Flower Belle

Lantern Festival Moon cake

In Mid autumn festival, mooncakes are Chinese pastries traditionally eaten during the Lantern Festival. They are round or rectangular pastries, measuring about 10 cm in diameter and 4-5 cm thick. Mooncakes are usually eaten in small wedges accompanied by Chinese tea.

Most mooncakes consist of a thin tender skin enveloping a sweet, dense filling. The mooncake may contain one or more whole salted egg yolks in its center to symbolize the full moon. Very rarely, mooncakes are also served steamed or fried. A thick filling usually made from lotus seed paste is surrounded by a relatively thin (2-3 mm) crust and may contain yolks from salted duck eggs.

Traditional mooncakes have an imprint on top consisting of the Chinese characters for “longevity” or “harmony” as well as the name of the bakery and the filling in the moon cake. Imprints of the moon, the Chang’e woman on the moon, flowers, vines, or a rabbit (symbol of the moon) may surround the characters for additional decoration.

Mooncakes are considered a delicacy; production is labor-intensive and few people make them at home. Most mooncakes are bought at markets and bakeries.

Source: http://sgholiday.com/2010/08/moon-cake-festival-2010/

Different customs have evolved in different areas regarding the Mid-Autumn Festival. The most significant customs are to appreciate and offer sacrifice to the round bright moon and eat moon cake. Other activities like dragon dancing and doing obeisance to the moon are also considered highly important. Mooncake festival is a great event and this event have a lot of history and legend.

Appreciating and Offering Sacrifice to the Moonlight

Since ancient times, Chinese emperors offered sacrifices to the sun in the spring and the moon in autumn. Especially in the Zhou Dynasty (11th century BC – 221 BC), the big incense burn table was arranged and all kinds of food were offered in sacrifice that day.

However, appreciating the moon became more popular in the Tang (618 – 907) and Song Dynasties (960 – 1279). Many famous poems for praising the moon on the night of the festival were created during those periods. In the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644), the Moon Altar was built for the purpose of sacrifice to the moon on the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Today, sacrifice has been replaced by a simple appreciation of the moon. Members of a family usually sit around a table eating and talking to their heart content and at the same time admiring the bright moon. While looking up the moon, people will think of their relatives afar and good wishes are expressed in their mind.

Source: http://www.travelchinaguide.com/essential/holidays/mid-autumn.htm

With so many people concerned about natural and organic foods these days, it’s useful to stop and really take a look at what “natural” and “organic” foods really are. We all know that natural and organic foods are better for us than highly processed or artificial foods, but do we really know which foods are natural and organic? When you buy food that is labeled “natural,” what does that really mean? What about “organic”?

It turns out that the term “natural” doesn’t mean all that much. Because it’s only been broadly defined by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), it’s a fairly arbitrary term, the meaning of which is left up to the conscience of the food manufacturer. The FDA says that any food can be labeled as natural so long as it doesn’t include added color, synthetic substances or artificial flavors.

This definition sounds good—until you realize that it can be stretched to include such definitely non-natural substances such as aspartame, the artificial sweetener. More liberal food manufacturers argue that “natural” means any material that exists in nature. While aspartame does not exist in nature (you have to use a chemical process to create it), manufacturers say that the resulting product is made up of two amino acids, both of which do exist in nature. Never mind that they don’t exist glued together as aspartame!

So what can the savvy nutritionally-conscious consumer do about this? Go with a term that is clearly defined and regulated by the FDA: organic. In the next issue we’ll delve into the intricacies of organic foods, including basic regulations and differing levels of organic production. In the meantime, avoid foods that are only labeled as “natural” and go for those labeled “organic” or “natural and organic.” It’s the real stuff.

Source: http://www.floweradvisor.com.sg/lifestyle/interests/organic_products/220/natural_foods_defined/

See Also : Mooncake, moon cake, Mid autumn festival