Friday, January 31, 2014

Chinese Lunar New Year

Today is Chinese New Year.  We are not able to celebrate it today, as we made previous dinner plans with friends, but on Sunday I am making a special dinner for Tingting and we will be having a Dinner Party.

I am getting all my recipes from "My Grandmother's Chinese Kitchen" by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo.

 
There is a section dedicated to Chinese New Year Recipes.  I am excited to try them.  I hope they turn out well.  I want this to be a special day for Tingting
 
 
So while all of you are enjoying your Super Bowl Parties.  We will be enjoying our Chinese New Year Party.  I did make sure to plan dinner early though so we are done eating before the game begins.
 
Once I decided to have this dinner party, I talked to Ting and invited the guests. We have limited the invitations to 10 guests as that is what my dining table holds comfortably and we wanted to have a sit down dinner as opposed to a buffet party.
 
Frank and I went to Party City to pick up decorations and other items needed for the festivities.
 
 
Then, yesterday, I went to an Asian Market to get the ingredients I need for all of the recipes I have chosen.  They call for ingredient of which I have never heard but Ting assures me that they will be delicious. 
 
 
As I was wandering around aimlessly, amongst a building filled with Asians, I was approached by another Caucasian female.  She asked if I, too, decided to cook a Chinese New Year Dinner?  I replied that I was and she laughed and said "someone ought to hit us upside our heads".  It was too funny.  Then I had a package in my hand and was trying to figure out if it was what I needed.  I shoved the package at an Asian woman that looked about my age and asked her if she could help me.  She looked at me and said "I don't know, it is written in Chinese" LOL. Only I would have asked the only Japanese patron in a Chinese store!!
 
 
 
After the grocery store, I went next door to the Asian Barbecue place.  It smelled amazing in there.  I got the barbecued pork needed for my Fried Rice.
 
 
I'm pretty sure I found everything I needed but I won't know for sure until Tingting comes home.  I sure hope so because the store is an hour from my house.
 
 
I also picked up this bag of golden coins and nuggets to put into the money envelopes that I am using as seating place markers.
 
The hard part is now over.  Tomorrow night Frank and I will decorate and set the table and Sunday, after Mass, I will start cooking.  I am anxious to let you know how it turns out.
 


4 comments:

  1. That sounds like so much fun. You are my 'entertaining hero'. I don't think I would have the stamina to entertain as much as you. You will have to tell the story of TingTing..or direct me to it on your blog if you have already written about her. I would love to know more Happy Chinese New Year to you all.

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    1. Hi Paula, I don't have a post written but I do have her in my cast of characters page. Ting came to us as an exchange student 6 years ago when she was 15 and we kept her LOL. She does go home to see her family during the summer but she finished out high school and is now in her 3rd year of college. She will get her bachelor's degree in the 2014/15 school year. Then she has one more year that she can work and hopefully find a job to sponsor her or she will lose her visa. We try not to think about that.....

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    2. That is fascinating. I pray she finishes and gets that job so that she can stay!

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    3. Thanks Paula. I am sure that God has a plan for her. I just hope it includes us.

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