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I know, I know…you’re thinking that New Year’s is over and you’re right in some ways. But you’re oh, so wrong in others. While what we traditionally think of as the New Year has come and gone, in my home there is still reason to celebrate during the month of February because of the Chinese New Year. Confused yet? Don’t be! Let me explain why this celebration is tons of fun.
First, let me clarify that I am not of Asian descent. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t want my children to be aware of different cultures and honestly, I really love celebrating no matter what the reason. This year though, the Chinese New Year has been more of a celebration than usual. You see, my oldest is in World History at school. And, you guessed it, they are talking about different cultures and what makes them unique. Needless to say, this conversation has spilled over into our home more than once and it has made me more aware of the celebrations of other cultures. Knowing that there is no better way to learn than through hands on experience (and food of course) I decided this past weekend that we would host our own Chinese New Year celebration with the help of Tai Pei® appetizers!
So, I guess the first thing I should explain is why I wanted to celebrate this particular holiday. Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival as it is known in many parts, is many things. But the aspect of Chinese New Year that stood out to me was that is a time to celebrate and honor family. As a mom, that really struck a cord. I think we so often get wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life that we forget to celebrate and honor our own families. So, with that in mind I decided that Chinese New Year was about to happen in a big way up in my home. After a little research I discovered that food and decorations were a big part of this celebration and that was the perfect place for me to start! Armed with an idea of finger foods the whole family would love and a fun craft that would help create our decorations, I headed to Walmart.
I immediately spotted the Tai Pei® Authentic Asian Appetizers in the frozen section of the store and knew that they would be perfect for our celebration. With Egg Roll and Spring Roll options that featured traditional style chicken, pork or vegetables, finding a favorite for everyone at our celebration was easy! And each pack of appetizers came with dipping sauce to enhance the flavor. After picking up a few varieties of the Tai Pei® appetizers, I grabbed a few crafting supplies and headed home to put together my celebration.
Knowing that Chinese New Year celebrations were all about great food and fabulous decorations, I set to work creating a craft the kids and I could do together while they learned about new traditions. After discovering that the most popular Chinese New Year color is red, I settled on red Chinese Lanterns as our afternoon activity. But I didn’t want just any lantern. I wanted one that would glow, just as any real lantern used in the true celebrations would. Knowing that truly lighting my lantern would catch the paper on fire I got creative and came up with a fun way to bring my idea to life.
What You Will Need:
Red Construction Paper
Scissors
Glue
Yellow Cellophane Wrap
Chinese New Year Printables
How to Make It:
Start by folding your piece of paper in half (but don’t completely crease the fold). Then cut strips into the middle section of your paper, leaving about two inches of uncut paper at the top and bottom.
Once your paper is cut, lay it out flat. Now, I thought our lanterns needed a little something extra so I created some cute printables. Then I cut out the strips and simply attached them to the top and bottom of the construction paper with glue. This step is optional but I totally recommend it!
Next, cut a piece of your yellow cellophane wrap to fit on the construction paper. Using glue, attach your cellophone to the top of your piece of construction paper.
Then wrap the top end of your paper around and secure it with glue. Repeat this process for the bottom of your lantern.
Finally, pull your cellophane down through the bottom section and secure it at the bottom of your lantern so that the middle section of the lantern bows out slightly. Cut any excess cellophane away and you’ve got a cute “lit” lantern!
Now that the kids knew how to make the lanterns, I let them continue working on their fun craft while I prepared out festive meal. To start with, I added my Tai Pei® Chicken Egg Rolls and Vegetable Spring Rolls to a baking pan.
I loved that they both baked at the same time and temperature even though they were different products! Once the oven was preheated I popped them in and got to work on the next step…my sauce. While I planned to use the sauce that came with my Tai Pei® products as well, I decided to make some additional Asian inspired Spicy Peanut and Sweet & Sour Sauces.
The sauces were super simple to make! For the Spicy Peanut sauce I simply mixed 3 tablespoons of peanut butter, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Then I mixed it all together well.
Once that was ready I moved on to my Sweet & Sour Sauce (this is a favorite of mine). It was as easy as combining one cup of pineapple juice, one third cup of water, three tablespoons of vinegar, one tablespoon of soy sauce and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. I heated my mixture to a boil and then mixed in three tablespoon of corn starch and allowed it to thicken. Once my sauces were ready I poured them in my bowls and removed the Spring Rolls and Egg Rolls from the oven.
I wanted to display my mouthwatering appetizers in a creative way so I went back to the Chinese New Year Printables that I had created and cut out some cute labels to add a festive feel. Then I attached them to some to-go boxes and added cellophane paper on the inside.
Finally I placed my Tai Pei® appetizers in each box and added them to the table with the sauces.
Paired with our festive red lanterns, we had everything we needed to celebrate the Chinese New Year in a tasty way.
Our restaurant inspired meal was absolute perfection and we all had fun discussing our hopes and dreams for the new year as we ate.
As the food disappeared, we talked about the Year of the Sheep and why each new year is marked by the characteristics of one of the 12 zodiacal animals. We discussed red letter gifts and how is was a way for elders to wish good fortune in the new year to a younger generation. We used our fun craft to wish each other a year lit with good fortune. And through it all, we enjoyed the unmatched quality and amazing taste of Tai Pei® appetizers for easy entertaining.
At the end of our celebration, a few things had happened. Yes, our bellies were full and our tastebuds were happy. Yes, we had learned about the Chinese culture in a way that neither kid would forget any time soon. But more than anything, we had started a new tradition in our own home, one where good wishes for the future are expressed and joy abounds.
And at the center of it all had been our delicious appetizers full of Tai Pei® Good Fortune in Every Box™! We ended our celebration knowing that during the Chinese New Year, good fortune and great taste go hand in hand. And with the simplicity of Tia Pei® appetizers, it’s never been easier to bring both those things into our home!
There is still time for you to get in on the fun too! The Chinese New Year is officially celebrated next Thursday, February 19th. Make sure you head to Walmart prior to then to pick up your delicious Tai Pei® Appetizers! But before you go be sure to check out the Chinese New Year app on the Tai Pei® Facebook page where you can find the Red Envelope tab which includes a great money saving coupon that is available while supplies last. Then create your own family celebration where you can teach your children about other cultures and perhaps adopt a New Year celebration into your own family that will have you exchanging good wishes all February long!
Tell me, how do you celebrate the Chinese New Year?
The post Easy Ways to Celebrate the Chinese New Year appeared first on The Adventures of J-Man and Millerbug.