i would like to make this. (that's tea made from osmanthus flowers: boil dried osmanthus flowers for 3-5 minutes, strain, stir in refined sugar and gelatin. refrigerate.)

and no, i don't know what possessed me even to click on the yinshi jiaju page of zaobao, with me being the undomesticated sort of female best kept safely out of kitchens, but i did find myself there and rather engrossed myself with pictures of soup.

here is hunanese ham and white fungus and chrysanthemum double-boiled in a winter melon! i adore it when my ma makes that, only she always sets me to fanning the charcoal fire with a wad of newspaper, a sweaty and onerous task.

i really like this which is some kind of beef bone cartilage soup, reminding me of the very good shark cartilage soup i had at orchard hotel last year.

this one seems especially appropriate, it still being chinese new year. cheng tng-like porridge rather like a variation of babao porridge, full of donggu and wolfberries and lotus seeds and dates and grain and a dozen things von can't tell me the english name for. and this one uses lotus root and lily bulbs and lotus seeds. and here's one that uses starfruit and pork and carrot.