720gramsyam filling, divide into 16 portions, about 45-grams each
INSTRUCTIONS
Oil Dough
Sift flour and salt into a mixing bowl. Whisk to mix the salt evenly throughout the flour. Add in shortening and mix into a dough - I start off by using a firm spatula / wooden spoon, then finish mixing by hand. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
Sift flour and sweet potato powder (if using) into a mixing bowl. Add in caster sugar and whisk to mix the dry ingredients. Add in oil, water and vinegar. Mix with a firm spatula / wooden spoon until the mixture starts to form a dough, then finish mixing by hand. Do not over-mix the dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
Note: Always keep dough that are resting or you are not working on covered with a plastic wrap to prevent drying out. Flour your work surface and the dough lightly when rolling out the dough. You can also place a plastic wrap (or plastic guitar sheet) on top of the dough when rolling to prevent sticking.
Divide oil dough and water dough into 8 portions each (See Note 1) and roll all of them into balls (you will get 16 balls).
Take 1 water dough portion, flatten with your palm into a disc and encase 1 oil dough portion, ensuring the water dough is evenly wrapped around the oil dough. Repeat until all oil dough portions are wrapped with water dough portions (you will now have 8 balls).
First Roll. Take 1 dough portion and flatten with your palm into a disc. Take a rolling pin and roll it out into a long rectangular shape, about 3-mm thick. Do it gently so that the oil dough doesn't get squeezed out. Starting from the bottom corner of the dough, roll up the dough diagonally and tightly.
Second Roll. Flatten the dough with your palm and roll it out again lengthwise into a long rectangular strip, about 3-mm thick. Try to ensure that the dough has straight edges and is of even thickness so that it rolls up evenly.
Starting from the short edge, roll up the dough tightly into a roll. Set aside to rest for 10 to 15 minutes while you repeat Steps 4-6 for the rest of the dough portions.
Take 1 rolled-up dough and use a serrated knife to cut the dough into half. Repeat for all the rolled-up doughs (you will get 16 dough portions).
Wrapping the Mooncake - see Note 3
Note: Always keep dough that are resting or you are not working on covered with a plastic wrap to prevent drying out. Flour your work surface and the dough lightly when rolling out the dough. You can also place a plastic wrap (or plastic guitar sheet) on top of the dough when rolling to prevent sticking.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat.
Take 1 dough portion and place it cut-side up. Flatten with your palm into a disc and roll it out into a circle. Try to ensure that the center of the dough stays in the center of the rolled out circle.
Flip the dough over and place 1 filling portion in the center of the dough. Encase the filling with the dough, keeping it as round as possible without distorting the layers. Pinch the bottom to seal. Place the mooncake on the lined baking sheet. Repeat.
720 grams yam filling
Baking
Preheat oven to 170C (conventional) / 160C (convectional). Bake 20 to 30 minutes (mine took 25 minutes) until cooked through (you don't want it to be too browned as you want to see the pretty purplish colour of the pastry). Let mooncakes cool on the baking sheet for 15 minutes, then transfer to a baking sheet to let them cool completely.
Storage
The mooncakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. For longer storage, store in the refrigerator or freeze. Warm the mooncakes in the oven or air fryer before consuming.
NOTES
The number of portions to divide the dough into depends on how many mooncakes you are making. Take the number of mooncakes you are making and divde by 2 - this is the number of dough portion required.
I referred to this YouTube video on how to combine and roll out the dough.
I referred to this YouTube video on how to seal the dough.
These mooncakes are huge at about 85 grams each - ~45 grams of filling and ~39 grams of dough. I find them a tad too big so I will likely make smaller ones in future.
X commented that he would prefer a mooncake with a more dough : filling ratio, hence I may tweak the recipe in future to increase the amount of dough.
X also commented that the pastry can be more fragrant (I used peanut oil in the water dough). I may use butter next time to see if it will make the pastry more fragrant.