5 MORE MOON CAKE MOULDS TO GIVE AWAY
We are giving away 20 Mooncake Moulds with every Australia and International purchase over $89 as a way to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. Purchase must include two bottles of Chili Padi Shakers.
The Mid-Autumn Festival (simplified Chinese: 中秋节; traditional Chinese: 中秋節) also known as Moon Festival or Mooncake Festival, is a traditional festival celebrated by many in Asia.
What many may not know is that it is the second-most important holiday after Chinese New Year. It has a history dating back 3,000 years when Chinese emperors worshipped the moon for bountiful harvests.
The festival is held on the 15th day of the 8th month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar with a full moon at night, which corresponds to mid-September to early October of the Gregorian calendar.
On this day, the Chinese believe that the moon is at its brightest and fullest, coinciding with harvest time in the middle of Autumn. The moon is a sublime sight at this very moment, pregnant with bright light in the deep darkness.
As with so many festivals, there are interesting symbols (and delicious ones, which are our favourite!) commonly associated with this one.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, people carry lanterns of all shapes and sizes walking through the streets or sometimes just displaying these lanterns at home.
Lanterns are symbolic during this festival - they are beacons that light people's path to prosperity and good fortune.
Children love trotting in the streets or just being with their friends displaying their lanterns. You have the true blue old-school accordion ones made of paper or stretched cellophane over a wire frame in the shape of animals like dragons - these are lit with a slim birthday candle in the middle. They rarely survive beyond the festival as they get burnt so easily. Children wait expectantly as their parents help them light the candles before they carefully pick up the lanterns. Later came the battery-operated plastic lanterns and these have a longer shelf-life.
The delicious symbol during the Mid-Autumn Festival is Mooncakes. It is a rich pastry typically filled with sweet red bean paste, egg yolk, meat or lotus-seed paste. It is a heavy cake and best appreciated with a good tea to help balance up the heaviness of the cake. Mooncakes are traditionally eaten during this festival.
Let’s see how the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated in different Asian countries.
How Mooncake Festival is celebrated all over the World and the Mooncake Legend
In many Asian communities, the Mid-Autumn Festival is widely celebrated and each come with their own unique local features.
In Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines – three countries with many ethnic Chinese citizens – the celebrations have more Chinese traditions, such as lighting lanterns and dragon dances. In other countries, such as Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam, which have also been influenced deeply by Chinese culture, new celebrations have been derived from their unique cultures. Let's take a look at each of them.
The Japanese have long celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival. Many still adopt the custom of worshipping the moon today and some unique traditions have also developed over time.
During the festival, people wear their gorgeous traditional kimonos and they visit shrines where they offer incense. Children collect reeds, a symbol of good luck and happiness, and use them to decorate doors.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is an important festival of thanksgiving for a good harvest in South Korea. It is even more ceremonious than their Spring Festival. South Koreans have a three-day holiday from the 14th to the 16th of the eighth lunar month. Many businesses such as restaurants and entertainment places are closed during the holiday. However, the main shopping malls always remain open. So if you are not so into tradition, there is always the option to get some action and do some shopping there. Mid-Autumn is an important time for family gatherings - do not be surprised to see families dancing together and appreciating the moon. And of course, it is an opportunity to enjoy a good meal together as well.
In Vietnam, the Mid-Autumn Festival is a festival mainly for the children. This is a time when parents buy their children various types of lanterns, snacks and fun masks. Children have a lot of fun with their carp-shaped lanterns and the lion dance parades. Rice is traditionally harvested before the 15th day of the 8th lunar month (mid-autumn) in Vietnam. It is typical for each household to offer sacrifices to the God of Earth. During harvest time, parents do not have much time to be with their children. That is why this festival is a time parents specially spend playing with their children.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is a big one in Singapore, where there are many Chinese inhabitants. Lanterns are also popular here and interestingly enough, it is also a time for people to express their gratitude and send mooncakes as a way to say thank you. People typically send beautifully packaged mooncakes to friends, relatives, or business partners to express their gracious greetings and good wishes.
Malaysia is home to the second largest community of overseas Chinese in the world, after Thailand.
There has been a long tradition of eating mooncakes in Malaysia. People also enjoy the bright full moon and take part in the lantern parade during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The mooncake making and selling business is an important one and friends, families, companies are all very much involved in this delicious business of buying, gifting and appreciating mooncakes.
Mooncakes with a twist - here's a Malaysian classic Pandan Ondeh Ondeh Mooncake, recipe courtesy of Sally Choo
There are even special mooncake sections in the shopping malls and you will be constantly drooling at the advertisements about mooncakes in the newspapers and on TV. A festive atmosphere can be felt buzzing during this festival. And you will not be disappointed by the variety of mooncakes available!
Overseas Chinese in the Philippines always look forward to the Mid-Autumn Festival. If you are ever there during this festival, you must go to the Chinatown in Manila. The capital of the Philippines is filled with lots of activities during this time and the atmosphere is one you would want to soak in and experience.
Take part in the dragon dance parades, games, ethnic clothing parades, lantern parades, and even float parades! You will be kept so busy simply trying not to miss out on anything!
Pua Tiong Chiu — A Popular Dice Game
And what is a festival without a traditional game to go with it? There is a popular game called Pua Tiong Chiu (a dice game in the Hokkien dialect). It's peculiar to Chinese Filipinos, who play for mooncake prize.
The game involves rolling six dice into a large bowl and they win prizes based on the dice combinations. Rolling 'fours' is what you want to hit. If you want to get the largest piece of mooncake, you need to roll at least four 'fours' or five-of-a-kind.
The game is said to have originated in Fujian Province, China as most of the Chinese Filipinos are immigrants from south Fujian Province and brought this tradition with them to the Philippines.
Beautiful yummy Dragon Fruit, Blue Oreo Mooncake & Purple Sweet Potato mooncakes are available at Hills Bakery in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia made by Lillian. We asked Lillian to create some of her delicately beautiful "Snow Skin Pandan Palm Sugar mooncake" (maybe even a Buko Pandan Mooncake) for our friends in Malaysia. She is tempted, so stay tuned! You may contact Lillian via her Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/hillysbakery/ or email hillsbakeryz@gmail.com / Whatsapp: +60 139193246 to order her delicious array of mooncakes in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia only.
SORRY OUR MOON CAKE MOULDS ARE SOLD OUT
My Blue Tea is giving away 20 Mooncake Moulds free with any purchase of over $89.00*. Your order must include Dragon Fruit / Pitaya Powder. These beautiful moulds are given away on a first-come-first-served basis, so don't wait too long to get them!
* For orders over $89, delivery is free within Australia. Normal postage applies for international orders.
Note : Mooncake Mould comes in 6 pieces with 5 designs.
(above photo is for illustration purposes).
What to do with your Mooncake Mould
Get ready to experiment and learn! Follow Lillie Giang's online video here to make these Blue Butterfly Pea Mooncakes. You are going to stun your family and friends with your very own homemade delicious and healthy mooncakes!
About Lillie Giang - The Food Affectionist
"My philosophy around food has never changed. Keep learning (I’m a forever student), never stop cooking and always give back with abundance."
Lillie lives and breathes her values of sharing wholesome, quality food with people and making connections wherever she goes. She is a guest presenter on The Cooks Pantry (Channel 10) and My Asian Banquet (Channel 7).
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