IDEA146: Find Fresh Pickins that Will Make You Smile

This month we join our OTSP Glimpse with lovely neighbor Trishie's Floral Fridays. There's nothing like having fresh flowers around the house and for me it's a must. It's a sure way to *make me smile* and I love the reactions that they elicit from guests who visit. They step closer to touch and smell the flowers ;) It's essential that I surround myself with a vibrant and multi-sensory environment. It draws out my creativity and it's almost a distraction if I things just don't feel good. (Good-kind-of-crazy Allium balls pictured above)

One of my biggest tricks to making it affordable to have these pick-me-ups every week, is to use little bud vases, much like the kind you might find in your neighborhood cafe. With a small vase, you only need to a few stems of 2-3 types of flowers or filler plants to create a really unique arrangement. Cost wise, these were all fresh pickins straight from my garden or yard, so that's a bonus. Plant spring, summer and fall blooms and you'll have something to play with all season long!  When picking out what types of flowers to grow... my mind quickly goes to a garden like this in Taiwan. 

• • •

A few of my favorite fresh pickins...

The roses in the front parkway have white markings on them that make them extra romantic and exotic to me. I like to combine it with a pop of yellow prarie flowers to compliment each other. Are you smiling yet? ;) 

• • •

Oh daffodils! They are the first to spring up and I don't mind pairing them it with a stem from a flowering bush. I'm all about using all varieties of plants to create enduring combinations!

• • •
Now Queen Anne's Lace...they are a real treat and can go for $3+ a stem in a shop or you might easily find some growing like weeds on the side of the road. How ever you come acquire one, their intricate and delicate petals makes for a great contrast next to a bold graphic bloom like the coneflower (echinacea).

• • •

Lily of the valley couldn't be cuter with their bell shaped petals the size of a pencil's eraser. They are so sweet and fresh...perfect for a space where you might not expect it. 

Floral Fridays is a monthly photography project with different themes each month.
This series is about fun & taking time out to smell the flowers. To play along, please email Trishie (trishie@underlockandkeyblog. com) for next month's theme.

  {  Want more ideas? Follow our Pinterest board: Urban Garden  }

• • •     LESSONS LEARNED #55    • • •

Love it? Share it! - We are dedicated to sharing stories that spark ideas and are meaningful to you. The best way to let us know is by posting a comment, like below or pin it on Pinterest! ~ For More ways to Live Like You're Traveling follow us on Feedly, Bloglovin, Pinterest, or Facebook. 

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IDEA145: Get Deliriously Happy with Samba

{ Beija-Flor Samba School at the Sambadrome in Rio, Brazil} 
via @stefany_dentista

Are you aware that the biggest party of the year is happening as we speak all over Brazil!? It's Carnival time!  A week long party with samba school parades, music, street parties and elaborate balls when Brazilians simply stop everything and just basque undisturbed in delirious happiness. What is "delirious happiness"? It is a capability to let go of any problems or issues and to concentrate solely on being happy in that moment. It is an amazing skill that Brazilians possess and we all should learn. Let's go and take a peak...

• • •

{ The elaborate floats, Beija-Flor at the Sambadrome }  
via @kadudantas
 

In Rio de Janeiro, in the famous Sambadrome, Samba schools parade for two nights, showing off their elaborate floats, singing, dancing and going wild together with the crowd. The parade usually starts in the evening and goes till just about sunrise.  

• • •

{ Street scene, Salvador de Bahia }  
via @claudio_vasconcellos
 

In Salvador de Bahia and other cities the carnival is more 'grounded' where the spectators actually take part of the procession following their chosen samba school. Outside of Rio the celebrations have more of a street party feel.  

• • •

{ Deliriously happy in Salvador de Bahia! }  
via @prizinha_

Whether you're in Rio or Salvador the way it works is you buy a ticket for the duration of the carnival which gets you a spot in a "Camarote" or team if you will. Your camarote organizers takes care of everything such as security, designated area to watch the processions, after parties, open bar and cold buffet. You also wear the same outfits to stay distinguished from other groups. A full access ticket for the entire week of the carnival can run you about $600-$800. I wasn't kidding when I said "undisturbed" happiness, you don't have to think of anything except having fun for a whole week straight! 

