Cantonese Moon Cakes I

Holiday and Celebration Foods

Cantonese Moon Cakes I
Ingredients: 1 eighteen-ounce can bean paste
1/4 cup walnuts (or pine nuts)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup sugar
4 Tablespoons peanut oil
6 Tablespoons corn syrup
1 egg
Preparation: 1. Mix eight heaping tablespoons of bean paste with eight teaspoons of pine nuts for the filling. Divide into eight portions of filling.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, and sugar, and sift this twice.
3. Add peanut oil and corn syrup to the flour mixture; mix well, then knead until it becomes a soft dough. Divide into eight pieces.
4. Roll each piece into an eight inch circle leaving it slightly thicker in the center and thinner at the edges.
5. Place one portion of filling in center of the dough, gather the edges and form a ball.
6. Dust a moon cake mold with a little flour then press the ball into it and pat firmly. Turn the mold over, tap it until you have dislodged the moon cake. Repeat until all cakes are made. If you can not get a wooden mold, a muffin or popover tin works well.
7. Arrange the cakes on a lightly greased baking sheet and brush lightly with egg yolk. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for twenty-five to thirty minutes until golden brown.
Makes eight moon cakes.
Note: Bean paste usually comes in an eighteen ounce can and can be used for two or three recipes. Wrap any unused bean paste with plastic freezer wrap and put it in the freezer. It keeps about half a year.

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