Fig and Pecan Mooncakes

4.75 from 4 ratings

These fig and pecan mooncakes are a modern take on traditional mooncakes. Filled with fall ingredients like figs, pecans, and cinnamon, they are the perfect treat to celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival.

Prep Time3

Cook Time16

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Chinese

Diet: Vegetarian

Keyword: fig and pecan mooncake recipe, fig and pecan mooncakes

Servings: mooncakes

Calories: 177kcal

Author: Becca Du

Equipment

Ingredients

Mooncake Skin

84 g golden syrup ⅓ cup
25 g peanut oil 2 tbsp + 2 tsp
7 g lye water 1 ¼ tsp
130 g all purpose flour 1 cup

Fig and Pecan Filling

¾ cup pecans
¾ cup dried figs
¼ cup honey
2 tbsp coconut oil
2 tbsp cornstarch
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp salt

Other Ingredients

1 egg yolk
3 tbsp whole milk

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prepping the mooncake skin and mooncakes

Combine golden syrup, peanut oil, and lye water into a bowl. Mix until incorporated.
Add the flour and combine until a soft dough forms. Place in an airtight container and let it rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Next, add the pecans to a food processor and pulse until the pecans are coarsely ground.
Add the roughly chopped figs, honey, coconut oil, cornstarch, ground cinnamon, and salt to the food processor. Pulse until everything comes together (~10 pulses).
Place the filling in an airtight container and let it cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Forming the mooncakes

Once the ingredients are cool, take out your ingredients. This should include both your filling and skin.
Using a scale, weigh out the ingredients for each mooncake. Place the filling onto the scale and adjust until it reaches 30 grams. Next, add some mooncake skin until the scale reaches 50 grams.
After you have weighed out the ingredients for 1 mooncake, form the mooncake. Roll the filling into a ball. Set it on a plate.
Next, roll the mooncake skin into a ball and flatten it into a thin disk. Enclose the filling with the skin. The disk won’t completely enclose the filling, so you’ll need to gently press the outside of the ball to stretch the skin over the filling. The motion you want to make is similar to how you would put a rubber band onto a ball or a cylinder. You roll your fingers over the rubber band until it reaches the position you’re aiming for. Once you get skin around the filling, roll between your hands to form a smooth ball.
Repeat this process for every mooncake until you run out of filling or dough. Now it’s time to put them in the molds! Prepare a baking sheet by covering it with parchment paper. Make sure to have your molds ready.
Coat the mold with a light layer of flour. Shake out the excess. This will help the mooncake to release easily from the molds.
Place each mooncake into the molds and press down firmly onto the baking sheet. Next, lift the mooncake a little bit and push it out of the molds. Repeat this for every mooncake.
Let the mooncakes cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to an hour. I like to cool mine for an hour. The purpose of this step is to make sure the pattern on top holds in the oven.

Baking the mooncakes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C).
Bake the mooncakes for 5 minutes.
Make the egg wash by combining 1 egg yolk and 3 tbsp of whole milk. Whisk until smooth.
Take the mooncakes out and brush them lightly on top with the egg wash.
Put them back in the oven and bake for another 11 minutes.
Cool them for 5 minutes on the baking sheet and then on a cooling rack to cool completely.
For the best results, put them in the fridge to rest for 24 hours before eating.

Notes

Cool mooncakes before baking. Make sure the mooncakes are cold before baking or the pattern won’t hold their shape. Leave them in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. I like to leave mine in the fridge for an hour to make sure the design on top holds in the oven.
Egg wash the mooncakes lightly. Make sure to use a very light egg wash on the mooncakes. If you brush too much egg wash over the top, it will distort the pattern.
How do you store mooncakes? Mooncakes are best enjoyed after they have been refrigerated overnight. Store mooncakes in an airtight container for up to a month in the fridge.

Nutrition