Moon Cakes [General]

2011 Aug 27
Does anyone else really like moon cakes? They are very caloric and there is a big egg yolk in the center, so they are not exactly a health food, but I really like them. They have different fillings. I'm partial to the red bean ones.

The egg yolk is supposed to represent the full moon, the fall harvest moon. So it's really the Chinese Thanksgiving - the fall harvest moon festival.

When I was in China people in Beijing told me it's is very important to travel home and be with family for the harvest moon. But if you can't get there, you are all supposed to eat the moon cake and look at the full moon together, thinking of each other, wherever you may be.

It's true that everyone (on the night side of the planet) sees the same full moon at the same time. An eclipse of the moon (by the earth) can be used to synchronize mechanical clocks on one whole side of the planet. An event such as the first ray of light escaping around the earth and reaching the moon is seen at exactly the same time by all people on that side of the earth.

Accurate timekeeping is essential for navigation to determine longitude. Even GPS satellites depend on very accurate clocks to signal their position relative to an observer on earth.

2011 Aug 27
Any culture that dictates that it's very important to eat cake scores a point in my book.

2011 Aug 27
I want to try Moon Cakes, but I doubt I would enjoy something with egg yolk in it-I do not like egg yolks in general- just not a fan.

Now if you can also get Moon Cake without yolks I'll eat that.

what place is good to get them from?

It also happens to be Ramadan right now for another two weeks. A lot of Middle Eastern people eat many rich pastries after sundown.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mooncake

Apparently you can get some mooncakes filled with only dates.
That kind of reminds me of the Lebanese cookies I buy- they are round, have a design on the top, thin dough- kind of like a shortbread or very crumbly and filled just w dates.
not really a "cake" but they have the same look.

Can you buy the jelly or ice cream mooncakes anywhere in Ottawa, pref downtown area. TT is much too far for me.

2011 Aug 27
@prettytasty, you can get them without egg yolks, and they are cheaper (maybe $15 for a tin of 4). It was seeing them for sale at Kowloon Market on Somerset that reminded me I have to get some. They seem to be out earlier this year. There was some deal where if you bought two tins, you got a free tin of tea. (These were around $25 for a tin of 4 pieces.) I've never seen jelly or ice cream ones for sale in Ottawa.

You can also get good deals on them (like $10 for a tin of 4) after the Autumn Festival Day (Sept. 12 this year) passes, and the cakes last a few months unopened.

My wife doesn't eat moon cakes, thinking they are more caloric than two donuts (actually probably an underestimate). Generally there are four in a tin, individually wrapped. I cut one in four pieces and my kids and I share it. We only have one cake a week, and the rest can keep for a few months unopened.

The egg yolks that are in them (I'm guessing, I don't know for sure) are made by putting eggs in a strong salt brine (raw with shell on). All the water comes out by osmosis and the yolk turns cake like. Then they bake it into the center of the moon cake (there must be a trick to that too, but I don't know it).

Of course egg yolks are full of cholesterol, which is why I have them very sparingly. The one in the picture looks like they did a yolk within a yolk (if you look carefully you can see two colors in the yolk).

Try the red bean or lotus fillings. I tried some with durian filling once but did not like it.

---------------------

Oh wow, are moon cakes ever caloric! A Tim Horton's fritter or donut is only 300 kcal. Wikipedia says moon cakes go from 800 kcal to 1200 kcal.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mooncake

---------------------

Thought I would add this link I found on making salt eggs. Even if you don't like egg yolks, you should probably give moon cake with yolks a try once. The salt yolks don't taste like normal egg yolks, and they are not salty either. The salt stays outside the egg. The water inside the egg moves out into the brine through that semi-permeable membrane that is just under the shell.

www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk,92475

and

en.wikipedia.org


2011 Aug 28
Thanks for the info!

No matter how the egg yolks are prepared, I still don't like them.
has nothing to do w nutrition (if it did I would not be eating bacon,fries,doughnuts).

Even when I get eggs for breakfast or a hard boiled egg- I hardly eat the middle part and usually just skip eating it.
Can't say I eat deviled eggs either (well maybe 1 every 2 years....if they are at a party).

So, do the Moon Cakes just last for months unopened on the shelf?
I am not too sure I really want to eat something that can last for many months (or at least not that often).

Maybe I will try one once and prob just stick to eating red bean paste buns and green bean paste buns....and date pastries.

