01.01.70

HONG KONG , China — One of the most spectacular meals in Hong Kong happens every Chinese New Year. Typically around late January or early February (it varies according to the lunar calendar), Chinese New Year is a festive family celebration, often featuring a variety of dishes chosen for their propitious, fortune-bearing names.

For example, in Hong Kong cuisine, some restaurants serve dumplings with pig’s tongue, dried oyster, and black moss for the holiday because their names, in Cantonese, sound like “Lucky Money,” “Good Business,” and “Lots of Profit.” Chinese New Year is full of customs that symbolize good luck: burning red paper scrolls inscribed with blessings, sweeping the house of bad fortune, and eating dishes that represent fertility, longevity, family closeness, and wealth.

Here is one typical dish that is particularly enjoyed in the Southern Chinese, or Cantonese, cooking tradition prevalent in Hong Kong.

Source: GlobalPost

by Annie

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy and smooth, about 30 seconds. Add the granulated sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well after each addition. 5. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and tap the pans on the countertop to eliminate any air bubbles. Spread the batter up the sides of each pan so the sides are higher than the center. Bake until the cakes begin to pull away from the sides of the pans and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and let the cakes cool in the pans for 15 minutes. 7. To assemble, return both halves of the cooled cake to the pans. (This is easily done by placing the pans over the cake halves and inverting the rack onto the pans.) Level the cakes by using a serrated knife to gently saw off the part of each half that rose above the edge of the pan; discard the scraps. Remove the cakes from the pans. Place one cake half, cut side up, on a wire rack set over a baking sheet; place the other half, cut side down, on top. 8. To make the chocolate glaze, fill the bottom pan of a double boiler with 1 inch of water and bring to a simmer over medium heat. In the top pan of the double boiler, combine the butter and chocolate chips and heat until melted, 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and water until combined. Pour the glaze over the cake all at once in one layer and immediately decorate with colored sprinkles. Let the glaze set for 15 minutes before slicing and serving the cake....

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by Mittu

I get very excited for birthday's and anniversaries as I can come up with a cake to make for celebrating. I make other big plans, but based on my history of sucking at planning events, I make sure I engage in cake making for these celebrations! For my husband's first birthday, after we got married, I had planned to make a huge cake and have friends over. Then came the anti-climax - we were snowed in a week before D-Day. We couldn't even remove the car out of our apartment complex. So a day before his birthday, I sent him to the grocery store and made him buy the ingredients for his own birthday cake! The endless possibilities makes picking a cake I want to make very hard and it becomes a research project before I settle on one and keep it a secret. So, Mohan plays the guess the cake game for me. He tries to observe the products I am looking up online, or at the store. What books I am refering to and which pages have a lot of bookmarks. I go on tangents during my research, so he cannot...

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