Meaning of moon cake | Babel Free

Examples

“The 15th day of the 8th moon is the 中秋 mid autumn feast. […] The cake shops are cleared of other stock, and nothing is to be bought in them for many days but the moon cakes. The moon cake—I am afraid I cannot convey an idea in words, of the delicacy of this exquisite morceau. I merely give its composition, and leave the rest to the imagination of the reader. A small pie in shape of a pork pie, with a crust not quite so tough as well tanned leather, filled with lumps of pork fat mixed with sugar, almonds, chopped walnuts, sesamum, and other varieties of seed.”

“The emblematical pastry of the period, the moon cake, has for its ingredients a little bit of everything grown during all the seasons of the year. […] Indeed, it is the nearest thing to pie the Chinese cookery affords. Bits of pork, cabbage, pumpkin, figs, fruit and fowl baked together in a cast-iron crust, seasoned with pork fat, may not be appetizing to the Caucasian taste, but they tickle the palate of a Chinaman into epicurean laughter and make him believe he is enlarging his mind proportionately with his waist.”

“The round moon cakes, measuring about three inches in diameter and one and a half inches in thickness, resembled Western fruit cakes in taste and consistency. These cakes were made with melon seeds, lotus seeds, almonds, minced meats, bean paste, orange peels, and lard. A golden yolk from a salted duck egg was placed at the center of each cake, and the golden brown crust was decorated with symbols of the festival. Traditionally, thirteen moon cakes were piled into a pyramid to symbolize the thirteen moons of a "complete year"—that is, twelve moons plus one intercalary moon.”

“Fruit mince moon cakes […] Over the years, the Chinese moon cake has evolved into a variety of treats with different fillings. To cater to the health-conscious, many bakeries also offer miniature moon cakes and sugar-free moon cakes. I have used a fruit mince filling to make these moon cakes a little more familiar to the European palate, but you do need a moon cake mould to make these.”

“Remember the overthrow of the Manchus, when messages hidden in moon cakes roused the people to bring arms to the meeting place.”

CEFR level