The Chinese have celebrated the harvest during the autumn full moon since the Shang Dynasty. The festival, which falls on September 19 this year, is focused on the moon. Lunar worship, moon watching, lanterns, storytelling and mooncakes are a part of the celebration, as is a love story of a moon beauty (Chang’e), her husband and uber archer (Houyi), ten suns and a Jade Rabbit. But enough about that, let’s talk mooncake!
As the mid-autumn festival is an occasion of reunion, the round moon cake symbolizes the family circle and the flavor brings to mind the sweetness of filial ties. There are records of yuebing (moon cakes in Mandarin) from the Tang dynasty (609-960).
Typical mooncakes are round pastries, measuring about 10cm in diameter and 4–5cm thick. A rich thick filling usually made from white or red lotus seed, orange peel, or red bean paste is surrounded by a thin crust. The most popular include yolks to represent the roundness of the moon. The ornate decoration on the top of mooncake varies between words, the bakeries name, what is in the moon cake to decorations celebrating the festival.
Mooncakes are usually eaten in small wedges with tea and since I had never tried a mooncake before, I chose the smallest, white lotus paste one and tried it with some green tea. Totally unexpected was the texture and the flavor. Freshly baked moon cakes should be smooth, soft and delicate.
If you would like to learn more about the Mid Autumn Festival or mooncakes, click on either link below.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-Autumn_Festival
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mooncake
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