This past weekend was the Chinese Moon Festival or Mid-Autumn Festival. The moon festival is the second most important festival in the traditional Chinese calendar and Mid-Autumn day is called so because the autumn season in the Chinese calendar is the seventh, eighth and ninth months. Because in Chinese culture the full moon is a symbol of family reunion, the Moon Festival is usually celebrated by a family reunion dinner followed by the eating of traditional moon cakes and gazing upon the full moon. The ingredients used in moon cakes differ from area to area in China, and include things like coconut paste, lotus seed paste, bean paste, vegetables, various fruits, seeds and nuts, egg yolk, chicken, ham or date paste. There are many myths and legends about the moon in Chinese Culture, hence the popularity
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