Tony Wong and his mini mooncakes

 

Friendship may be expressed in many ways and two friends quietly arranged to do something which not only pleasantly surprised me but also touched me deeply.

 

A gift card enclosed, designed by Tony Wong

In recent years, I often met with members of alternative media club, Johor Collective Media or JOCOM in short, for exclusive events and food reviews but due to the global pandemic and consequent lockdowns, we have not met for many months.

 

We have however, been in constant touch through a WhatsApp group chat to keep abreast of current news and chit-chats to encourage each other on through this challenging time.

 

Unknown to me, food, travel and lifestyle bloggers, Tony Wong Kok Poh of Oh! Funtastic (Chinese & English) and Sis Lin of AKU Sis Lin (Malay & English), were conspiring to spring a surprise on me and a few others for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

 

Pretty packaging for a set of six

When Tony sent a message to ask for my address to make a delivery, I quizzed him thoroughly because I needed the answers to Who? What? When? Why? and How?

 

Tony is keen on cooking and baking so making snow skin mooncakes was just up his alley, also because he liked eating snow skin mooncakes.

 

With a taste for good snow skin mooncakes, he worked hard at achieving the desired results from using fresh ingredients in making the mooncakes from scratch, until he was personally satisfied and ready to share it with others.

 

I was impressed when Tony explained that all his ingredients were locally sourced and made from scratch, except for the dried peach which he used to make the Peach Custard filling for his mini snow skin mooncakes.

 

Each snow skin mooncake is
individually packed

“This custard is what the Cantonese call, Nai Wong,” he explained.

 

He also showed me a photo of the fresh purple sweet potatoes he uses to make the Purple Sweet Potato with Blueberry filling and added, “I also cooked the Blueberry sauce.”

 

Just as most enterprising young people were sharing info and photographs of their activities and adventures on social media, Tony posted a showcase of his proudly homemade-with-love products on Facebook.

 

His excellent photography and styling skills came into good use because his FB posts garnered much interest, and among them was Sis Lin, who made excited enquiries.

 

Snow skin mooncake filled
with Peach Custard

When I received a pretty box of snow skin mooncakes, made and delivered by Tony, I read from a card, designed and printed by Tony, that the sender was in fact, Sis Lin.

 

Before leaving, he reminded me to savour the freshly-made snow skin mooncakes chilled to enjoy its best taste, and to keep them refrigerated and consumed within three days.

 

I quickly sent a Thank You message to Sis Lin in appreciation for her thoughtful buah tangan, and she replied, “Yaa Peggy, cuma sedikit hadiah untuk kawan2 – rindu nak makan sama2 – I hope you like it,” she replied.

 

I can understand how she missed our regular meet-ups for events and food reviews and assured her that we will do that again when it was safe to dine-in again.

 

Meanwhile I reminded her, “We must diam-diam duduk rumah!”

 

Snow skin mooncake filled with
Purple Sweet Potato and Blueberry

“Yaa Peggy …that’s why I send a small gift to kawan2 and also to support Tony’s business,” she added.

 

It was a very thoughtful gesture, one that I deeply appreciated not because I was presented with a gift but because these two – Tony and Sis Lin – personify friendship and are doing something to support each other through these trying times.

 

Thank you for blessing me with your friendship and your mini mooncakes, handmade with a special ingredient called love. Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!

 

To savour Mooncakes by Tony, Handmade with Love, order via Tel: +6017 383 1163

Photo Credit: Tony Wong Kok Poh