2011 Aug 28
Yes, they last on the shelf. The outside of the cake has a glaze on it, plus they are in packaging with an oxygen absorber packet enclosed. There may be an expiry date on the tin, and you should probably respect that. But personally, since they are so rich I don't eat them quickly, and I have had them up to a couple of months later and they were still fine.

2011 Aug 28
When my oldest was about 4 he first described why he does not like egg yolks : "they are too yummy"

Which we took to mean "too rich"

5 years later he still does not like them. personally i find them a bit overwhelming too at least when cooked. Love them all to heck on toast in the form of eggs over easy

2011 Aug 28
tinyurl.com/62sldo

This site breaks any url with brackets in it, so I converted it to a tinyurl.

Picture at right is of a raw egg with the shell removed by soaking in vinegar.

Cool !

2011 Sep 10
www.torontosun.com

I think the OAOG usually has telescopes setup in the parking lot of the Ogilve Chapters when the moon is full and the sky is clear.

www.oaog.ca

2011 Sep 10
Francis i didn't enjoy these at all. i tried a lotus seed paste mooncake with nuts and could barely eat a 1/4 piece. something in it was just off-putting to me.

frankly i can't get over how expensive they are, too.

2011 Sep 11
Last week a friend who is living in Hong Kong for a few years brought back different types of moon cakes for us to try. The locals apparently like to buy them from the big hotels- these were from Mandarin Oriental and Peninsula - and they were individually wrapped and laid in satin lined boxes. They were much smaller than the type I have seen at TNT, and she brought 2 different varieties, one which had a light egg custard and the other which was "very special" with 2 egg yolks in each one. The pastry was much lighter than what I have tasted here, and although both were good, I much preferred the double egg yolk moon cake for its sweet richness and density. The custard version also had some fans, who felt is was much more delicate tasting. Apparently it is not unusual to cut even the small ones into pieces for sharing, and I have to say that I found them both more enjoyable in smaller doses.

2011 Sep 11
@monty, so sorry you didn't enjoy it. I think I've tried lotus paste and it was ok. Durian I didn't like; the red bean was good. Did yours have an egg yolk? I got some red bean ones without yolks and they weren't as good.

Yes they are expensive (though they will drop 50% in price after Sept.12).

According to the some astronomy articles, the fullest night moon in this hemisphere will be Sept. 11, tonight. Interesting coincidence that. The moon looked awesome last night, and the sky was exceptionally clear. Too bad my telescope broke a few years ago and I haven't gotten around to fixing it.

@blubarry, In China and other asian countries, moon cakes are given by companies to employees, customers, associates etc.. I was reading that this year that China is saying such gifts are a taxable benefit - a move which is has spawned a large internet protest. blogs.wsj.com

There was also this funny line in the article:

>>This isn’t the first time mooncakes have created commotion in advance of the traditional fall holiday. In 2010, skyrocketing prices and lax standards led to concerns over a possible “mooncake bubble,” while in 2009, a Hong Kong confectioner ruffled traditionalists by offering a series of butt-shaped mooncakes.<<

When researching moon cakes last week, I read that they were used to plot the overthrow of the Mongols Emperors (like Kubla Khan) because the Mongols didn't eat cakes. Secret messages were printed on the top of the cakes. Quartered then reassembled, the messages were read. Then the cakes were eaten, destroying the evidence.

2011 Sep 11
I have tried both red bean and sea coconut (with yolk) moon cakes from the "Hong Kong Great Dragon Bakery" now (bought at Kowloon Market), and both were relatively tasteless - not at all like the ones I have in previous years. I recommend avoiding that brand.

p.s. Apparently the Chinatown "Arch" wins 1st place, Structure of the Year Award 2011, from the American Public Works Association.

(CTV writer spelled imperial wrong: "emperial")

ottawa.ctv.ca

2011 Sep 12
hi Francis - have you tried those "mini" moon cakes you can buy in some of the Chinese grocers? wondering if they bear any resemblance (taste-wise) to the expensive bakery ones you're describing?

Anyway, we just bought a 3-pack of mung bean flavored ones at Win Tai for $1.99. Not my preferred snack, the filling too sweet for my liking. But, at that price cheap enough for a taste test - as inspired by this thread. :-)

2011 Sep 12
@itchy, we haven't tried them but sounds good. I have to finish off the ones I got first (including the relatively bland Great Dragon brand) . We went out to eat some (not Great Dragon) last night. There were clouds in the sky, but when the moon shone through it was more than bright enough for us to cast shadows.