Chinese New Year

I guess it's my birthday tomorrow! I didn't know I had something going besides Valentine's Day. Oh, by the way, you do too. Happy Birthday. The Year of the Tiger has arrived...

I have a darling girlfriend (who happens to be a fabulous architect and photographer) who's husband is Chinese. Around Thanksgiving she was saying that the turkey-stuffing-fall-pumpkin thing was never a part of his family's tradition, but Chinese New Year was one of the best days of the year. I agreed to show him a traditional Thanksgiving dinner (still pending), if she would show me how to "do" Chinese New Year. She was game; to be clear, she's going over the top to host the event of the year tonight.

In preparation, we met up to grocery shop (I love Uwajimaya, especially their seafood department) and discuss the event over steaming bowls of Ramen from their counter. Her mother-in-law stocked her with ingredient lists and even pictures of the packaging, since this is Amy's first time hosting this dinner. We grabbed Red Envelopes for the kids, lanterns, and big plastic golden apples for candy dishes. I got lost looking for Black Vinegar, but found her in the beef aisle using the hand sanitizer.

We're going to be cooking together in a few hours: noodle dishes, buns filled with goodness, and a gelatin dessert of some kind. I think we'll wait to venture into the whole roasted ducks next year.

I'll let you know tomorrow how it goes.