Return of the Patriotic Poet

 

The festival was last Friday, 19th June.  Here's a video which tells the story behind this festival.  Hope you enjoyed your dumplings!

Happy Wesak Day 2026

 

Wishing everyone a peaceful and blessed Wesak Day!

Happy Birthday Everyone!

 

The 7th day of Chinese New Year, commonly referred to as Renri or "Human Days" is celebrated on the seventh day of the first lunar month in the Chinese calendar.  This significant day honours humanity and is believed to mark the creation of humans by the goddess, Nuwa, who molded people from yellow clay.

It symbolizes a fresh start, unity and the importance of life.  Customs include eating special dishes like Yusheng (prosperity salad) or a seven-vegetable soup for health ad prosperity.

This year, the 7th day falls on Monday, 23rd February.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EVERYONE!

Happy Chinese New Year!

 

17 & 18 February 2026

Wishing you a joyful and prosperous Year of the Horse!

Good luck, Good Health, Abundance!

Happy New Year 2026

Winter Solstice Again!

 

Oh no, it's that time of year, like it or not, that we're supposed to be one year older.....yeah, I'm talking about the winter solstice (for the Chinese).  Traditionally, this is a festival almost like a second Chinese New Year marked by family reunions, ancestor worship and eating of "tang yuan" (glutinous rice balls) representing completeness.  

So I was at the market this morning to get my "tang yuan" for worship and later to eat as a dessert for good luck and good fortune.  

The elders still insist that one is a year older right after this celebration and that one should behave better and wiser! 

I prefer to forget about the age part and just enjoy my "tang yuan".

HAPPY WINTER SOLSTICE!

Happy New Year!

Christmas Wishes

Mooncakes are Back!

October is going to be a very sweet month ....yes, the Mid-Autumn festival is here again and I've just received my first mooncakes of the year from a friend!  These sweet temptations come in a lovely colourful box and are of four flavours - Mixed Nuts, Pandan Lotus (Reduced Sugar), Taro Single Yolk and Signature Lotus Single Yolk.  They will be hard to resist in the next few days!!

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival everyone!  Here's sending you moonlight, peace and tranquility!

 

Moon biscuits for tea

Return of the Patrotic Poet

It's the fifth day of the 5th lunar month (3lst May) and once again, it's time to honour the Patriotic Poet, Qu Yuan.  Most people know the legend behind this festival which commemorates the life and death of this poet and today, glutinous rice dumplings have become a traditional delicacy to be enjoyed during this time.  The festival is also marked by dragon boat races and other cultural festivities.  

Here's a cute little video on the making of "bak chang" (glutinous rice dumplings).

Enjoy your dumplings!

Happy Wesak

 

May the Lord Buddha enlighten us on the path of love, peace and truth!

HAPPY WESAK!

12 May 2025

 

CNY Cookies Are Back - 2

 

I finally found time to visit one of my favourite shops selling CNY cookies and as you can see, they have rows and rows of cookies for you to choose from!  In addition, they also have special CNY gift packs with a variety of goodies inside.  I settled for Potato chips and Almond Green Bean Cookies (made with mung bean flour) in the end.  The recipe for the latter originates from Macau and each little round cookie melts in your mouth, that's why they are so special .  Apart from cookies, the shop also sell nuts, local Chinese biscuits and snacks as well as "bak kwa" (dried meat, usually pork).  More pictures below:

Special gift packs

Macau Almond Green Bean Cookies

Dried "bak kwa"

It's still early, that's why the shelves are still full, but if I were to come back say in a week's time, I don't think I'll find any cookies left!

Wishing you in advance a prosperous Year of the Snake filled with good fortune, health, and happiness!

(Pictures courtesy of "Oloiya")

CNY Cookies are Back!

When I first saw these little titbits, they reminded me of worms but they're actually Chinese New Year cookies baked in the shape of "Loong" or dragon!  I was told that they were made by an enterprising elderly lady who had come out with a range of her own cookies.  They're made from good quality butter and contain less sugar.  Well I decided to buy a bottle to try and they are indeed less sweet, very good for the health conscious.  

