g water), 

     Do not stir, switch off heat & allow it to cool

4) when it is almost cooled, add the balance of water into this syrup. stir to combine

5) mix glutinous rice flour & remaining sugar, slowly pour in the diluted syrup

6) mix well until fully combined. 

6) leave aside for 10-15min, stirring occasionally to make sure the sugar is dissolved
    and the flour has fully incorporated

7) pour into prepared ramkins & steam in a slow cooker for 3-4 hours

Note:
the longer you steam the darker the colour of nian gao

When the Nian Gao has cooled down overnight
you can remove the gao from the container & trim the leaves

If you are eager to taste it,
1) buy some fresh grated coconut
2) mix in some salt, toss well
3) use a pair of chopsticks to twist out some gao
4) coat it with the grated coconut like this:

Enjoy!

MELT-IN-THE-MOUTH ROSELLE BITES

We love melt-in-the-mouth cookies.

I have this little Roselle Bites 

to share with you.

When you bite into these mini cakes,

you will be surprised to taste the sweet and a little sour roselle filling.

However, roselle filling is bright red 

which is an auspicious colour for the Chinese New Year!

I have adapted this recipe from Sonia a.k.a. Nasi Lemak's recipe

Roselle

Roselle Bites

175g butter

50g condensed milk

255g all purpose flour

1 egg yolk

egg wash: 1 egg yolk+1 tsp milk

Roselle Filling, roll into little balls

1. cream butter and condensed milk till light

2. add in egg yolk, beat until combined

3. fold in sifted flour, mix to a soft & not sticky dough

4. roll into 8g balls & wrap filling

5. arrange on parchment lined baking tray, apply egg wash

6. bake in preheated oven 165'C for 25min until golden

7. cool completely before storing

Roselle Filling: 375g fresh roselle flowers

                           70g sugar

                           250g water

                           1/2 lemon

1. remove & discard seeds from roselle, rinse

2. remove skin & chop flesh of lemon

3. bring roselle, lemon flesh, water to a boil

4. continue cooking @ low heat, stir from time to time

5. when water has reduced, add sugar & continue cooking, stirring

6. cook till mixture comes together into a lump, remove & let cool

ALMOND CRISPS

These Almond Crisps are so crispy and nice

that no one can resist.

It is so addictive that you can finish the whole jar without you realizing it!

It is a must bake for me every Chinese New Year

If you prefer seeds

you can very well add or replace some of the almond slices as shown below:

Almond Thins

200g Florenta or Bienatta sugar

400g almond flakes

1) preheat oven to 160'C & line a baking tray with parchment

2) mix together bienatta sugar & almond flakes

3) scoop mixture onto lined baking tray, spread evenly (make sure 

4) bake for 10-12min until golden brown

5) remove from oven

6) use a pizza cutter or knife to cut into squares

7) when slightly cooled, transfer from baking paper to cool on wire rack.

8) store in air tight container

KUIH KAPIT

Kuih Kapit

fondly called Love Letter

is traditionally made and enjoyed 

during Chinese New Year Celebration

Nice to eat

but

not easy to make

as it takes a lot of effort and patience

For so many years,

my mother has been getting us children together

to make these Kuih Kapit

every year without fail

Kuih Kapit making is time consuming

It may take the whole day sitting in front of the hot charcoal stove!

Like most of the elderly

my mother does not have a recipe for Kuih kapit.

It is based on her memory, 

the look and the feel of the consistency of the batter.

The beauty of it 

is it works every time!

With my new toy

the electric Kuih kapit Toaster,

I have consulted her

and

through several trials and error

I have finally come out with this recipe

A word of caution:

This recipe works with the electric toaster

but may not work with the traditional tong method.

