Hopia (Filipino-Hawaiʻi Local Sweet Bean Pastry)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Medium heavy saucepan
• •Rolling pin
• •Rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the beans

   Put the rinsed mung beans and 3 cups water in a saucepan and simmer gently until the beans collapse soft, 25 to 30 minutes. Stir near the end so they don't catch. If the pot goes dry before the beans give up, add a splash more water. No blame the bean. It just needs time.

2. 2

   Make the filling

   Mash the soft beans smooth, then stir in the sugar, salt, butter, and vanilla if using. Cook over low heat, stirring, until the paste pulls from the sides of the pan and holds its shape like soft clay, 8 to 12 minutes. Cool completely, then divide into 24 small balls.

   For ube hopia, replace the mung bean filling with 2 cups thick ube halaya. It should be firm enough to roll, not loose like pudding.
3. 3

   Mix water dough

   In a bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups flour with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir in the water and neutral oil until a soft dough forms, then knead just until smooth. Cover and rest 15 minutes so it relaxes.

4. 4

   Mix fat dough

   In another bowl, mash together the remaining 3/4 cup flour, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and the lard, shortening, or butter until it becomes a soft paste. This is the little trick that makes the hopia flake, one dough wrapped around another.

5. 5

   Layer the doughs

   Divide both doughs into 24 pieces. Flatten one water-dough piece, set one fat-dough piece inside, and pinch it closed. Roll into a small oval, roll it up like a jelly roll, turn it seam-side down, then roll it out once more. Keep the touch light. You want layers, not toughness.

6. 6

   Fill and seal

   Flatten each rolled piece into a round, set a ball of filling in the center, and gather the edges closed. Pinch tight, then set seam-side down and press gently into a squat cake. If a little filling shows, no panic, just patch it and keep moving.

7. 7

   Bake until golden

   Heat the oven to 375F. Set the hopia on a parchment-lined baking sheet, brush lightly with beaten egg, and bake 18 to 22 minutes, until pale golden with deeper color at the edges. The tops should look satin-glossed from the egg, the sides faintly layered.

8. 8

   Cool and share

   Let the hopia cool until warm or room temperature before eating, because the filling settles as it rests. Pack some in a tin or a paper bakery box. This is gift food. It wants another hand to receive it.

Chef Tips

• •Hopia is Filipino first. In Hawaiʻi it became Local because Filipino families kept making it, selling it, gifting it, and feeding everybody who came through the door.
• •Split mung beans cook faster and mash smoother than whole beans. If you only have whole mung beans, soak them overnight and cook longer.
• •Lard gives the old bakery flake, shortening is steady, butter tastes good but makes a softer pastry. Eat what you have.
• •Let the filling cool fully before wrapping. Warm filling melts the fat dough and makes the layers muddy.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the mung bean filling up to 3 days ahead and refrigerate it covered; roll it into balls while cold.
• •Shape the hopia a day ahead and refrigerate on a covered tray, then brush with egg and bake before serving.
• •Baked hopia keeps 3 days in an airtight tin at room temperature, or about a month frozen. Rewarm briefly in a low oven to bring back the flake.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 45g)