Re: Product Review: Moon Rabbit Foods Pastry Pie Crust Mix
Stefania Sholar
Most mooncakes consist of a thick, tender pastry skin enveloping a sweet, dense filling, and may contain one or more whole salted egg yolks in their center that symbolizes the full moon. Depending on the custom, mooncakes may also be steamed or fried.
Traditional mooncakes have an imprint on top consisting of the Chinese characters for "longevity" or "harmony", as well as the name of the bakery and the filling inside. Imprints of the Moon, the Chinese goddess of the Moon (Chang'e), flowers, vines, or a rabbit (symbol of the Moon) may surround the characters for additional decoration.
Traditional mooncakes vary widely depending on the region where they are produced. Most regions produce them with many types of fillings, but with only one type of crust. Although vegetarian mooncakes may use vegetable oil, many mooncakes use lard in their recipes. Three types of mooncake crust are used in Chinese cuisine:[citation needed]
Over time, both the crusts and the composition of the fillings of mooncakes have diversified, in particular, due to a commercial need to drive up sales in the face of intense competition between producers and from other food types. Part of these trends are also to cater to changing taste preferences, and because people are more health-conscious. Therefore, most of these contemporary styles are especially prominent amongst the cosmopolitan and younger Chinese and amongst the overseas Chinese community. However, traditional mooncakes are often sold alongside contemporary ones to cater to individual preferences.[14]
Some of the earliest forms of diversification were by changing the fillings with ingredients considered unusual then. Taro paste (芋泥, yù ní), pineapple and durian were amongst the first to be introduced, especially amongst the overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asia.[citation needed] The crust itself also evolved, particularly with the introduction of "snow skin mooncake". It is different from the traditional mooncake - the snow skin mooncake needs to be stored inside a refrigerator and is white on the outside. Traditionally the colour white means something bad in China, for example, people will wear a white collar to a funeral. However, this kind of white coloured mooncake is popular with teenagers.[15] Miniature mooncakes also appeared, in part to allow for easier individual consumption without the need to cut the large cakes.
Traditional Chinese delicacies such as ginseng and bird's nest were soon followed by abalone and shark fin. Foreign food companies have also tried to cash in. Häagen-Dazs were one of the first to create an ice-cream mooncake, with a choice of either the "traditional," snow-skin, or Belgian/Swiss white, milk, and dark chocolate crusts. Other ice-cream and restaurant chains soon followed up with their own versions. Other Western ingredients, including champagne ganache, malt whisky, volcanic-salt caramel and even Black truffles, caviar and foie gras have made it into mooncakes.
Vietnamese mooncakes have two basic parts: crust and filling. The ingredients usually consist of: jam, dried sausage, mung bean paste, salt, sugar, cooking oil, sugared lard, lotus seed, watermelon seed, etc. Compared to other variants, Vietnamese mooncakes' flavor is more on the sweet side. Thus, to balance it, salted egg yolk is often added. They can be baked or eaten immediately.
Bánh nướng (baked mooncake) is made from wheat flour, cooking oil, and simple syrup boiled with malt. After being filled with various combinations of salted egg yolk, dried sausage, mung bean paste, salt, sugar, cooking oil, sugared pig fat, lotus seed, watermelon seed, it will be brushed with egg wash, then baked in the oven. The egg wash will protect the crust of the cake from drying out and create the aroma of the cake. The cakes have to be rotated constantly in the oven to prevent burning.
Bánh dẻo (sticky rice mooncake) is easier to make than bánh nướng. The crust and filling are pre-cooked. The crust is made from roasted glutinous rice flour, pomelo blossom water or vanilla and simple syrup. After malaxating rice flour, fillings similar to that of baked mooncake is stuffed inside the crust and then the cake is put into the mold dusted with a thin layer of flour to prevent sticking to fingers. The cake can be used immediately without any further steps. However, bánh dẻo is not as popular as bánh nướng.
The most traditional mooncake found within Taiwan resembles those from southern Fujian. Taiwanese mooncakes are filled with sweetened red bean paste, sometimes with mochi in the center. The most common traditional mooncakes coming from Taiwan are filled mung bean (lu dou) or taro paste, generally with a salted duck egg yolk in the mung bean mooncakes, and either salted duck egg or a savory treat in the taro mooncakes. They typically have a flaky crust and are spherical in shape. Instead of the imprinted pattern on top common in Cantonese versions, Taiwanese mooncakes have a red stamp typically in celebratory Chinese character.[22] Modern, more trendy Taiwanese moon cakes are wide in variety that include low fat, lard free and ice cream versions. Popular modern flavors include green tea, chocolate, strawberry and tiramisu.
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