What comes to your mind when you think of the Mid Autumn Festival? That’s right. The once in a year celebration is just round the corner, and the delicacy that comes to your mind is none other than the mooncake, am i right? Speaking of mooncakes, there are so many varieties these days.
There are the traditional mooncakes, the one with the egg yolk inside tucked in brown doughy skin. The sweet lotus paste filling makes it just right for any sweet tooth. It might be harder to find nowadays but you can also get red bean filling mooncakes at those traditional bakery.
The round shape egg yolk in the middle? These buttery salted egg yolk just makes a mooncake even better. It tone down the sweetness and added an additional chewy texture. Don’t you think that it looks like a moon which is so relatable in this festival? If you enjoy eggs like me, get the double egg yolk version. Things are always better in pairs, aren’t they?
Next, there are the ice cream mooncakes, the ones that melt in your mouth which is perfect in our scorching hot weather. The crust is often made from chocolate and the fillings can be any flavor of ice cream you like. Cookies and cream, rum and raisin?
This fusion of the eastern mooncake and the western ingredient ice cream is popular worldwide. Especially for young people who doesn’t enjoy the traditional type. You can even find “egg yolk”, ice cream in orange-yellow colouring, in this comtemporary mooncakes.
Due to the ingredient, the ice cream mooncake are able to have very interesting colour and design. They are always very pleasing to the eye and this year, Haagen-Daz came up with such lovely design. I loved the flowery pattern and the vibant colour.
Thirdly, here comes the snowskin mooncake, which is non baked, made from roasted glutinous rice flour that resembles a soft mochi. The chewy and Q texture (gummy) makes this one of the best-liked version for young children.
An interesting new variation to this snow skin mooncake is Durian Crystal mooncake by Chui Lau Heung. Look at the colour of the mooncake, doesn’t it looks like a gem. This just looks too good to be eaten.
There is also the teochew version which is usually filled with yam although there can be a myriad of other flavours as well. Instead of baking, Teochew mooncakes are usually fried to create a spiral like flake wrapping around it. A bite into this puffy, crispy crust is something to die for.
Look out for Gim Tim’s sweet potato and yam flavour which is just so Teochew. Matching the two favourite staples of this dialect group, it is sweet, aromatic and melts in your mouth. Yum yum!
And recently as more people are conscious about the food that they eat, there are healthier options offered in the market. Like the agar agar mooncake by Our Daily Market.
Agar-Agar is an ingredient extracted from seaweed contains few calories, is low in saturated fat and cholesterol. Making it the perfect choice for health conscious people who want to avoid fat found in most mooncake. You can get interesting flavor like Mao Shan Wang, Cempedak Chendol and more.
Besides the consumption of mooncakes, children would usually carry lanterns during this period of time. Beautiful decorations can also be seen in places such as Chinatown and Gardens by The Bay. They are especially magnificent at night when the decorations light up the night sky. More than anything else, nothing beats celebrating this occasion with your family and friends, just enjoying the mooncakes, the decorations and simply taking this chance to spend good quality time together.
After some mooncakes, cleanse your palate with tea! Tea is said to be beneficial for blood cleansing and digestion. Many foods that we eat may contain fatty oils which tea can help to detox. Checked out Kindred Tea.
What’s your favorite mooncake type and flavor, share with us in the comment below.