Kuih Kapit

50g rice flour

20g plain flour

10g tapioca flour

200g thick coconut milk, adjust consistency

1 AA egg

50g sugar

180g water, to adjust consistency of batter if necessary

1. beat egg & sugar

2. add coconut milk & mix well

3. stir in sifted flours, mix well & strain batter, allow to sit for an hour

4. heat up the electric toaster, oil the surface

5. pour 1.5 -2 teaspoon batter onto the centre of each mould, cover & toast

6. when colour turns brown, fold the biscuits into 1/2, then 1/4 while it is hot

7. leave to cool before storing

8. continue with the rest of the batter until finished

Note:
Electric toaster does not work as the traditional tongs,
so the following precautions need to be taken:
1. control the amount of batter pouring onto the mould 
    so that it does not overflow
2. not possible to make sure that it is a perfect round, 
    so need to use your artistic mind to fold it to look like one!
3. edges may not be smooth as you can see from the photo,
    if you are particular about it, trim it while it is still hot.

SYRUP FOR MOONCAKE

Syrup

 

can be bought from Bakery Shops

either 

homemade type or the Branded Golden Syrup

I have used both in Mooncake making

If you like to try 

making some yourself

which I usually do if I have the time

This is the easy recipe:

SYRUP

300g sugar

200g water

4-5 slices lemon

Method:

1) all ingredients into a saucepan & simmer until golden colour

2) remove dried lemon slices

3) keep for 2 weeks before using

TRADITIONAL MOONCAKE

The 15th day of the Eigth month

In the Chinese calendar

Is 

 the Lantern Festival
or 
widely known as
Mid-Autumn Festival

In the olden days

when we were young

We liked to parade with colourful lanterns 

Which came In different shapes and combination of Colour
all of them had the shape of

birds, flowers, rabbits etc

The best part was

we could choose animal or shape what we like

because mummy always brought us to the shop to buy 

As time went by

battery operated lanterns had been introduced

It was more convenient

not like those days when the candle light

could easily been blown off with the slightest wind

We preferred candle lit ones

because we could buy new ones every year
while battery operated ones were made to last!

Mid-Autumn Festival

Is 

a time for family reunion

The family would gather after dinner
to

enjoy the different types of mooncakes 

and seeping their favorite Chinese tea

Children would have their own programe
Together with their cousins
they lighted their lanterns
and

paraded up and down the road
singing and playing

Making Mooncake can be a tedious job

Nevertheless,

 I am anxious to make

especially 

during this Festive Season

where the whole town is talking about it.

I learnt to make Mooncake quite sometime ago

in a local Community Centre

The method could be old

but 

I have used the modern appliances

to speed up the job!

TRADITIONAL MOONCAKE

Ingredients for Skin:(12 pices)

215g Plain Flour 

60g peanut or corn oil 

140g syrup 
3/4 tsp alkali water 

Filling:

A) 12 salted egg yolk

B) 12 portion of 100g each of Lotus seed paste or red bean paste

     12 tsp of melon seed, roasted

C) egg wash: 1 egg yolk+1 tsp water, strain before using

Method:

1) mix ingredients for skin & leave aside for 3 hours or more

2) clean salted egg yolk with some chinese wine to remove the smell

3) drain and steam egg yolk for 20min until cooked, let cool

4) add 1 tsp melon seeds to a portion of the lotus seed paste & press in

5) wrap an egg yolk inside, make into a ball & put aside

6) after 3 hours, divide skin into 35g each (12 balls)

7) press a ball on your palm & put one filling ball in the centre

8) wrap round the filling by slowly pushing the pastry up & pressing in the filling

9) when completely covered, sieve some flour on the wooden mould 

10) sieve flour on the ball on your hand too, especially the sides

11) press the ball into the mould firmly

12) knock on the side of mould twice, front once & the mooncake will be out

13) leave on a piece of grease proof paper, on the baking tray

14) when all done, bake in preheated oven 180'C for 5-8min

15) remove & quickly spray water on the cakes, let cool for 10min

16) egg wash cakes & bake for another 20min until brown

17) leave to cool on wire rack

Note:

1) The skin will not break easily if you rest the dough at least 3 hours or more

2) mooncake needs to be cooled down immediately after 1st bake

3) how the mooncake look depends on your egg wash. Do not brush too much

4) mooncake taste best when eaten after 1 to 2 days