Eight Treasure Rice (Babao Fan) Recipe

""Traditionally served at New Year celebrations and other festive occasions...the treasures may include:
sweet beans
dates
almonds
peanuts
melon seeds
raisins
dried apricots
walnuts
crystallized fruits
any other available dried fruits and nuts

Other ingredients called for:
2 cups rice or glutinous rice
2 tbsp. margarine
3 tbsp. brown sugar

Wash the rice and boil until tender. Drain and stir in the margarine and sugar. Grease the bottom and sides of a pudding basin and arrange alternate layers of cooked rice with fruit and nuts. Press the fruit and nuts so that the colours will show when the dish is turned out to serve after steaming. Press the top gently and cover with foil or pieces of kitchen paper and muslin. Steam the pudding for 40 minutes. Turn out on to a serving dish and decorate with crystallized cherries, nuts and angelica.
If you have a talent for decoration, arrange a pattern of fruit at the bottom of the bowl whick will show when the pudding is turned upside down on the serving dish. Layers of sweet bean paste or ground nuts could also be included with the rice to provide extra nourishment. The process can be speeded up by stirring the sweet rice, fruit and nuts together before putting in the pudding basin.