MOON CAKE DAY!

I was informed that today is Moon Cake Day. For some reason, I thought it spanned for a season (perhaps I told myself this so I could eat more moon cakes! =X)

Anyway, my good friend Alice's mom actually makes her moon cakes from scratch. Here's her recipe:

Sesame Moon Cakes

Filling:

One can of red bean paste-Divided into 24 pieces; hand rolled to round balls.

Skin:
(1) Flour-2 cups
Warm water- 1/2 cup
Oil- 2/3 cup

Mix together the above ingredients to make a smooth dough (A). Then roll into a long roll and cut into 24 pieces.

(2) Flour 1 1/2 cup
Oil- 1/2 cup

Mix together the above ingredients to make a smooth dough. Then roll into a long roll and cut into 24 pieces (B).

Directions:

1. Flatten (A) pieces; place (B0 Pieces in the center of (A) pieces and wrap the edges to enclose (B); lightly flatten.
Use a rolling pin and roll out the dough to a 1/4 inch think rectangle. Start at the top edge and roll up rectangle into a thin baton-shape. Turn the piece vertically and roll out to a 1/4 rectangle. Roll up one more time to form a square shape. Repeat for all the pieces.

2. Flatten the skin and lightly roll into a 2 inch circle. Place 1 piece of filling in the center of the skin and gather the edges to close. Pinch and seal corners. Lightly flatten the filled cakes. Repeat for all other pieces until you finish all 24.

3. Use a pastry brush to brush a bit of egg yolk on top of each cake. Sprinkle the top with either black or white sesame seeds for garnish.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and DO NOT bake for more than 35 minutes.