The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, and BC Mandarin School organized the "Making Mooncakes for Mid-Autumn Festival" event, inviting many students who love Chinese culture.
The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month and is one of China's four major traditional festivals. Both the moon and mooncakes are round, symbolizing family reunion. On this day, families gather to celebrate, sharing mooncakes and admiring the moon together.
During the event, we first listened to the story of moon worship during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Long ago, there was a man named Hou Yi. To express his longing for his wife, who had flown to the moon after drinking an elixir, he would place fruits on a table every year on the night of August 15th to honor her from afar. Hou Yi's act later spread widely. Since August 15th marks the Mid-Autumn Festival, moon worship became a tradition passed down as part of the festival's customs.
Next, the teacher introduced the different types of mooncakes. In China, the fillings and flavors of mooncakes vary across regions. It surprised me that northern regions generally prefer sweet fillings, while southern regions enjoy both sweet and savory flavors.
After listening, the participants joined together to make mooncakes. The dough came in a variety of colors: green (from spinach powder), purple (from purple sweet potato powder), yellow (from pumpkin powder), and red (from beetroot powder). The fillings included red bean paste, salted egg yolk, white peach coconut, and Longjing tea-infused lotus seed paste—offering a mix of sweet and savory flavors. Each participant created beautifully crafted mooncakes, which they later took home as gifts for their families.
Among the participants of this event, some had only been in China for a few weeks, while others had lived here for over a decade.
The activity provided a wonderful opportunity for everyone to connect and share their experiences. Such a meaningful time together has left us with beautiful memories.