Recipe(tried): Fortune Sesame Balls

Bonnie, you are right. these sesame balls are "fried", not steamed. however, these are NOT mooncakes and should be able to be found anytime of the year... some asian grocers even sell them as usually the old grannies of the shops are usually too bored at home and thus fry some red bean paste balls to kill time. :)))

If you are not sure if I am giving you the right recipe, please ask Betsy for my e-mail and i will give you a picture of these balls (just to be sure.)

here is the recipe. Happy friying!

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Fortune Sesame Balls

Ingredients
Pastry dough skin

(A)
(combine and sift)
150g glutinous rice flour
1 tbsp rice flour

(B)
150ml hot water
3 tbsp castor sugar (superfine sugar)
Pinch bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

(C)
25g wheat starch (tang mein fun) <--get this in a asian grocer
4 tbsp boiling hot water
15g shortening (don't use butter or other fat.)
1 cup sesame seeds
Enough oil for deep-frying

Filling:
(YOU CAN BUY RED BEAN PASTE IN AN ASIAN GROCER AND OMIT THE WHOLE PROCESS HERE FOR THE PEANUT VERSION. JUST OPEN THE CAN, ROLL PASTE INTO SMALL BALLS AND FILL THE THEM IN EACH PASTRY! EASY AS THAT! ONE CAN OF THE PASTE GOES A LONG WAY!)

55g roasted peanuts
10g toasted sesame seeds
2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp chunky peanut butter
1 tbsp corn oil

Method
Pan-fry sesame seeds until fragrant. Put into a blender and grind till fine. Mix ground sesame seeds, sugar, peanut butter and oil together. Make into equal sized portions of about 12 – 13 pieces. Chill in the freezer for 30 – 40 minutes.

For dough skin
Sift glutinous rice flour and rice flour into a bowl. Dissolve sugar and bicarbonate of soda in hot water in a cup and set aside.

Put wheat starch into a mixing bowl. Pour in boiling hot water and mix well together until the wheat starch turns cooked. Add in (A); mix. Stir in (B) and add in shortening. Knead into a smooth dough and cover with a piece of damp tea towel, then set aside to rest for 20 – 25 minutes.

Divide the dough into equal portions of 12 – 13 pieces. Roll each piece out into a circle. Add in one portion of filling and wrap dough around this to form a ball. Dip each roll into a bowl of water. Toss in sesame seeds, then deep-fry in hot oil until golden.