Bing Tanghulu Candied Hawthorn Stick 冰糖葫蘆

Gosh darn-namit...I'm super excited about these!  For up to a thousand dusty long years, on any street corner in China might be found a street vendor holding a wood pole spiked with these traditional candy fruit skewers for children.  And since they are a lovely lucky red color and a beautifully rounded symbol of happiness and family reunion, they are especially popular during the Chinese New Year celebrations when all children would get one of these as an extra special treat!  

Besides being super cool and fun to eat and super yummilicious to boot, these lovely traditional Chinese hard caramel coated fruit skewers also have the coolest name: Bing Tanghulu Candied Hawthorn Stick or 冰糖葫蘆.

Chinese New Year Tray of Togetherness 中國新年攢盒

Published: 2014-01-27
It's that time of the year for the most important Chinese Festival of the whole year:  Chinese New Year, or 中國農曆新年!  A festive time filled with wintery skies, red packets (紅包), relatives (and more relatives!), feasts (and more feasts!), the all important color Red and visiting old friends.  Yay!!  

We are already starting to do our preparations including a favorite ritual of mine, the Chinese New Year Tray of Togetherness!   The Tray of Togetherness, or 攢盒, is a lovely (red!) chinese candy box with compartments that you fill up with all different kind of chinese new year candies, all of which have symbolically lucky meanings.  Then when your Chinese New Year visitors come a'calling, you can offer them some lucky nibbles.