It’s time for the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, and you (should) know what that means: mooncakes!
A few years back, I had no idea about the delights of mooncakes. I went into a Chinese bakery in my neighborhood and spied a tray of intriguing golden-brown cakes. The woman behind the counter explained that they were mooncakes, and that they were filled with red bean or lotus paste, and usually salted duck egg yolks. “Do you want one, two, or no egg yolks?” she asked. “Ummm, none,” I answered. “None! You have to have at least one,” she countered. I ended up with a double yolker; it was delicious.
Now, with the help of bloggers, I can make my own homemade mooncake. Maybe I’ll decide to make a flour-based crust, like Su-Yin of the Journal of a Girl Who Loves to Cook. Or maybe, like Swee, “A Self-Proclaimed Foodaholic,” I’ll attempt the snowskin mooncake with its wrapper made of glutinous rice flour. On the other hand, Sparklette.net’s roundup of unusual mooncakes makes a strong argument for seeking out a great retail outlet for them.
For some, however, it’s just as well that the Mid-Autumn Festival comes but once a year.
What does it taste like?
Mooncakes are a fairly simple sweet. The taste varies according to the filling; my fave is lotus, but the black bean is also pretty good. The traditional crust, which totally surrounds the cake, is very thin, and mildly sweet. The lotus filling is … subtle, with an almost bean-y consistency, and the egg yolk is creamy and rich. Great with tea. The only variety I never cared for (not mentioned in the OP) was the nut and coconut.