• • •

{ Equally delirious in Rio! }  
via @amandacapellani
 

I had a special chance to learn about this delirious happiness when I visited Rio with a good friend of mine who is Brazilian. There is nothing like sampling it first hand and I highly recommend it for everyone young and old-er. It's not about partying non stop and going crazy, it's about being able to turn off all your "troubles" and just get happy for the sake of being happy and alive. It's one magical skill! It does take practice if you're not used to it. Brazilians practice it weekly, and they've even designated a special day for it, it's called "sexta-feira" or Friday... Once Friday comes, nothing else exists except getting together for a barbecue, meeting at the beach, and simply enjoying time with friends and family. Not a bad guide for a weekend.

Learn more about the carnival vocabulary.  
Perhaps plan to visit in person next year?

And don't forget, there is probably a Brazilian Carnival celebration happening right in your own city!

• • •     LESSONS LEARNED #54    • • •

Learn to be deliriously happy and you'll learn how to notice the blue horizon above your challenges. 

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IDEA143: Get On the Edge

{ P on Mt. Huashan in Huayin, China }  

Why is it that when we travel it's so easy to take all kinds of risks? Maybe because we're somewhere for the first time and we don't know when we might be back, so it's always a "once in a lifetime chance"? We bravely climb things we probably should not be climbing, since "this mountain ONLY exists here!" We eat things that... well, are most definitely NOT kosher, because when in Tokyo...we talk to strangers as they're not really strangers they're fellow friendly travelers, and that makes them practically family! And we speak our minds, since our friends are not here to judge us and our co-workers will never hear the drift of it...

Boy... sounds like we live on the edge when traveling and have one heck of a time!!! 

• • •

{ Mu-Hsien climbing Jade Mountain in Taiwan }

The other day I came across a terrifying looking hike. Immediately a thought crossed my mind, "I would NEVER..." As I continued looking at the pictures of the happy and smiling travelers I reluctantly admitted to myself that yep, I probably would have. If I'd have found myself at the entrance to the trail, I'd have talked myself into risking my life doing the plank path just because it's a "once in a lifetime chance!" When is the next time I'll get an opportunity to have tea at Buddhist temple on Mt. Haushan??? 

So what happens when we get home? We don't even want to leave the house if it's a bit rainy... Where does our sense of adventure go? But there is no Mt. Haushan where I live! And the mountains we have, I've done them! You might say pouting cutely while stomping your fuzzy bunny slipper. (And when I say "you" I mean "me," because I totally stomp my feet.) 

• • •

{ L in Colorado, USA }   

No Mt. Haushan where you live? Oh really!? Maybe it's really not about a MOUNTAIN. It's about having the guts to live out experiences that get our blood pumping and heart racing, that make us say: "wow I can't believe I'm doing this!" And really, the opportunities to have these kinds of experiences are all around us if you really think about it. Let us count the ways...

Do you love your job? If not, then why not look for another one? If you're in the wrong field all together, change fields! Scary huh? Less scary then Mt. Haushan or..?

Is there someone you've been meaning to apologize to? And it's been years? Why not call them up... Blood pumping yet?

What about organizing your garage? Ok, less dramatic, but I bet the sense of accomplishment just might equal one after climbing Mt. Haushan. (This is on my list.) 

We shouldn't loose our gutsy side just because we are not in a picturesque, once in a lifetime setting. The decision process to take the risk and go for it is really the same whether we climb a dangerous mountain or decide to change something in our lives.   

I personally am very risk averse when it comes to climbing things, so there is no dangerous looking picture of me, but trust me I get out on the edge in other ways. Like those magenta, crocodile print boots I got in Prague...and now I leave you to meditate on all this at the Pulpit Rock.

