D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 3 The Cultural Courier E.S.L. Larchmont and Parkway Schools Creative Corner By Konstantinos Sqillo Winds blow in the winter. By Valerie Bravo and Cecilia Nieto Ice covers the trees. Christmas is fun. Happy kids open presents. Rush to play with gifts. It’s fun to decorate the tree. Snow makes a white Christmas. The family is together. Merry Christmas! All kids love Santa. Sit near the fire. Nice to celebrate Christmas. The snow falls like a blanket. Everyone has snowball fights. Run and play in the snow. Save the Date! Winter Break Holidays Diwali Nov. 3 – 7 rd December 21 – January 1st st See you next year! th Happy New Year! New Year’s Eve Hanukkah Dec. 31st Nov. 28th – Dec. 5th Chinese New Year Jan. 31st Christmas Dec. 25th THE CULTURAL COURIER DECEMBER 2013 By Caleb Deravil By Kevin Tang Sparkling Snowflake Cookies Ingredients: 1 White Cake Mix ½ stick butter or margarine, softened 1 Egg(s) Teaspoon(s) vanilla 2 Cup(s) Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked) Assorted colored sugars, candy sprinkles, small candies or decorator icings Preparation: Heat oven to 350° F. In a large bowl, combine half the dry cake mix with butter, egg and vanilla; mix thoroughly with a large spoon. Stir in remaining cake mix and oats; mix well. Divide dough in half. On a well-floured surface, using a well- floured rolling pin, roll each half to no more than ¼ inch thickness. Cut dough with a 3 inch snowflake or other large holiday cookie cutter. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 6 to 8 minutes or just until set (center may still be soft). Carefully remove to wire rack; cool completely. Decorate cookies. Wonton Soup Ingredients: 1 bunch green onions, cut into 1/2 inch pieces, divided 1 pound ground pork 1 tablespoon sesame oil 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 egg ¼ teaspoon salt 1 (16 ounce) package wonton wrappers 8 cups of chicken broth 1. Dice the green onions, and set aside all but 1 tablespoon. Finely chop the 1tablespoon of green onions and place in bowl with the ground pork, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, egg and salt. Stir to thoroughly mix the pork filling. 2. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the pork filling onto the center of each wonton wrapper. Use your finger or a pastry brush to lightly moisten the edges of the wonton wrappers with water. Fold one corner of the wrapper over the filling onto the opposite corner to form a triangle. Press the edges together to seal. Moisten the two long ends of the triangle, fold them together, and press them firmly to seal. 3. Bring the chicken broth to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Drop the wontons, one by one, into the broth, and let them cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until they float to the surface. Reduce heat to a simmer. Let the soup simmer 2 more minutes. Garnish with the remaining green onions and a dash of soy sauce and sesame oil, and serve immediately. 2 THE CULTURAL COURIER DECEMBER 2013 The Festival of Lights By Kanishka Prabhu Diwali is special for kids. On Diwali kids can play with firecrackers. Indians celebrate Diwali. On Diwali Indians wear new dresses called cholli and chudithars for Diwali. My favorite dress to wear on Diwali is a cholli. Indians make sweets and pray to the God Ganapathi. Some people share their firecrackers with friends. People visit each other on Diwali. Kids play together. It is a happy celebration! Big News for India By Debaprabha Thakur Did you know that the Indian rocket, nicknamed “Mangalyaan”, reached Mars known as the red planet? If you didn’t know, then here are some facts about it. It has a nickname only named by the Indians. The name is Mangalyaan. The rocket has no real name. The rocket went 200 million, maybe more than that, kilometers. And, it is Asia’s first rocket that reached the red planet. The official countdown for blast off of the Indian rocket began at 6:08 a.m. on Sunday, November 3rd, which was the Hindu festival of lights known as Diwali. Did you know that Diwali and the rocket have something in common? If you didn’t, then here it is: On Diwali, the Indians light the fire. And, when the rocket blasted off, it had something behind it and that was fire! 3 THE CULTURAL COURIER DECEMBER 2013 Meet the Creators of the Parkway and Larchmont Edition Konstantinos Kanishka Caleb Cecilia Valerie Kevin Debaprabha (Koel) 4 THE CULTURAL COURIER DECEMBER 2013