Monday, October 6, 2008

More Please! Mei Xin (Maxim) Snowy Mooncakes

Sago Cream with Mango and Pomelo Snowy Mooncake

Mooncake Festival or better known as the Mid-Autumn Festival might have been weeks ago, but surprisingly I'm still in a Mooncake mood. I don't usually like mooncakes. I find the lotus seed paste inside too sweet and I have tried several brands but never found one that I really enjoy. I'm a horrible mooncake eater and probably shouldn't be eating one at all, but I feel like I need too. I usually eat only half of the cake and bypass the whole lotus seed paste. I start with the crust and then move straight to the center yolk part. I know, I know. It's such a waste, but I do save the remnants for my dad who would always tell me I just shouldn't touch one at all. That was the past! I'm now happy to declare my love for mooncakes, well at least the snowy variety from Mei Xin (Maxim). I also present to you More Please!. A new blog installment (not sure if that's the correct technical term) where I introduce some of my favorite foods and food related topic.

Sago Cream with Mango and Pomelo Snowy Mooncake
Sago Cream with Mango and Pomelo Snowy Mooncake

For those not familiar with mooncakes, it's a type of Chinese pastry that's most often eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The cakes are usually round or square with round edges and have a lovely design on top. Since the cakes are very rich and dense due to the lotus seed paste (the more traditional one) and other types of filling, one mooncake is really meant to be shared. Just like the filling, the center of a mooncake can vary as well. I grew up with the double egg yolk version. Sounds kind of weird? Lotus seed paste and egg yolks? It's actually not bad (especially the yolk part) and when enjoy with a cup of tea, it's a nice light breakfast or afternoon snack.

As lovely as it is, and you can tell from the cakes itself, to the lovely tin boxes they come in, and to the shopping bags that the manufactures provide to go along with the cakes, mooncakes have never really won my heart. So when I missed this year's Mid-Autumn Festival since I was in Japan, I wasn't heartbroken over my lost opportunity to eat a mooncake. When I came back a week after the festival ended, my dad asked if I wanted to eat mooncake. "Oh, there's more left? Sure." Out came the tin box...from the freezer? Frozen mooncakes? Never tried that before. Orange color crust? Lychee flavor? My dad explains these are call snowy mooncakes or if you literally translated it, ice skin mooncakes.

Sesame Snowy Mooncakes
Sesame Snowy Mooncakes

Snowy mooncakes are really nothing new. My aunt told me they were introduce in the 90s and have became more and more popular, especially among the younger demographics. Unlike traditional mooncakes, snowy mooncakes are meant to be eaten cold and stored in the freezer. The cakes do need to be slightly thaw at room temperature for about 10 minutes before serving. They also come in a variety of flavors. Coffee, sesame, strawberry, green tea, and the list goes on.

Green Tea with Macadamia Nuts Snowy Mooncake and Strawberry with Crispy Rice Snowy Mooncake
Green Tea with Macadamia Nuts Snowy Mooncake (top) , Strawberry with Crispy Rice Snowy Mooncake (bottom)

I love simply love them! I can eat one...wait two...in one seating. Not sure if that's really good for you health wise, but look how pretty they are. The ones pictured in this post are from Mei Xin (Maxim) Snowy Deluxe set. They came in a round tin of eight with its own insulated bag.

Flavors include:
Sago Cream with Mango and Pomelo (as pictured)
Lychee
Sesame (as pictured)
Mango
Green Tea with Chunky Chestnut
Coffee
Strawberry with Crispy Rice (as pictured)
Green Tea with Macadamia Nuts (as pictured)

My favorite was the Strawberry with Crispy Rice. Didn't get the chance to tried Mango, Green Tea with Chunky Chestnut, and Coffee though, but the other flavors were good. My only concern now is, do I have to wait until next year for a snowy mooncake feast? I hope not and if anyone have any info on how I can get these post-mooncake festival season, please drop a comment below. Hmmmm...or maybe I should try making some.

:)

Do you like mooncakes? Have you ever tried them before?

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10 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Lol. The fork looks like a little Octopus.
"He's getting away with the cake!"

Great post though.

October 6, 2008 at 5:41 PM  
Blogger Andrea said...

I've never had a mooncake, but this great post just made me want to try one very badly. I wonder if there's anywhere I can get them in New York. I'm sure there must be. I'm going to go on a hunt!

October 6, 2008 at 5:50 PM  
Blogger tigerfish said...

In the recent Mooncake Festival, I tried frozen durian mooncake :D

October 7, 2008 at 3:59 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Where can i buy that adorable smiling fork?

October 7, 2008 at 9:36 AM  
Blogger Amanda said...

Ummm... yum!! Those look awesome and where did you get that adorable fork? LOL he's adorable!

October 7, 2008 at 10:03 AM  
Blogger friedwontons4u said...

gkbloodsugar - hahaha...now that you mention it, it does kind of look like an octopus

andrea - you can definitely find them in New York's Chinatown. Just head in one of the Asian bakeries or supermarkets. Not sure if you will be able to find any now since the season past, but check the bakeries.

tigerfish - ohh frozen durian mooncake...my parents would love that

shilreytwinkle and amanda - I love that fork too! I got it when I was in Japan and now I wish I had gotten the whole set. I only bought 2 forks, 2 spoons, and a spreading knife. I'm going to hunt them on the web and when I do spot them I'll post the finding.

October 7, 2008 at 10:52 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I love snowy mooncakes! I had my first this year, a taro flavored one with a sweet red bean in the middle. Highly recommended.

Wish we could order these year-round!

October 7, 2008 at 12:30 PM  
Blogger Anna said...

Can't believe I've never had a mooncake; I always see pictures and think they look adorable. Definitely need to change this...

October 10, 2008 at 1:46 PM  
Blogger Mallory Elise said...

oh my god that's so cute. what a brilliant photo!

i've always wanted to make a mooncake...

:)

October 10, 2008 at 8:43 PM  
Blogger eatingclubvancouver_js said...

So cute. . .I've never had these "fancy" mooncakes before.

October 28, 2008 at 2:59 AM  

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