Meantime, in other shops, I see endless rows of CNY cookies on the shelves ..... ya, CNY is down the road, so time to get ready, throw out the old and make room for the new!  

Happy New Year 2025

 

Merry Christmas

....AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy Dongzhi Festival

 

Today, 21st December is an auspicious day in the Chinese calendar.  It's the Winter Solstice Festival or Dongzhi Festival.  

I had almost forgotten about this festival until a friend reminded me.  So this morning I bought some tang yuan for worship.  My mum, if she were alive today, would have been very upset, even angry if I had forgotten about this festival!  It has been celebrated for around 2,500 years and traditionally it is the time for families to come together to make (or buy if you can't make!) and eat tang yuan (glutimous rice balls), which are symbols of reunion and prosperity.  

According to my research, the tradition of eating dumplings on Winter Solstice began when a physician named Zhang Zhongjing noticed that the poor were suffering from chilblains on their ears.  He started making dumplings with lamb and other ingredients to distribute to the poor. (Lamb is thought to warm the body and strengthen it against the cold weather). 

Incidentally, the elderly still insist that one is a year older righst after the Dongzhi celebration instead of waiting for the Chinese New Year.  

Well, don't let that spoil your day, enjoy your tang yuan!  

Whatever will be, will be.

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival

 

May the glow of the moon surround you and light your way to good health, happiness and prosperity!

(17th September 2024)

All About Mooncakes

 

Top L to R: Custard, Pandan, Lotus Seed Paste with
Single Egg Yolk, Lotus Seed Paste with Single Egg Yolk

Lotus Seed Paste with Single Egg Yolk

A friend has presented me with a box of delightful mooncakes of four different flavours.  This once-a-year delicacy is always welcomed and enjoyed during the Mid-Autumn Festival which falls on 17th September this year.  Mooncakes are best eaten in small wedges with Chinese tea - a perfect combination - and this time I found they're not too sweet!  My friend told me she had bought them from a different shop this year and I guess their mooncake makers are aware of how health conscious people are today!

Here's a little writeup I saw in the net.

There is a folk tale about the overthrow of the Yuan dynasty facilitated by messages smuggled in moon cakes.

Mooncakes were used by revolutionaries in their effort to overthrow the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty, eventually resulting in the establishment of the Ming dynasty. The idea is said to have been conceived by Zhu Yuanzhang and his advisor Liu Bowen, who circulated a rumor that a deadly plague was spreading and that the only way to prevent it was to eat special mooncakes, which would instantly revive and give special powers to the user. This prompted the quick distribution of mooncakes. The mooncakes contained a secret message: on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, kill the rulers.

Another method of hiding a message was to print it on the surfaces of mooncakes (which came in packages of four), as a simple puzzle or mosaic. To read the message, each of the four mooncakes was cut into four parts. The resulting 16 pieces were pieced together to reveal the message. The pieces of mooncakes were then eaten to destroy the message.

(Story courtesy of Wikipedia)

Enjoy your mooncakes everyone and don't worry, there won't be any secret messages inside!

Next Change: The Mid-Autumn Festival

 

My first moon biscuits for this year!  Yummy!

And here are my first mooncakes for the year....three cute ones with red bean filling!

Yummy, yummy!

Return of the Patriotic Poet

 

It's the 5th day of the 5th lunar month - and it's Duanwu Jie AKA Dragon Boat Festival time!  Glutinous rice dumplings which are associated with this festival are in plenty at the shops but they're not really my favourite and most of the time I opt for those made with brown rice, which are more kind to the tummy.  This year, I remembered to wash my face at 12 p.m. sharp. The water that you get from the tap at this time is known as "Goh See" water and is said to give one a youthful and beautiful complexion, I certainly hope it works, haha!

 Everyone knows the story of the Patriotic Poet but here's a video which I found to refresh the memory.

ENJOY YOUR DUMPLINGS EVERYONE!

Happy Wesak Day

 

May Lord Buddha enlighten you on the path of love, peace and truth.

Happy Wesak Day!