The sweet treats of the holiday season may be behind us, but the celebratory food of the Lunar New Year awaits. For those with a sweet tooth, this includes plenty of biscuits.
Although many of us associate biscuits with European food culture, Asian nations have a strong affection for them too, and during Lunar New Year they take on many auspicious meanings.
During the Lunar New Year celebrations of my childhood, my mum's side of the family brought sesame biscuits that were either soft and chewy or snappy and crispy. We served both varieties alongside sugar-coated almonds and presented them on a round platter on New Year's eve before we indulged in a celebratory feast with family and friends.
file:site_21_rand_1330138445_sesame_brittle.jpg Source: Stockfood
My dad's side of the family has roots in Timor Leste and Portugal. My paternal grandparents' home was well stocked with homemade biscuits in jars with red lids. They had a beautiful array of peanut and biscuits. The latter is made with nuts, anise, sugar and lots of butter. They look like ladders. Some people think they bring us closer to our ancestors while others think they symbolise the ability to climb to new heights. They may hold different meanings but one thing is clear: we loved them.
I'm not the only one with sweet memories of Lunar New Year biscuits. Melbourne-based chef , who hails from Malaysian Borneo, says his favourite biscuit during his childhood Lunar New Year celebrations was kuih loyang (also known as a rose, rosette or honeycomb biscuit because of its pattern).
"I grew up eating a lot of cookies, but this one, in particular, is my favourite, and one that I grew up eating each year when New Year's came around."
Although easy to make, you need a special mould to give kuih loyang its signature pattern.
"These cookies have always been a part of my [family] traditions, so we follow them. When I have a family of my own, I will probably pass it on," Khoo says. "Sadly my mum never makes it herself as it is so convenient to just buy it in Asia, but in Australia, I'm putting my own spin on kuih loyang with Aussie wattleseed to take me 'back' home."
I'm putting my own spin on kuih loyang with Aussie wattleseed to take me 'back' home.
Khoo also remembers eating wafer-like biscuits called kuih kapit or love letters.
"During Lunar New Year, my sister, brother and cousins all come together and we bring together our favourite cookies, which include kuih loyang, pineapple tarts and of course, kuih kapit, which are also known as love letters and [are] akin to a thin crepe or egg roll found in Hong Kong."
Kuih kapit is made by pouring batter onto hot metal moulds shaped with motifs. They're known as love letters because it's said that once upon a time they were impressed with .
Kuih kapit (love letters). Source: Poh & Co.
Melbourne's Society Restaurant sous chef and her family in Singapore also mark their Lunar New Year with biscuits.
"New Year just isn't New Year without cookies," says Tang. "Lunar New Year cookies immediately spark joy for me, and it brings back colours of red (luck), smells of street food and a celebratory time which are marked by happy occasions to enjoy snacks with my family."
Lunar New Year cookies immediately spark joy for me.
The aroma of freshly baked biscuits, sponge cakes and coconut takes her back to happy days in Singapore.
"There are just so many wonderful cookies eaten during the Lunar New Year in Singapore, but I have to say, my absolute favourite are these three: [kuih kapit or love letters], kuih bahulu [mini sponge cakes] and kuih bankit (coconut biscuits]."
When Tang lived in Singapore, she loved passing by bakeries as they made fresh sweets. "Even now, every time I visit Singapore, before I even board my plane, my aunty already has a bucket of cookies waiting and ready to 'greet' me."
Love letters seem to be a universal favourite along Asian-Australian kids and Tang says they evoke nostalgia.
"The smell draws all my family members to the kitchen and we all end up making and eating them together," she says. "With everyone from our extended family being in different parts of the world, it is like bringing back a piece of home and keeping the culture alive."
Wattleseed kuih loyang (rosette biscuits) by Esca Khoo
You will need kuih loyang moulds to make this recipe.
Makes 20-25
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 125 g rye flour
- 10 g sugar
- 4 g salt
- 240 ml full cream milk
- 30 g roasted wattleseed powder
- 5 g vanilla paste
Method
- Heat a small pot with oil to 170°C.
- In a bowl, mix all the ingredients until smooth.
- Dip a kuih mould in oil then dip it in enough batter so that it's covered with a thin layer.
- Fry the battered mould in the oil. After a few seconds, the batter should release itself from the mould.
- Once the biscuit has released itself from the mould, fry the biscuit until it's golden brown on both sides.
- Repeat steps 3-5 until there's no more batter.
- Let the biscuits cool before storing them in clean jars.
Kuih kapit (love letters) by Kim Tang
Makes 20-25
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 80 g sugar
- 110 g tapioca flour
- 3 g rice flour
- 200 g coconut milk
- Pinch salt
Method
- Mix the eggs and sugar in a bowl until the sugar has dissolved.
- In another bowl, mix tapioca starch, rice flour and salt.
- Pour the egg mixture into the dry mixture. Add the coconut milk and stir until you get a smooth batter.
- Preheat a waffle cone maker, krumkake iron or krumkake baker. I use an electric waffle machine.
- Spoon about 1 tbsp of the batter onto the waffle cone maker. Close the top very gently so the batter doesn't splatter.
- Cook for about 45 seconds. When you open the waffle maker, the wafer should be light golden brown. If it's still pale and sticky, cook a few seconds longer and check again.
- Remove the wafer from the waffle cone maker and place it on a cooling rack.
- Repeat steps 5-7 for the remaining batter.
Note:
- If you wish to roll the wafers, use a slim wooden rolling pin or thin heat-proof glove to do so while they're still warm.
