Mandarin Orange (柑/橘子)

During Chinese New Year, “Mandarin Orange(柑) and “Tangerine(橘子)” are considered traditional symbols of abundance and good fortune. These fruits are frequently displayed as decoration or presented as gifts to friends and relatives. In traditional Chinese medicine the dried peel of the Mandarin Orange is also used in the regulation of “Chi” and treat abdominal distension, enhance digestion and etc.

If you like either the fragrant and taste of these Mandarin Orange, you can refer to the followig link HERE for more recipe ideas.

Leek (蒜)

As you know Leeks belong to the same category as onion family where you will link to those thick stalked European leeks that are commonly found in supermarkets which have a mild sweet flavor that is suitable for making soup or pie. But as for Chinese leeks on the other hand they are smaller and thinner which resemble thick scallion that has strong flavor, which makes them a staple ingredient in most Chinese cooking.

Some of the Chinese also believe that by storing more LEEKS(蒜)at home it means there will have more money to COUNT(算) throughout the year as both have the same pronunciation in Mandarin. If you like leek, you can refer to the followig link HERE for more recipe ideas.

Assorted Mini Bento Food Cutters

It has being so long since about a year ago from my last Bento making till now. Recently I saw these cute cutters available from the Daiso near my area and I went ahead buying a few sets of it :p So if you love to start off with some quick and simple bento for your kids, head down to the nearest Daiso around your area and some some cutters soon.

"Animals Set" allows you to create a simple bento with assorted cute animals such as panda, rabbit, birds and etc.

"Space Set" which i guess most of the boys will love this. You can even create a simple rocket with stars, moon and etc.

The "Garden Set" where you can make cute butterfly flying on flower beds using bread, ham and cheese with this set.

Assorted Transportation Flag Picks

Grab a pack of this cute transportation flag picks from Daiso this afternoon. This might come handy when you prepared some snack for your kids to bring to school or use it as a decorative items on the bento.

Japanese Matcha Powder

Matcha - 抹茶 refers to finely-milled Japanese green tea. Recent years it has also come to be used to flavour and dye foods such as mochi and soba noodles, green tea ice cream and a variety of Japanese confectionery too. Other than Japanese cuisine and pastry, matcha powder is also used as flavouring in many Western-style chocolates, candy, and desserts such as cakes, pastries, cookies, pudding and etc.

A few weeks back, I have made some lovely "Matcha Madeleines"(click Here for recipe) and "Matcha & Chestnut Chiffon Cake" (click Here for recipe) whereby I received some emails regarding on where to get the "Matcha Powder". Actually I have bought this Japanese Matcha powder from the NTUC located in Junction 8, at the Japanese section. This type of Matcha powder is slightly more expensive then the usual baking green tea powder that we used to purchase from Phoon Huat. A small can of 40g cost about S$6+ but I can guarantee you the end-products will be much more better then the usual green tea powder used.

Kau Kee - 九杞菜

Kau Kee - 九杞 (wolfberry leaves) is a kind of leafy vegetables that comes in long stalks and sharp thorns on it. You can get this from most local supermarket or tradition wet market near your area. Usually this vegetable is cooked as a soup using minced meat and egg.

And from one of my food review from a Zhi Char - 煮炒摊 that we ordered this “Kau Khee Soup - 九杞菜汤/枸杞菜汤”, I came up with an one-pot dish "recipe" with these ingredients too. If you prefer it to be served as soup like what shown above, you can always whipped it up at home with simple ingredients such as egg and minced meat.

Silicon Madeleine Pan

Madeleines are very small traditional sponge cakes with a distinctive shell-like shape which traditional recipes always include ground almonds and lemon zest. And there are all kind of types/sizes of Madeleines tin range from metal to silicon or from the traditional shape to scallop shell shape design.

I have made use of this pan to make some cute and mini "Matcha Madeleines with Azuki Bean" where you can find the recipe HERE.