A Hong Kong bakery started selling mooncakes in July that send political messages via the embossing on them. Referring to anti-government protests that have roiled the city since June, the slogans on the mooncakes include “no withdrawal, no dispersal” and “Hongkongers hang in together”.

It’s not a modern invention to have mooncakes bear political messages. More than 600 years ago, revolutionary notes were stuffed inside the baked goods with intent to end the Yuan dynasty, when Han Chinese rebels were stoking plans to overthrow their Mongol overlords.

As Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, we look into the history and evolution of mooncakes, and the modern-day variations of them. We even tried KFC’s spicy chicken mooncakes so you don’t have to.