• • •

{ @Lyngaasa, Pulpit Rock in Stavanger, Norway }  

• • •     LESSONS LEARNED #53    • • •

Risk taking is a sport of it's own. 

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IDEA 142: Contemplate Life in Patagonia, Argentina

Love, marriage... then perhaps kids?

When did you realize for the first time that you wanted kids?  
Was it a specific moment or a slower kind of realization? 

Here is how the brilliant idea struck me. 

It took a trip to the end of the world* for me to have the moment. I remember it exactly, especially because it crept up on me so unexpectedly. It happened on a platform overlooking the dramatic Perito Moreno glacier in Patagonia, Argentina.  Never have I been the kind of person who visualized being a mom and holding chubby babies in my arms. In fact I was always squeamish if friends offered for me to hold their baby.  Like, “NO! You do realize I can drop that thing right!??” I can only shake my head now. 

Then I met Vito and Vito said he wanted kids. The more we talked about it the more I tried to get used to the idea. I played a game called, “Would this be possible with a kid?” I asked this question whenever I was having fun. Reluctantly I had to admit that many of the times the answer would be yes. Still I wondered, is it right for me to have kids when I've never experienced that "warm and fuzzy" feeling of wanting to be a mom? What if that feeling never came? And worse, what if the feeling came when it was too late to even have kids!?

So there we were, enjoying the magnificent scenery of the glacier. We stayed by the rail captivated for close to an hour. If you've ever seen a glacier then you know how hypnotic it is to just watch how every few minutes a little chunk (the size of a 5 story building) cracks off and slides into the water below almost as in slow motion. Mesmerized we stood thinking about how lucky we were to be on this amazing adventure seeing and experiencing things we never have before. I felt completely fulfilled and happy. I had my man with me, and we had Perito Moreno before us. Just then, a family: mom, dad, and four little boys arrived on the platform. There was immediate commotion as the rambunctious boys were more interested in chasing and pushing each other (dangerously close to the railing) than admiring the glacier. Finally the parents, ending up each with two boys practically hanging off of them like monkeys, stood leaning into each other to admire the scenery. And that’s when it hit me. “The feeling.” Except it was not warm and fuzzy. It was sharp, urgent and uncomfortable. It was jealousy. That couple had Perito Moreno AND four boys. We only had Perito Moreno and no boys! Zero! Not even one boy! What's more, they even had the audacity to look like they were enjoying the glacier experience and bonding as a family at the same time. The nerve on them! 

I watched the four boys with a brand new captivation, Perito Moreno now relegated to simply being the backdrop, as I realized that perhaps the next “BIG” adventure Vito and I are always looking for could indeed be...parenthood.

We'll be back with "Part 2" to show you four unique places to stay in Patagonia that are very "conducive" to this whole life contemplating business...
 

• • •    LESSONS LEARNED    • • •

Life's greatest adventures don't require travel to the ends of the earth, though we may need to go there to realize it. 

{ For more far away travel ideas, visit our Pinterest board: RemoteTravel }

IDEA141 : Make a Symbol of Love, Uniquely Yours

{ Above: Nora & T. - Switzerland }

My ring represents our meaning of love, that much like the moon, it can be shiny and sparkly...and yet is sometimes a rough trail. T. designed the model out of wax and the goldsmith did the finishing in gold.

Symbols of love come in all shapes and sizes. Most important are the people, cultures and beliefs that are brought into union. Today, we glimpse the wedding rings across several of our global neighbors! In each case, you'll find that the materials, process, design and meaning are all so varied. Probing deeper...they let us in to answer, what makes it uniquely yours?!

• • •
Courtney & M. - Mexico

(Lovely neighbor Courtney, over at Chiapas Bazaar) wanted something simple, beautiful, and most importantly, meaningful and symbolic. We decided on using one of the few organic gemstones in existence, a 25 million year old tree resin that is found in a few places in the world, one of which happens to be the state where my husband was born and raised. We chose a piece of faceted amber and had it mounted as a solitaire in white gold by a local artisan. We love the way it turned out, its uniqueness, that it comes from organic materials and was locally made in Chiapas. The artisan who made the ring kept repeating,'it is a true jewel, no one else will have something like this.'

