For the American chocolate-marshmallow confection, see Mooncake recipe pie. For the animated character, see Final Space.

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. The festival is about lunar appreciation and Moon watching, and mooncakes are regarded as a delicacy. Mooncakes are offered between friends or on family gatherings while celebrating the festival. There are numerous varieties of mooncakes consumed within China and outside of China in overseas Chinese communities. The Cantonese mooncake is the most famous variety.

Mooncakes are usually eaten in small wedges, accompanied by tea. Today, it is customary for business people and families to present them to their clients or relatives as presents, helping to fuel a demand for high-end mooncakes. Just as how the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated in various Asian localities due to the presence of Chinese communities throughout the region, mooncakes are enjoyed in other parts of Asia too. Mooncakes have also appeared in western countries as a form of delicacy. Most mooncakes consist of a thick, tender pastry skin enveloping a sweet, dense filling, and may contain one or more whole salted egg yolks in their center that symbolizes the full moon.

Depending on the custom, mooncakes may also be steamed or fried. 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 inside. The festival is intricately linked to legends of Chang’e, the mythical Moon Goddess of Immortality. Because of its central role in the Mid-Autumn festival, mooncakes remained popular even in recent years.

For many, they form a central part of the Mid-Autumn festival experience such that it is now commonly known as ‘Mooncake Festival’. There is a folk tale about the overthrow of the Yuan dynasty facilitated by messages smuggled in moon cakes. Mooncakes were used by revolutionaries in their effort to overthrow the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty, eventually resulting in the establishment of the Ming dynasty. To read the message, each of the four mooncakes was cut into four parts. The resulting 16 pieces were pieced together to reveal the message.