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Around September every year, one cannot help but notice the
round cakes sold everywhere called mooncakes.
Almost every hotel and Chinese restaurant will have its own
range of mooncakes, attractively and
proudly displayed for sale. Even bakeries and supermarkets will
sell these delicacies.
Mooncakes are made and eaten in celebration of the Mid-Autumn or
Harvest Moon Festival, which traditionally falls on the 15th day
of the 8th month of each year in the Chinese Lunar Calendar.
In 2007, this day is on 25th of September.
In China, the mid-autumn full moon is said to be the biggest and
brightest in the whole year. Moon viewing gatherings and parties
held in the crisp cool of the evening are common.
It is also the time of the annual harvest of crops, before
winter descends on the land. It symbolises a time for reaping
the results of all the hard work put in, and a time for
reflection.
Both the harvest and the appearance of the big, bright moon are
celebrated with festivities, dancing, family and community
gatherings, and feasts.
Among Chinese people around the globe,
the Mid-Autumn Festival is still commemorated with reunions and
rejoicing.
For children, it is an especially exciting and joyful time. They
are given paper lanterns to light up and parade around the
neighbourhood in the moonlight. The colourful paper lanterns
come in all shapes, sizes and representations. Some communities
will hold lantern-making competitions and lantern
light-up
exhibitions.
The signature food is the mooncake -
as round and golden as the moon itself. It is a kind of
pie about 10cm across and 4cm high,
covered with a thin layer of soft pastry and containing a
rich, sweet
filling made from finely ground lotus seed paste or bean paste.
They can be plain or can also contain the whole
yolks of salted eggs
within the filling. There are usually one, two or four yolks in
each cake, representing the moon and its phases. Mooncakes
containing egg yolks are a special treat
and are more expensive
than the plain variety.
Nowadays, there are all sorts of fillings and new flavours, such
as chocolate, green tea, nuts, vegetables, fruits, meat, and
other unusual tastes. There are even mooncakes
containing ice-cream.
In Singapore and Malaysia, delicate-looking 'snowskin' mooncakes
are popular, with an off-white or pastel-coloured pastry made
from glutinous rice flour.
Mooncakes are usually cut into quarters before being served. A
pot of hot
fragrant
Chinese tea is the perfect accompaniment
to
mooncakes.
© Pat F for
Foodie Passion. All
rights reserved.
Photograph used
with kind permission of
Park Hotel Group. |
