Filipino Recipes

Hopiang Mungo

Filling Preparation

1. Soak beans in water overnight.

2. The next day, drain water, cover beans with fresh water and bring to a boil.

3. When the beans start to soften, reduce the heat and scoop out most of the water above the beans with a spoon.

4. Add sugar and continue cooking beans over low heat.

5. Keep stirring to prevent burning, until the beans have softened to a paste.

6. Remove them from the heat and let them cool down.
    

 

First Dough Preparation

1. Mix flour and oil together and Set aside.

2. Second Dough Preparation

3. Combine flour and sugar.

4. Combine oil and water in a separate bowl.

5. Now pour in the dry ingredients and knead well, until dough is smooth and changes from a white color to an ivory color.

6. Divide the dough into half.

7. Roll out one portion into a square, about 30cm (12 inches). Do not flour your work surface; the oil in the dough will keep it from sticking. Dough should be very thin, less than 0,3 cm (1/8 inch), and very even. This thinness is more important that the exact shape or size of the rolled-out dough.
   
   
    

Putting toghether

1. Crumble half of the first dough, spreading it evenly over the rolled out second dough.

2. Roll up tightly, like a jellyroll, into a cylinder. Roll cylinder back and forth under your palms, stretching it to 40cm (16-inch) in length, about 2,5cm (1 inch) in diameter.

3. Cut in half and wrap in clean towel

4. Let it chill in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes, to absorb excess oil (do not refrigerate overnight; dough will harden).

5. Repeat process with the remaining halves of the two doughs.

6. Preheat oven to 190°C (375 °F).

7. Remove one chilled cylinder of the dough from the refrigerator. Roll back and forth under your palms, stretching cylinder to 30cm (12-inch) in length, about 2cm (3/4 inches) in diameter.

8. Cut in half. Cut each half into 6 pieces (or 8 for smaller pastries).

9. Roll each piece into a rectangle. Dough should be very thin (may use a plastic tumbler instead of a rolling pin).

10. Place a heaping tablespoon of the mungo filling at the center.

11. Gather edges of dough over the filling and pinch them together.

12. Place pinched side down, pat into a circle and flatten slightly.

13. Repeat this procedure for all the dough in the refrigerator.

14. Place hopia on an ungreased cookie sheet or on a sheet of foil.

15. Bake 15 to 20 minutes, until bottoms are brown (tops of hopia will still be pale).

16. Remove from oven and brush each hopia with beaten egg.

17. Set oven to broil and return hopia to oven until nicely brown for about 2 minutes.

18. Watch carefully to prevent burning.