How beautiful to weave in your husband's home town and local artistry...and there's something about amber that embodies the mystery of the earth's history!

• • •
Karen & J. - Chicago

My father-in-law's grandfather had this ring made for his future wife sometime around 1919 or 1920 in Germany before they left to come to the United States. When my husband had it appraised, the jeweler said everything about this ring is hand-crafted from the cuts on the stone itself to the delicate filigree work in the setting and down the side. It was saved for the wife of my husband (the only boy of four). The diamond has a flaw in it, but it's part of his family history and I wouldn't want any other ring.

Ohhh...Karen, all the way from Germany...this ring was destined for you all along!

• • •
Audrey & S. - Chicago

The engagement began with the mountain rings. Each member of S’s immediate family has one of these rings—handmade by an artisan in Alaska and modeled after the mountain range along the Kachemak Bay. The view has always struck a chord with S’s parents, and became representative of their wild Alaskan natures.

S. has always been my stars, and I’ve been his moon. We’ve never yearned for diamonds or glamour, so we wanted to find something simply representative of our past, present, and future. With a Portland-based jeweler, we designed the sapphire wedding rings to represent the moon circling the sky over the mountains, in a perfect union. 

How beautifully symbolic and the pieces truly *fit* together, just like the two of you!

• • •     LESSONS LEARNED #51    • • •

There's a story behind every ring.

Love it? Share it! - We are dedicated to sharing stories that spark ideas and are meaningful to you. The best way to let us know is to post a comment, like below or pin on Pinterest! ~ For More ways to Live Like You're Traveling, follow us on Feedly, Bloglovin, Pinterest, or Facebook. 

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LLYT Challenge : {Love} Like You're Traveling!

This "Live Like You're Traveling" joins "Floral Fridays" with a beautiful theme of "Something Romantic". More info on "Floral Fridays" below.

Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess who lived in a Concrete Jungle. One fine day she met a dashing prince from a kingdom far away and over the ocean. They fell in love! Every 6 weeks they would fly all over the world to meet each other at a new exotic location... They fell more and more in love! Then, exactly a year from the day they met, the dashing prince whisked the princess from her Concrete Jungle to his kingdom far away and over the ocean... where they're living their happily ever after...

Hmmm... fairy tale? Yes! MY fairy tale! (ps. Eat your heart out Hollywood!)

Am I lucky? For sure!!! BUT that's not my point. My point is that actually falling in love is a simple science and if we can crack it, staying in love will also become as easy as eating cake for breakfast! WHAT!? Yes, yes, that's right, SCIENCE! Just stay with me...

Take Vito and I for example. We fell in love under very High Emotion* circumstances, let's add them up:

1 - We had obstacles to overcome together (living on 2 different continents, being from 2 different cultures, different languages, etc.) 

2 - We had a limited amount of time (we saw each other about every 6 weeks for a long weekend, thus we knew at some point in time we would have to make some decisions.)

3 - When we did see each other, we usually traveled to a place that was new for both of us (that's already exciting all on its own).

Here we are circa 2006 reunited in Schiphol airport, such young punks :) 

• • •

Have you ever wondered why co-stars in movies fall in love so often? Because they're thrown together in "High Emotion" circumstances. They usually have to overcome some kind of obstacles together, like long shooting schedules, tyrant directors, and so on. They know that the filming of the movie is only for a limited time, and we tend to stress when we think something nice might be taken away from us. Finally, the filming of a movie is usually in some location that's not their home.

This is also the reason, people that work together fall in love, pairs figure skaters usually get married (Olympics on my mind!), and lovers that meet while traveling always stay sharp in each other's minds.

So what can we learn from all this? 

{ Love } like you're traveling!

