Mooncakes symbolize the gathering of friends and family and are an indispensable part of the offerings made to the Earth God, Tu Ti Kung. According to popular belief, the custom of eating mooncakes began in the late Yuan dynasty. As the story goes, the Han people of that time resented the Mongol rule of the Yuan Dynasty and revolutionaries, led by Chu Yuan-chang, plotted to usurp the throne. Chu needed to find a way of uniting the people to revolt on the same day without letting the Mongol rulers learn of the plan. Chu's close advisor, Liu Po-wen, finally came up with a brilliant idea. A rumor was spread that a plague was ravaging the land and that only by eating a special mooncake distributed by the revolutionaries could the disaster be prevented. The mooncakes were then distributed only to the Han people, who found, upon cutting the cakes open, the message "Revolt on the fifteenth of the eighth month." Thus informed, the people rose together on the designated day to overthrow the Yuan, and since that time mooncakes have become an integral part of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
月餅不僅象征著家人、朋友的團(tuán)聚，也是獻(xiàn)給土地神的一種祭品。民間認(rèn)為，吃月餅的習(xí)俗始于元朝末期。據(jù)說當(dāng)時的漢人對蒙古人的統(tǒng)治恨之入骨，于是由朱元璋統(tǒng)帥的革命軍企圖篡權(quán)。朱元璋需要找到一種秘密的將所有革命軍在同一天糾集起來的方法。他的貼身智囊劉伯溫最終想出了一個絕妙的點(diǎn)子。一條“瘟疫即將來襲，只有吃革命軍分發(fā)的特殊月餅才能夠抵御”的謠言散播開來。而這種月餅只分發(fā)給了漢人，他們在切開月餅的時候發(fā)現(xiàn)了一條“于八月初十五起義”的信息。后來，人們在八月十五那天集合起來推翻了元朝統(tǒng)治。從那以后，月餅成為中秋節(jié)不可或缺的元素。

There are four types of mooncakes : ping, su, kuang, and tai. Ping style mooncakes originated in Peking and resemble sesame cakes, with a crisp and savory outer crust. The su style of mooncakes are sweet with a thin, delicate layered crust. The kuang style are famous for their meticulously prepared fillings. The tai style is also known as "Moonlight Cakes." These cakes use sweet potatoes for filling and are sweet, tender, and tasty without being oily.
月餅有四種類型：京式、蘇式、廣式、臺式。京式月餅起源于北京，與芝麻餅類似，皮脆而味美。蘇式月餅味甜、皮薄而多層。廣式月餅以餡料精致而著名。臺式月餅也叫“月光餅”，用甜土豆做為餡料，味甜酥軟而不油膩。