Basket cakes are popular desserts eaten during the Lunar New Year. It was originally used as an offering in a ritual ceremony.
As time passes, this sticky-textured food becomes a special food in Chinese New Year.
The basket cake pronunciation aka niangao in Chinese uses an elevated tone at the end of the syllable. This represents higher income, higher positions, growth of children, and generally promises a better year.
Enjoying the basket cake during the Chinese New Year period is also considered a fortune.