If we can figure out how to create similarly High Emotion* circumstances in our daily lives, just like the ones that come up naturally when we travel, then we'll be able to stay in love forever. Theoretically speaking... :) 

One of our missions of living like you're traveling is to see beauty with a pair of 'fresh eyes', this doesn't just apply to your surroundings, your city, it also applies to the people you love. So how do we create these *High Emotion* situations in our everyday lives?

Glad you asked, because this brings us to our...
 

• • • THE LLYT CHALLENGE • • •

Let's do one specific thing for each one of these!

1- Surprise each other
Thinking up new "projects" to do together will give you opportunities to surprise each other. Like... putting together IKEA furniture (...then again let's scratch that), or signing up to learn scuba-diving, or having a baby together (ha!). Or simpler and less expensive then babies, how about just surprising your loved one with something that seems "off schedule" that you'll know will bring a smile to their face?

2- Learn something new about each other
Again, if we do the same thing every day as a couple, there is very little chance for you to learn something new about your partner. Let's break the routine. Get off the couch. Go to a shooting range and maybe your partner can learn about your aggressive Rambo qualities! Go cart racing? Camping? Simply doing something different together will render plenty of opportunities to learn something new about each other... and even for you to learn something new about yourself too. *Also, don't forget to ask probing questions about each other!...try to find out something you didn't know before about your partner!

3- Celebrate each other
And this is an EASY one! But one I'm sure we all easily forget. Give presents to each other for no reason. A little box of chocolates? Champagne with strawberries on a regular Wednesday night? A fancy night out for no reason! Or simply, give each other a compliment everyday for a week...! 

And since this is a romantic Floral Friday, I'm remembering the TWO DOZEN long stemmed red roses that arrived at my house one Valentine's day when Vito and I were doing our inter-continental dating... Maybe I'll ask Vito to "surprise" me with something equally ridiculous (and FABULOUS!) this Valentine's day! The rose in the photo above is also a present from Vito on my birthday, but this time a more practical and long lasting version planted in our patio outdoor pots. 

{ IF YOU'RE UP FOR MORE...VIEW ALL --> LLYT Challenges  }
 

Floral Fridays is a monthly photography project with different themes each month. This series is about fun and taking time out to smell the flowers. To play along, please email Trishie (trishie@underlockandkeyblog. com) for next month's theme

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Do What You Love...Right Now.

Yesterday we put extra layers on and went for a walk on the beach. My first time seeing an open sea was when I was eight years old and my parents and I went to Sevastopol. I remember my dad pointing towards what seemed to be just a darker patch of sky in the distance and telling me that it's the sea. I was almost afraid to approach because it seemed that the sea would spill over washing us away. 

From that moment I was in love with "it,'' all of it! The salt, wind, sand, a bit of danger, a lot of adventure and a shimmering horizon that promises...well, anything even an eight year old can dream up. There on the horizon everything is possible! Romantic isn't it!? 

Speaking of the far away horizons... The other day a mysterious packet arrived all the way from Costa Rica. Sofia sent me a garland made of colorful leather patches, a bit of Costa Rican colors to decorate Netherlands with. I was beyond excited and it was immediately decided that the "colors" are coming with us to make their first international appearance at the beach! 

{ "Costa Rican colors" flying high on a North Sea beach...Made by cueropapel&tijera. }

• • •

The idea was to bring a bit of Costa Rica to our North Sea beach. A symbol of international friendship and a reminder that we really are closer to each other then we think, all part of a big global village. As I was trying to snap a picture of the garland being thrown here and there by the strong wind I noticed something. There, dotting the water were surfers. Yes surfers! This is Northern Europe... in the middle of WINTER! But there they were on their boards! 

It's not the first time we've see them, they're always out there. But with Costa Rica on my mind I said to Vito, why don't these crazies just move to Costa Rica if they love surfing so much. Vito said: "Why should they? They seem pretty happy surfing right here." And there it was, the Aha! moment (again). That's true! Why should they move somewhere else!? They're doing what they love right here at HOME!!! 

