Prosperity and My Chinese New Year Spread

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abundance, Auspicious and healthy cousine, Chinese cousine, Chinese New Year, Chinese New Year Celebration, Feng Shui, money, New Year of the Snake, Prosperity

Today, I’m continuing my series on the Chinese New Year of the Snake celebration. As you start the new year, so shall it go. That’s why the Chinese pay so much attention to having a very prosperous and bountiful holiday table. The New Year is similarly celebrated in Russia and many other cultures around the globe, therefore, for me, a beautiful and prosperous holiday table is a norm, as I’d had enough experience as a child helping my mother prepare and decorate our Russian New Year spreads. This year, I started my Chinese New Year celebration in the Catskills, and then, continued it in New York City, including a visit to New York Chinatown and a Buddhist temple. The Chinatown posts are to follow, complete with lots of great pics and a fascinating and educational exchange I had with a Chinatown merchant. But today, I want to share my Chinese New Year prosperity celebration.

The table should be bountiful and include dishes like auspicious fish, rice, lots of colorful and healthy vegetables, fruits & cake, and some high quality tea!

The centerpiece on my table: auspicious pink salmon, a wonderful symbol of prosperity.

Salmon is garnished with green peas for health, growth and money, as well as colorful fresh red peppers for energy.

My two rice dishes: white jasmine and mahogany, both garnished with fresh veggies.

Mahogany vegetable rice, my favorite!Jasmine vegetable rice.

Cabbage and scallion salad (in a large bowl after grapefruit). Due to green color, many leaves or shoots, and excellent nutritional value, both cabbage and scallions are the beloved symbols of prosperity.  

Finally, to satisfy my sweet tooth: tea and cake!

My very healthy cake, stuffed with high quality dry fruits and red walnuts and garnished with jumbo dates. It was very moist and delicious. Yum!

Jasmine Dragon Pearl green tea, brewed especially for the New Year of the Snake, in a Tetsubin Snake tea pot, and served in Japanese tea cups.

An appetizing platter of red walnuts, jumbo raisins, and roasted seeds & red peanuts, also symbolizing bounty and abundance.

And of course, chocolate raisins, so the year is extra-sweet & extra-smooth.

Prosperity is said to double, if the bounty on the table is reflected in a large mirror.

Persimmons – another welcome symbol of prosperity.

My persimmon branches decorated for the holiday with auspicious birds, Chinese coins and Laughing Buddha.

The name of the plant below says it all: this is the famous Chinese money tree!

And of course, no self-respecting Chinese would celebrate the New Year without oranges! A huge bowl of oranges and other fruit on my dining table. Oranges are the ultimate symbol of prosperity and abundance, but other fruits are great, too.

Let the feast begin! Happy Chinese New Year of the Snake!

Also read:

Auspicious Chinese New Year Celebration

What to Expect from the Chinese New Year of the Snake