mooncakes...

Mid Autumn festival is celebrated in most of Asia during the eighth lunar month. This year the celebration started on September 27 and lasts a week. Celebrating centers around family gatherings, lanterns and moon cakes.  Moon cakes are given as gifts artfully packaged. There are hundreds of flavors of moon cakes available. Every store, hotel, charity and business offers their own moon cake variety. The classic moon cakes are densely filled with lotus seed paste and an egg yolk in the center. 

This year Heidi and I decided to try new (to us) varieties of moon cakes. Our personal version of 'Americans taste test...' video. The Shangri - La ones are the classic lotus seed paste version. Starbucks offers a boxed set of moon cakes inspired by their popular beverages. Tea WG offers several types of moon cakes, but I purchased the varieties I thought we would like the best.

Shangri La lotus seed with egg yolk. Starbucks salted carmel mochi and chocolate. Tea WG mixed nuts in lotus seed paste.  Starbucks espresso and almond. Starbucks green tea mocha and red bean paste. Tea WG black sesame. Starbucks hojicha tea and osamantus. (clockwise)  

 We added just the right Hong Kong accessories for our moon cake tasting. 

I assumed I would like the Starbucks ones the best. Heidi was quite fond of the green tea and red bean paste moon cake. As did the hubby.  In their defense red bean paste does contain sugar. But on the flip side none of us liked the hojicha tea and osmanthus one. It tasted like how walking past someone wearing too much perfume smells. 

 But really it was the Tea WG black sesame that I loved.

Moon cakes are densely packed so you really don't want a whole one. A small sliver will do you. And they are best paired with a strong tea or coffee. We brewed a pot of Tea WG to wash down our moon cake selection. Hope everyone had a great Mid Autumn festival. Wishing everyone much happiness and bliss. 

xox, 

Christine

photos by Heidi