I'm guilty of this as anyone else, not doing certain things that I love because I get caught in the "If this, then, that" statements. If I lived in the warm Costa Rica, then I would take up surfing. If I lived on a Caribbean island, then I would run on the beach every day. If I win the lottery, then I will quit my job to sail on my pimping yacht around the world...

• • •

{If I lived in the time of Ben-Hur, then I would ride an epic chariot...
No "if this, then that" statement is stopping these guys! }

• • •

Do you do this too? In our defense, it's natural to do this. We go on vacation we try new sports, new foods, we get inspired, and we come home sad that we can't partake of these experiences anymore. Ohh, if I was...then I would... Let's ask ourselves what's really stopping us? Is it REALLY impossible to do what we want? What is your "if this, then that" statement that is holding you back from doing what you love right now???

• • •

Jump start your week and flip the statement! "If I really want to...then I WILL make it happen!"
 

• • •     LESSONS LEARNED   • • •

If you really want to surf, then grab your board.
The waves are closer than you think.

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Refresh Your Grocery List with 5 Essential Chinese Ingredients

"Grocery List Refresh" is a simple way to update your pantry with must have ingredients in cooking a certain cuisine. Why is it important to refresh your grocery list? Because if you have the ingredients on hand you will be more likely to try out a brand new dish, or infuse new flavor into your staples. Think of it like traveling at your very own kitchen table...!

Earlier this month, we challenged you all to do 3 simple things to help you live like you're traveling. One of these is to celebrate a holiday from another culture. I decided to introduce my family to Chinese New Year and so I enlisted Amy, our neighborly expert on asian cooking.. and together we picked out a special Chinese New Year's Menu to cook up for the celebration. 

Grocery List Refresh

5 MUST-HAVE Chinese staple ingredients:

Organic Sesame oil 
Cooking rice wine
Soy sauce 
Oyster sauce
Organic White pepper powder

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Shopping List : Chinese New Year's Menu 

And now as promised here is your shopping list for the dinner if you want to cook along!
(Now you can't say you forgot, no excuses remember!?) Besides the above 5 here are all the ingredients you'll need for the Chinese New Year menu. 

Chinese Scallion (Green Onion) Pancakes With Soy-Ginger Dipping Sauce (蔥油餅配姜汁醬油)

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 8 bunches of scallions 
• vegetable oil
• fresh ginger, grated
• a pinch of red pepper flakes

Chicken Pot Stickers (雞肉鍋貼/餃子)
• 1 cup cabbage, shredded
• 3/4 pound ground chicken
• 1 (12 oz) package of Pot Sticker Wraps 

Vegetarian Chop-Suey (羅漢齋) Semi-Home Made
• 1/2 a medium yellow onion
• 1/2 carrot
• 20 Vegetarian Protein Sticks
• 1 pound of baby Bak Choy
• 1 pound of mushrooms
• 1 can (14.5 ounce) vegetarian chop-suey

Coconut and Azuki (Red Bean) Glutinous Rice Cake (椰汁紅豆糯米糕)

• 1 bag (16 ounces) glutinous rice flour
• 11/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cups castor sugar
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/4  cup vegetable oil
• 1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk
• 6 oz evaporated milk
• 3/4 cup prepared red bean (Yude Azuki)
• 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes

Love it? Share it! - We are dedicated to sharing stories that spark ideas and are meaningful to you. The best way to let us know is to post a comment, like below or pin it on Pinterest! ~ For more ways to Live Like You're Traveling, follow us on Feedly, Bloglovin, Pinterest, or Facebook. 

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Dim Sum Like a Pro - What to Order

about 11 years ago

Dim Sum Like a Pro - What to Order

{ Above : Steamed Sticky Rice - meat stuffing wrapped in lotus leaves }

Dim sum can be intimidating. Carts are zooming past you from all directions...filled with mysterious bamboo containers and the room hums with what seems to be a secret communication between the many attendants and guests. Well today I'm arming you with insider knowledge. Consider it your must-have list (more advanced delicacies will be saved for another day) Imagine for a moment that I will be your *friend* that takes you out to dim sum...who will do the ordering for you.  
 

