Monday, January 23, 2012

Gung Hey Fat Choy!

Happy Chinese New Year! 2012 is the Year of the Dragon! A very powerful year it can be for you if you were born under this Chinese symbol.

I'm joining in with Susan's Tablescape Thursday, Leigh's Thrifty Thursday and Michael Lee's Foodie Friday this week.

But first you have to eat, right? Right! Why not eat with a dragon?

What, you think I'm pulling your leg? No, I'm not... Check this out!

See?! I told you you'd be eating with a dragon! I didn't say a real one, now did I? What were you thinking? lol

I come from a family of Chinese and Spanish (Spain) bloodline, but I am very much a fan of the Chinese cuisine. It's simple to make, healthier if done right and takes very little time to put it together! Even setting Chinese tables are not that complicated. It's all about being able to share the food with those you care about. So I do this for my children, all three of them though one is in college now. And my husband loves Asian foods as well so it's a winner table and menu every time!
I lucked out with this mistake in setting: it looks like the night time when the fireworks light up the sky with its rainbow of colors! Happy New Year!
A dragon is a creature of fire and majesty so I laid him on the center of a solid red runner and surrounded him with what else, candles!
He's been with me since 2008 and he normally sits on the EAST side of the house, facing the front door to bring in GOOD CHI.
Isn't he just a handsome yet ferocious creature? Just fantastic! I got him half-off, too!

I used my Waechtersbach "Terra Cotta" dinnerware as my chargers and used my Target Home "Red Solstice" as my dinnerware and its condiment bowl. My family, except for me, knows how to eat with chopsticks so these kinds of settings are real treats for them.
I set two different napkins to break up the formality of the tone-on-tone placesetting.

I made some steamed Jasmine rice and my version of Orange Chicken for GOOD FORTUNE, but I topped mine with veggies sauteed in the same sauce. Carrots are for GOOD LUCK, and the rice is for A GOOD LINK BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH.

I also made Roast Beef with Oyster Sauce over a bed of rice noodles, symbolizing GOOD FORTUNE (oysters); LONG LIFE (noodles) and Chinese Cheesecakes. The rolls symbolize WEALTH since they resemble gold bars.
Wondering what's in it? "Voila!" Cream Cheese & Mascarpone blend, black & blueberries. Yum!

I hope you enjoyed my take on celebrating Chinese New Year's Year of the Dragon. "Read from you soon!"

TABLESCAPING IDEAS: (Brain feels like she's back!) Holidays are often defined by symbols and colors, why not infuse it with a third factor, heritage? For example, with the past Chinese New Year, the symbolism mean more than the colors and no matter where you're from, you can make it work! Instead of Chinese cheesecake, make Cheesecake Chimichangas, Mexican Rice with a hint of Orange, Lime and Garlic Chicken in Annatto Sauce over Pasta and Grilled whole fish! Red is prominent in most cultures, so it's an easy transition!

16 comments:

  1. What a fabulous post Chandy !!! The tablescape, the food, the yummy goodness of it all...beautifully done. Let's hope in the year of the Dragon, we all stay on earth of the middle kingdom ( the dragon's back ) and not on the Dragons's eye, no never... ( very bad luck )

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  2. Thank you, Lynn! I certainly had a lot of fun putting it together!

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  3. Chandy, thank you for sharing your Chinese New Year celebration. It all looks delicious! Love that wonderful dragon. My tablescape celebrates the Year of the Dragon too. Hope you'll have time to stop by. Happy Year of the Dragon~ Sarah

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  4. Happy belated Chinese New Year, Chandy. I am happy to see you more often here now.I hope you have time to come back and see my 3 new grandkids. You created a really nice Chinese table. You even have a dragon for your centerpiece, that's awesome! Love the colors too, just perfect..Christine

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  5. Thank you, Sarah and Christine! I love that table, too and I'm glad that I got to celebrate again this year.

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  6. Chandy, thank you for commenting on my table this week, so I could find YOUR table! I really enjoyed reading about the Chinese New Year traditions, and your table looks wonderfully festive! The food looked AMAZING! Your version of cheesecake looked enticing!

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  7. Chandy thanks so much for all the info in this post.. Your dragon is gorgeous! and the food, well I'm hungry already. Love your red plates too. Thanks for droppin in and commenting.. my white plates just say Matceramica (the company)and Portugal on the back.. no pattern name at all. maybe if you google Matceramica you might find some. I picked mine up at Tuesday Morning last year.. xo marlis

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  8. Lovely table! The fod looks wonderful! Thanks for sharing JoAnn

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  9. What a great table and menu! That dragon is just fabulous, and looks very comfortable being the center of attention! I am married to a "dragon" and nothing would make me happier than this being the best year of his life! Thank you so much for sharing your Chinese New Year table with us!

    Elaine
    Creating Wonderful Spaces

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  10. Great table...the dragon is awesome!

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  11. Chandy, what a great New Year's table that you set! Love the dragon, of course, and red is always me favorite color. It looks like you make Chinese food with ease. Joni

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