XINHUAIfyou鈥檙egoingtoexpressyourloveforsomebodyspecialinyourlife,doingitbeneaththelightofafullmoonisguaranteedtoplaceyouatthetopoftheromancespectrum.
InChina,atMid-AutumnFestival,themoonistheguestofhonorandalongwithconnectinghearts,itushersinanation鈥檚insatiabledesireforthemost鈥渄elicious鈥漜onfectioneryintheEast-themooncake.
SecondinimportanceonlytotheChineseNewYear,theMid-AutumnFestival,alsoknownasMoonFestival,focusesonthereunionoffamiliesandlovedones.
Mid-AutumnFestivalfallsonthe15thdayoftheeighthmonthofthetraditionalChinesecalendar-September24thisyear.
Traditionallyatimetocelebratetheendoftheharvestseason,it鈥檚alsoatimetorenewoldfriendshipsandmakenewfriends,andgiventhemoon鈥檚universalmysticalappeal,thisisaperfecttimeforaffairsofheart.Homestakeonaspecialwarmthonfestivalevening.
Thatwarmthiskindledbythemooncakeinvasion-somethingeveryforeignervisitingorlivinginChinashouldsee-atleastonce.Thisistheonlytimeoftheyearyou鈥檒lseethemandwhereveryouareinthecountry,preparetobeaccostedbyadverts,jinglesandbannersallproclaimingthedelectableattributesofthemooncakephenomenon.Everysupermarketshelf,vendors鈥檚tandandrestaurantserving-trolleygroansundertheweightoftheglisteningcakes.
Afriendofminetoldmethatshethoughtitismoredifficultforforeignerswholiveabroadamongotherculturestoadjusttheirtastebudstodessertsasopposedtosavorydishes.Thethinkingbehindthisisthatfromayoungage,dessertsarealwaysseenastreatsandhighlightsofameal,andaregenerallysomethingsweetintheWest.
Inmyexperience,mooncakesdonotquitefitthiscategory.Theirdense,richtastemakethemabitonthedry,stickyside(likeeatingaspoonofpeanutbutter)鈥揳ndnodoubtarebestconsumedwithcopioussipsofteaorcoffee.Inaddition,thehighconcentrationofcaloriesmakesthemanitemtoavoidbymanyChinesewomenobsessedwithstayingslim.
HoweverformillionsofChinesewhogrewupnibblingonthemwhilesittingontheirgrandma鈥檚lapandgazingupatthefullharvestmoon,thecakesprobablytriggerwarmfuzzymemoriesofdeliciouschildhoodmoments.
Aswithalltraditions,thefestivalhasn鈥檛escapedtheelectronicage,andnowit鈥檚becomepopulartosendfestivalgreetingsandimagesviasocialmedia.Buttoexperiencethetruefeelingofthefestival,youshouldtuckintothecakesinrealtime.
Forme,mooncakesareanacquiredtasteofnote.Atastethatcomesinalmostinfiniteflavors.Traditionallymadeoflotusseedpaste,peanutoilandglutinousriceflour,allencasedinpastry,pressedintoapatternedtray(usuallybearingthelogoofthebaker)andbakeduntilgoldenbrown,thecakescanalsobesteamedorfried.
Thelotuspaste,whichispricey,cancontainsaltedduckeggyolks鈥搒ymbolizingtheshapeofthemoon.Then,therearevarietiescontainingeverythingfromredbeanpaste,tocreamcheeseorginsengtodelightthedrovesofconsumers.Andinkeepingwithmillennialsdrivingchange,outletslikeHaagen-DazandStarbucksareabighit,whilebigdesignerbrandssuchasLouisVuittonandGuccigivetheirVIPclientelespeciallypackedcakeswithwhichtogainmegaface.
Andmooncakesdon鈥檛justcomeinaplasticwrappersorbrownpaperbags.TheselunartreatsarepackagedinsomeofthemostelaborateandcolorfulboxesandwrappingsI鈥檝eeverseen,andeveryofficeworkergetsaboxfulltotakehome-mostofwhicharegiventofriendsonthequiet.
ForforeignerslivinginChina,eatingmooncakesandgazingatthemoon,saidbyChineselegendtobeatitsroundestandbrightestontheMid-AutumnFestival,arethewaytogetcaughtupinthemomentofromance.Ifyoudon鈥檛haveyourspecial鈥渙ther鈥漺ithyou,grabamooncakeforcompany.Afterall,nooneshouldbealoneunderaharvestmoon.
ThewriterisaSouthAfricanlivinginBeijingCommentsto