Shall we begin? 

• • •

The bill. There will be some furious scribbling on on a bill like this each time an attendant hands you a dish. All of the dishes are considered small, medium or large and are charged accordingly. Don't even worry about this.

• • •
We have to start with a round of dumplings. Immediately.
All kinds of dumplings! Potstickers, steamed shrimp and veggie ones. One of everything!
They come in cute little bamboo containers... we just can't go wrong!

• • •
Then we move on to root vegetable that is not as common....Taro Cake 
Crispy on the outside and soft (potato-like on the inside with savory little pieces of meat and shitake). Fantastic with soy sauce and a dash of chili oil! - We may have to order a couple as I might have one of these to myself...  

• • •
Then we flag down a cart to get fluffy steamed BBQ Pork Buns with a semi-sweet and salty filling. This is almost always a favorite for the table.

• • •
By this time, I will have ordered a large bowl of Hot and Sour Soup for the table.
We'll need it to help wash things down...and just because my all-time favorite soup! 

• • •
Now just to balance things out a bit...we get in some Chinese Brocoli with Oyster Sauce

• • •
And just when we think we've had our fill of little dishes...I put this light and refreshing dessert in front of you. Almond Jello with fruit. A childhood favorite! I used to make this at home all the time...just the smell of almond extract would make me so happy!

• • •
And just because you need to try this too...we squeeze in ONE more. Red bean pastry.
It has a crispy chewy rice skin with a sweet red bean paste filling.

Are you full yet?!  The great thing about all these little dishes, is that you end up trying a variety of flavors, but not necessarily feeling stuffed at the end. In the spirit of trying something new this week...we are going to start a new tradition of celebrating Chinese New Years by introducing friends to dim sum at our local Chinatown. And with this little cheat sheet...now you can dim sum like a pro without me!  
 

• • •     LESSONS LEARNED    • • •

Even if you're feeling adventurous,
it doesn't hurt to have a guide.

Get everyday adventure ideas @LiveLikeYoureTraveling  

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IDEA138: Cook a Chinese New Year Meal

One of the best ways to learn about another culture is to eat their food! Lots of little insights are revealed when we eat what our neighbors eat.  Even more so if we try to learn to cook a few dishes ourselves. What I found helps with getting started with cooking a brand new cuisine is to:

1 - Pick out a few inticing dishes to try.
In this case we are putting together a Chinese New Year dinner menu.

2 - Figure out the staple ingredients.
You should have these on hand so that when the inspiration strikes you're ready - Next week we will give you a full grocery list just in time to cook our Chinese New Year dinner.

3 - Choose a motivating factor.
Learning something new requires effort and energy. It's also something that we tend to push aside because we're busy, don't feel like it that day, think it's too hard, or the WORST one... we'll do it "later." You know that "later" never comes!! So, we really need to give ourselves a bit of a deadline and then a reward for getting it done. So my self imposed deadline is the start of the Chinese New Year (January 31st) and my reward will be introducing my family to a beautiful new tradition! (And watching my darling 3 year old Mo, eat with chopsticks, while my other darling, red bearded Vito, tries but can't.)  

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So without further ado we're so excited to introduce the lovely and neighborly Amy from sunny California. She is going to hold our hand and help us get started with Chinese cooking! Amy blogs delicious and beautiful Chinese recipes (and not only) over at uTry.it and well - we accept the challenge Amy! We want to TRY IT! 

Let's get to know Amy a bit better... 

There goes Amy, noshing on something delicious in New Orleans. 

Who taught you to cook? 
My parents love to cook. I'm their sous chef since I was a little girl (don't even remember how young! And no, my parents are just home cooks, not professional chefs.) So, I guess the passion for cooking runs in the family. But I didn't really start cooking on my own until I moved out to college. I explored so much in my dorm's kitchen.  ;) I started to "play with" my food (or you can call that recipe development), when my parents are not there to tell me "no"! hahahaha....

