Celebrate Lunar New Year with mini veggie rolls and an upcycled lantern

Difficulty: Explorer (Level 1)

People in many places around the world come together to celebrate the Lunar New Year. From Hong Kong to Vietnam, this is a time of traditions and festivities.

Dragon and lion dances are a cool part of Chinese celebrations for this festival. Dancers dress up in beautiful costumes as musicians play drums and cymbals. For lion dances, two people wear a lion costume to perform tricks and interact with the audience. In dragon dances, people hold a dragon puppet and weave through the crowd. The Guinness World Record for the longest dancing dragon was 5.6 kilometres long.

Many Lunar New Year foods symbolise good luck and wealth. Long noodles represent longevity. Spring rolls are a symbol of new beginnings and wealth – their golden brown colour and shape are similar to gold bars.

Mini veggie rolls

These veggie rolls are a delicious way to start the new year! Photo: Shutterstock

Materials:

• leftover veggies from your Lunar New Year meals (or you can use cucumbers and lettuce)

• round sheets of Vietnamese rice paper

• bowl of warm water

• sweet and sour sauce

• vegetable oil

• parchment paper

• baking sheet pan

Instructions:

1. Cut your veggies into small pieces, around 5cm long. Pat the ingredients dry with a paper towel.

2. Heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

3. Dip a sheet of rice paper in a bowl of lukewarm water for a few seconds. Then, place it on a flat surface like a plate. You need to work quickly before the rice paper becomes too sticky.

4. Place a small handful of veggies in the centre of the wrap. Fold the bottom of the wrapper over the filling tightly. Then, fold the sides on top. Roll until the filling is sealed inside.

5. Brush the spring rolls with oil on all sides. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

6. Bake the rolls in the oven for about 25 minutes until they are crispy and golden. Serve with sweet and sour sauce.

Upcycled red envelope lantern

This project is a great way to use up your lai see packets. Photo: Shutterstock

Materials:

• 16 popsicle sticks

• 4 sheets of tracing paper (you can also use wax paper or parchment paper)

• glue

• scissors

• 4 recycled red packets

• pencil

• cardboard square

• battery-operated tea lights or short string of fairy lights

Instructions:

1. Use four popsicle sticks to create a square frame. Stick them together with glue. Repeat this with the rest of the popsicle sticks to make four frames.

2. Glue a frame onto a sheet of tracing paper. Then, cut off the remaining paper that sticks out of the edges. Do this for all four frames.

3. Draw a shape onto the red packet: try a heart, a circle, or even an animal. Cut out the shape and stick it on the tracing paper. Do this with the rest of your tracing paper and red packets.

4. Glue the four frames together to form the sides of your lantern. Cut the cardboard so that it fits on the bottom of the lantern. Then, glue it together.

5. Finally, place your candle or fairy lights inside the lantern and watch it glow!