As Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, Xiao He Jie Dessert Shop in Rudong county, Nantong, Jiangsu province, is drawing attention with its creative mooncakes.

Designed by local pastry chef Zhu Xu, each mooncake features Rudong landmarks such as the Haizi buffalo, Bencha ancient town, and offshore wind farms, plus local seafood like swimming crab and clams.

Zhu presents a hand-made mooncake in her dessert shop. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

Zhu, a Rudong native, spent nearly five months preparing. She hand-drew designs, worked with mold makers, and customized five sets of molds with eight designs each. Three different crusts offer some aesthetic variety, while the low-sugar, low-oil fillings such as black sesame, peanut, milk, egg yolk, red bean paste and nuts are mostly handmade.

"I wanted the mooncakes to showcase what makes Rudong special," Zhu said. "I hope they can give people from Rudong who live elsewhere a taste of home, while introducing visitors to the area's local culture."

She also developed Nantong-themed designs such as blue calico, the Bell Tower and Haohe River. The mooncakes are now on sale and will be available at scenic spots like Bencha ancient town and Xiaoyangkou. She said she hopes visitors will take home a souvenir that represents the flavors, landmarks and culture of Rudong.

The mooncakes feature Rudong seafood like swimming crabs and clams. [Photo/Nantong Daily]