Do you still have family where you're from? How often do you visit?
I still have relatives living in Hong Kong (where I was born and raised), mostly from my Father's side of the family. I go back every few years to visit.  

How important is it that your kids eat Chinese food? 
(I asked Amy this because since the birth of my first son, Mo, I am much more into re-discovering and making Russian food so that he is familiar with the same foods I grew up eating, sort of a cultural injection. I wonder if, especially for those of us who do not live in the place we were born, having kids makes us yearn for our roots.) 

Hmm...good question.  I didn't really think of it much as I cook and eat Chinese food all the time.  It was just a natural thing to do.  My kids had been eating and tasting Chinese food since they were in my tummy, so they better like it too when they're out! Just kidding!  :-P  I encourage my kids to try different types of food, Chinese or not.  If they don't like it, it's okay.  But at least, give everything a try at least once.

What is your favorite Chinese dish?
Mapo Totu, that's also my kids' favorite.  

How does your family celebrate CNY? What is one family tradition follow with your family? 
It is the tradition that on the Eve of Chinese New Year, supper is a feast with immediate family.  On the New Year morning, children will greet their parents by wishing them a healthy and happy new year (Gong Hay Fat Choi), and receive money in red envelopes. Another tradition on the Chinese New Year is that the families are to visit the oldest and most senior members of their extended family, usually their parents, grandparents or great-grandparents and so forth.  Along with our visits, we always bring some delicious treats. 
 

Thank you Amy for being a good global neighbor
and guiding us how to get started with Chinese cooking! 

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Chinese New Year Menu

Chinese New Year wishes are all about having a long, happy and sweet life full of luck and abundance. It's perfectly OK to wish for a raise, more money and success! I can get behind all that! It's also about honoring the elders in your family and strengthening family bonds. The foods you eat are in turn very symbolic of these concepts.  (For full recipes, cooking instructions and even a video just click through to Amy's blog.) 

Chinese Scallion (Green Onion) Pancakes With Soy-Ginger Dipping Sauce 
(蔥油餅配姜汁醬油)

More Family Togetherness. These yummy pancakes are perfect to start the dinner with by having everyone share these and collide with each other trying to dunk at the same time. Get that family bonding moving along!

• • •

Vegetarian Chop-Suey (羅漢齋) Semi-Home Made

Health and abundance is represented by eating vegetables and also to balance out many meat and fish dishes that are usually present at a Chinese New Year banquet. 

• • •

Chicken Pot Stickers (雞肉鍋貼/餃子) With Video Tutorial 

Of course there must be these delightful crescent shaped dumplings. Amy tells us they resemble the shape of a traditional gold nugget, in Chinese called (元寶). The dumplings represent wealth for the family.  

  • • •

Coconut and Azuki (Red Bean) Glutinous Rice Cake (椰汁紅豆糯米糕).

A new year wish to be more successful, to be able to reach your goals and pretty much improve or 'rise up' is symbolized by eating rice cake. Amy says that Rice Cake in Chinese (年糕) sounds exactly like "grow (taller) every year", and so we should eat this cake and rise higher!

Well, I think this is more than enough for us to get started with. And while we're at it, why not pick out a few essential accessories, perhaps a garland of Chinese Palace Lantern Lights and a few Year of the Horse Envelopes for lucky money and if you have young kids here is an adorable book you can read together about Hannah the horse! 

A few parting "instructions". If you've never attempted to make Chinese food don't stress out and feel like you have to acquire a whole new set of utensils, new kitchen equipment and restock your pantry full with exotic ingredients, a lot of the time starting something new is much, MUCH easier then you've first imagined and then you want to kick yourself in the kneecap for not trying it earlier! Now go browse the recipes, decide on how you'd like to celebrate, and next week we'll be back to give you a shopping list to take to the store with you so you'll have NO EXCUSES!  

(Photo credit: All photos except otherwise marked via Amy)
 

• • •     LESSONS LEARNED    • • •

If you want to learn to ride you must get on the horse! 

Get everyday adventure ideas @LiveLikeYoureTraveling

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