FOR Nicole Wei, making jelly mooncakes is more than a hobby – it is a way of giving back to the community.
The 36-year-old, who works full-time at a tile shop, spends her evenings and weekends making homemade jelly mooncakes for the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Wei views it as an opportunity to help others, as she has been donating part of her profits to charity for the past decade.
“For example, if a box costs RM28, I will donate RM3 from the proceeds to help buy things such as milk powder or food for children in an orphanage,” she said when met at her house in Kampung Simee, Ipoh.
Unlike traditional mooncakes, Wei specialises in jelly varieties featuring yoghurt and fresh fruit. Her yoghurt jelly mooncakes come in mango and blueberry flavours, while the mixed-fruit variety contains dragon fruit, mango, grape and longan, among others.
“I taught myself how to make them,” Wei says.
“I came up with the recipes through trial and error.”
She begins preparing the mooncakes around late August, accepting orders until Sept 25.
Her jelly mooncakes are available in boxes of 12 mini pieces or four larger pieces.
Depending on the orders, she can make about 10 boxes of mini mooncakes in an hour, while 10 boxes of the larger variety take about two hours.
“I usually start at around 6pm after getting home from work.
“Sometimes, I wake up at 5am to make them.”
Wei says she continues working until 8pm or 9pm, and sometimes as late as midnight when there are many orders.
Her weekends are also dedicated to fulfilling orders, with her Sunday preparations often beginning before dawn.
Wei said her jelly mooncakes had attracted customers from as far away as Singapore.
While older customers generally preferred traditional mooncakes, some had also developed a liking for her jelly versions as they were softer and less sweet, she said.
Wei’s daughter Kwong Zhi Qi, nine, also lends a hand, particularly with preparing the mixed-fruit jelly.
Wei has also experimented with other flavours, including gula melaka and cendol.
For Wei, the appeal of jelly mooncakes lies in their lighter texture and smaller portions.
“They are lower in fat, smaller in size and healthier because of the fruit content.”
