Moon cake

The Chinese festival of the Autumn Full Moon is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar. This corresponds to the second half of September. Among other festive dishes, the central place on the table is given to yuebin - "moon" gingerbread, the round shape of which symbolizes the moon disk.
In different parts of the country, yuebins are cooked in different ways. The traditional "moon" gingerbread is a filled round cake. Above, the delicacy is decorated with intricate patterns and hieroglyphs, so each individual yuebin can be safely called a work of art.
It is prepared from flour, sugar, fat and molasses, using a variety of fillings and technologies. With the improvement of the living standards of the people, the filling for the gingerbread also underwent changes. The traditional fillings (mashed beans, dates, nuts or honey) were added with ham, fruits, egg yolks, butter, cocoa. The hoti yuebin variety is filled with ham, the dousha is filled with mashed beans, and the uzhen is filled with five varieties of seeds and nuts.
The symbol of the Mid-Autumn Festival is a circle. Ancient beliefs say that on this day the moon is the roundest and fullest in the year, it is also a symbol of wealth, productivity, completeness and all the best. Yuebin gingerbread acts as a small personification of the moon; it is presented as a gift to relatives and friends with wishes of all the best.