With the Mid-Autumn Festival just around the corner – falling on Oct 1 this year – people in Jingning She autonomous county, in East China's Zhejiang province, are busy making their traditional festival snacks: delicious herbal mooncakes made from Apocynum venetum, or luobuma.

The luobuma plant has a long history as a Chinese traditional medicine and food supplement that calms the liver, soothes the nerves and dissipates heat, among other things.

A raft of mooncakes made from the luobuma plant. [Photo/lsnews.com.cn]

To make the herbal mooncake, you first need to grind japonica rice into powder, add blanched Apocynum venetum leaves and put them into the mortar for grinding. Then, knead the mixture before putting it into a mold. The shaped mooncakes can be steamed, fried, toasted or boiled, according to locals.

A woman wearing traditional clothing of the She ethnic group picks Apocynum venetum leaves in Jingning She autonomous county. [Photo/lsnews.com.cn]