Tag Archives: Lotus Paste

Goodies From Singapore.

November 2, 2015 Munchkin

We have just received a gift package from Singapore crammed with wonderful goodies. Gnome and I don’t miss much of our old life but we do miss real Chinese food and snacks. So this is really special and in actual fact, Gnome was one who introduced me to Straits Chinese food (He is after all a Straits Chinese Gnome and I am a Scottish Munchkin).

Confusing or What?

This Asian region extends from Penang through the Straits of Malacca to Java and Singapore is located in the middle of this area. Because of the diversity of culture, there are influences from Chinese, Malay and Thai cuisine which makes the food very interesting, spicy and delicious.

Here are some pictures of our yummies:

When you bite into one of these wasabi green peas, there is a wasabi explosion inside your nose which is kinda exhilirating.

The Belizean Post Office guy opened this box up for inspection thinking that it would have something very expensive in it. He was rather shocked to see that this plush looking box had cakes in it!

This one is actually called Yamaguchi Peanut Snack…the caption below is just our own generic term.

This is creamy, foamy tea which is famous in Singapore. This one is our all time favourite tea:

And last but not least. 5kgs (10lbs) of lotus seed paste to make our own mooncakes for the rest of the year. We love big catering packs!!

A Big Thankyou to our Singapore connection!! We are really delighted with the generous gift of yummies!!

Belize, Food

We Made Moon Cake!!

September 27, 2015 Munchkin

Yay!! We made Moon Cake!! Look at the picture: we are soooo pleased that we can make such an auspicious cake.

Moon Cakes are enjoyed during the Mid Autumn Festival by the Chinese. The night of the 15th day of the 8th lunar moon is called “Night of the Moon” and the 25th day of the 8th lunar month is called “Mid-Autumn.”

As a child, I remember eating Moon Cake with my family at this time of the year. The ones with lotus paste and duck eggs were always our favourite. Traditionally, they can also be made from red bean paste. More contemporary fillings contain durian, jackfruit, taro, chocolate and even ice cream. I can already see the creative possibilities…how exciting!

We baked traditional lotus paste Moon Cake this year.

I made the pastry and wrapped it around the lotus paste.

Gnome did his bit which involved the moulding of the cakes. This part is not that easy because you need to tap the moulds on a hard surface in order to get the cakes out perfectly. This is the Gnome Magic, of course.

We had such a lovely time in the kitchen making them and then we had an even nicer time eating them! We enjoyed it so much that we have decided to do this every year to celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival. We would like to thank our Singapore connection for the thoughtful gifts of lotus paste and Moon Cake moulds.

Check out the full recipe for Moon Cakes with Lotus Paste in Belize Wild Recipes.

By the way, the Lunar Eclipse will start at 6.11pm tonight and the full eclipse begins at 8.11pm (Belize time).

Belize, Fermentation, Food, Plants

Coconut Feta Cheese Update and Gnome Project.

August 26, 2015 Munchkin 2 Comments

Last week, I wrote about making coconut milk cheese – feta style…this is the update. After the three days of dry brining, I took out the cheese and cut it into pieces like so:

The cheese had dried to a firm consistency and so it was easy enough to cut without too much crumbling. I then placed them in 7% brine; one jar with bay leaves and the second flavoured with whole black peppers.

I am going to leave the jars out at room temperature so that they can ferment further for two weeks. After that, I will I will let them continue to ferment for several months in a cooler area (probably the refrigerator). Hope they taste good after all the waiting!!

Gnome Update:

Gnome has started on a project where he is digging out a small pond next to the house:

He has also started up some lotus seeds in a basin which have germinated and come up nicely:

The plan is to have a lotus pond next to the house. Apart from the beautiful flowers, we also want to grow them for food. We would eventually like to make our own lotus paste to make Chinese sweets:

This was sent to us as a gift all the way from Singapore; I am saving it to make moon cake this year. Also, lotus seeds are really tasty in Chinese soups…yes, you can actually buy these in Belize!

Lotus root is also quite a treat and I would love to grow some of our own because I haven’t eaten it for over a decade since I came to Belize. It will probably take over a year before we can harvest any to eat.

Aaaaargh…more waiting!!

Belize, Food

Lotus Paste Doughnuts with Custard.

February 22, 2015 Munchkin

Recently, I have been having a craving for “Dunkin’ Donuts”; It may be a nostalgic feeling from my university days when I used to choose a different flavour each time to take home and enjoy with a nice cup of tea.

We managed to get a hold of a huge packet of lotus seed paste and Gnome and I have been diligently and conscientiously working through it as hard as we can. I did an Internet search on recipes with lotus paste and only two main things came up: mochi balls and mooncake. Well, we have been eating mochi balls like they have been going out of fashion (and loving it). And, I would like to make the mooncake for the Mid-Autumn Festival which is the night of the full moon between early September and Early October (celebrated by Chinese).

So, I decided to mix things around and fulfill a doughnut craving at the same time. Today. I made Lotus Paste Doughnuts:

I opted to make a yeasted dough without eggs and milk. This gives a fluffier and lighter texture. Also, I added very little sugar to the dough because I thought that the filling was sweet enough.

And, of course, we had to have ours with custard!!

Needless to say, I am no longer thinking of shop-bought doughnuts…if you are interested in my lower calorie doughnut recipe, check out Lotus Paste Doughnuts.

Casa Mascia Apothecary

Tag Archives: Lotus Paste

Goodies From Singapore.

We Made Moon Cake!!

Coconut Feta Cheese Update and Gnome Project.

Lotus Paste Doughnuts with Custard.

Everything Handmade in Belize.