Many of you who have been following our blog know that we at My Panda Paws are somewhat obessed with chopsticks! Chopsticks are made from many different materials, from bamboo and plastic to silver and ivory. In ancient times, chopsticks are part of a family heirloom, past down from generation to generation.

Anyway, as more and more Chinese families are living overseas,  the need for non traditional chopsticks found it’s way into the market place. I found these colorful fork chopsticks at a department store recently. They are designed/made by the French company Pylones. From first glance, they look like any ordinary chopsticks with pointy tips. When look closely, instead of a square or round top, these chopsticks offer two-pointed forks on top, so they can easily be used individually as an appertizer fork. In addition, these chopstick forks are longer than any average forks on the market, it makes reaching for that oh-so-yummy dish all that much easier! Think fondue fork!

Pylones make these in 10 different colors, so pick your favorite color or mix and match, you can’t go wrong with these cool and functional fork chopsticks!

Yes, you read it right, SPAM.  It’s one of those lunch meat in the can, and not email.  Spam fried rice is one of my favorite favorite favorite all-time comfort food.  I grew up eating that in Hong Kong.  My mom would sometimes make it with thick slices of ham instead of Spam.  Same difference. The weather turned this week in New Jersey, and I had a lot of leftover rice in the fridge, so I actually made it this week for dinner.  The kids looooove it, and husband love it too.  Of course, a little guilty pleasure for all of us.

So I almost fell off of my chair when I found that Jaden Hair from Steamy Kitchen actually had a recipe on her blog for Spam fried rice.  What?  Someone actually appreciate my childhood’s unhealthy food?  She did make it a little healthier though, by adding some spinach in it.  It’s a good idea, I may try that next time too.  Her recipe is pretty much the same as mine.  I use a lot more eggs than she does, because my boys and I love fried eggs.  I usually use about 4 eggs.  I also don’t use any Shaoxing wine, just soy sauce for me.  This is the beauty of fried rice.  You can almost edit and adjust what you want to put in or not!

So check it out.  Make your own version of fried rice this week.

I am in love with this Buddha butter dish.  I wonder if the butter contributes to the big belly of this Buddha….oh wait, Chinese cooking usually doesn’t use butter!  LOL.  Buddha Butter Dish available at GAMA.

These beautiful lanterns can be seen at the Botanic Garden in Montreal until October 31, 2010.

Happy Moon Festival, aka Mid Autumn Festival everyone!  Or as my boys call it, it’s the Moon cake festival.  Today is the day everyone gathers together to have a nice meal, usually with Chicken, fish, the traditional Chinese meal.  The one most important thing to eat of course, is moon cake.  So let’s look at some pictures of moon cake.

Traditional Moon Cake – Moon cakes were said to be originated by the Ming revolutionaries in their espionage effort to secretly distribute letters in order to overthrow the Mongolian rulers of China in the Yuan dynasty.  Most moonc akes consist of thin cake-like skin filled with a sweet, dense paste (usually lotus seed or sweet bean paste) and a salted egg yolk in its center to symbolize the full moon.

Starbucks Moon Cake - Starbucks from Hong Kong or China make moon cakes too.  This is the tiramisu flavor.

White Chocolate Moon cake – these are from the Raffles Hotel in Beijing and Shanghai.  They are made of white chocolate exterior and a gooey center of different flavors, including champagne truffles.

Ice Cream Moon Cake – these are from Haagen Daz, they are only available in Asia.  They are beautiful.

Hope you get to have a bite of any moon cake today.  Happy Moon Cake Day!!!

秋天 – Autumn – qiū tiān

It’s only early September, and here in New Jersey, it’s already been quite chilly in the morning and at night.  This is one of my favorite seasons and one of the biggest Chinese holiday, Mid-Autumn Festival, is coming up soon on September 22nd this year.  Welcome Fall!

Princeton and Tiger, what do these two have in common?  It turns out, Princeton University is celebrating the Year of the Tiger early (2011) with some fantastic items. On their site, and on sale (double great) is a t-shirt with the Chinese character Tiger calligraphied on the front. The colors are either orange with black writing, or black with orange writing. In addition, there are mugs and hats in the Tiger line.  What a great find to kick off the week!

Ok, if you went to Princeton or are familiar with the University, you know the University is known as the Princeton Tigers, so I think it’s pretty nifty that they tied in the school mascot and Chinese New Year to create something special for both! Go Princeton Tigers!

Lunch Box – 便當 – biàn dāng

Traditionally, 便當, consists of rice, meat, and vegetable. However, in recent years, anything that can fit in a lunch box and eaten for a meal can be considered a 便當. For me, coming up with ideas to pack for lunch is always hard, especially my 2 school age kids have very different taste pallettes. Here are some ideas that have worked in the past. If there are anything you do for your kids’ lunch boxes, please respond as I would love to get more ideas!

Too keep the lunch boxes cool on hot days, I put in a frozen gogurt, juice box, or cheese stick. On cold days, I use a thermo funtainer, such as this Disney Cars one, available at most Target stores, to pack mac and cheese or chicken noodle soup. In addition, I also found this really cool Dinosaur sandwich crust cutter from the grocery store this week, and my 5 year old is over the top with his dino grilled cheese and ham and cheese sandwiches, all WITHOUT crusts!

Wow – didn’t think I would ever find this, but check out this vintage Chinese Palace Lantern.  This is one of the traditional lanterns that I would see in Hong Kong when I was little.  Very pretty.  Available at JaysTreasures.

Back to School – 開學 – kāi xué

For New Jersey, school is right after Labor Day weekend. We are all getting anxious about new teachers, new friends, new schedules, new clothes, new shoes, new stationary, new backpacks, you name it.  Be safe and Happy Back to School!