Every year, patisseries vie to outdo each other in novelty mooncakes. We take a look at some of the more unusual tastes.
Dominique Ansel combines tradition and creativity with its pomelo lantern mooncake gift box (HK$498). Inside are six locally handcrafted mooncakes in two flavors: chocolate custard and classic custard, balanced with flaky golden pastry crust.
Dalloyau also wows guests with its Paris Moon gift box (HK$438). The fuchsia and bright yellow box contains three pieces each of 80 percent Valrhona Guanaja chocolate egg custard and New Zealand manuka honey egg custard.
With its new lava chocolate mooncakes, Cova has upped the game. Its red Milan Autumn mooncake gift box (HK$998) holds mooncakes with white lotus seed paste and two egg yolks, egg custard, cranberry and assorted nuts and lava chocolate as well as gianduilotti chocolates.
The Peninsula once again puts its own modern twist on Cantonese flavors this year with its sesame and mung bean paste, and salty lemon white lotus seed paste mooncakes. Guests can purchase these flavors in the Star Chef Moon Gazing gift box (HK$2,488), containing four pieces of each flavor, pu'er tea, as well as a set of porcelain tea pot and tea cups.
Prefer your tea in your mooncake? Try the Dazzling Moon gift box (HK$628), which contains mini egg custard mooncakes with flavors such as tie guan yin, lychee black tea, Peninsula blend and Earl Grey.
Those who don't enjoy mooncakes but still wish to celebrate the festival can keep an eye out for Luna, a mooncake pastry available at The Peninsula Boutique & Cafe (HK$88). Topping the buttery shortbread base are sponge cake, mandarin orange mousse, jelly and velvet icing.
Tea-infused mooncakes appears to be a trend. Fortnum & Mason's mooncake and tea pairing gift box (HK$608) features six mini egg custard mooncakes infused with Fortnum's famous teas.
Rosewood has collaborated with celebrity chef May Chow to present A Sense of Place tea-flavored mini mooncakes (HK$628). The mooncakes are filled with Fujian oolong, ground into refined powder and sifted into white lotus seed for maximum flavor. For added tea oomph, the mooncakes are paired with Reunion moonlight white tea in the Rosewood's A Sense of Taste Picnic on the Moon gift box (HK$988).
KiKi Noodle Bar's KiKi Moon box (HK$208) brings Taiwanese flavors to your home. Inside are two pieces each of pineapple custard, peach oolong custard and jasmine green tea custard mooncakes.
Tea isn't the only pairing option. The two drawers in Ralph's Coffee's exclusive mooncake box (HK$468) are filled with mini custard lava and mini coffee-infused lava mooncakes.
Inside Creo by Brentwood's gift box, designed by Zoie Lam, are three mooncakes with unusual flavors: manuka honey egg custard, Earl Grey tea custard and coffee lava custard.
"With my signature Zlism planet creatures, I want to remind everyone that during the Mid-Autumn Festival, we should reunite with family and friends under the bright moonlight and live in the moment," said Lam.
Think coffee and Starbucks often comes to mind. The Starbucks mooncake gift set (HK$329) will delight bean lovers with its signature caramel lava and coffee, Earl Grey mochi mooncake and oat milk custard mooncakes.
Mochi mooncakes are also a novelty offering from Kee Wah Bakery. The mochi custard mooncake gift set (HK$228) features matcha red bean mochi custard, black sesame mochi custard and yuzu mochi custard mooncakes.
Keep an eye out for the Sumikko Gurashi custard mooncake series. Customers can purchase the character-shaped mooncakes with the Sumikko Gurashi Musical Train custard mooncake gift box (HK$208), which includes the Shirokuma strawberry custard, penguin egg custard, Tonkatsu chocolate custard and Tokage black sesame custard mooncakes.
