Good Fortune in the New Year

New Year’s Eve is a hopeful night: we kiss the old year good-bye in anticipation that the next one will bring all the good fortune that may have eluded us in this one. Perhaps this year it is especially enjoyable to say “sayonara” or “adios” to the old and bring in the 2011 babe with open arms.


Whether 2010 was a great, good, fair or disastrous one for you, it is human nature to look ahead with anticipation and folks have been doing this since the beginning of time (literally). They have also set up some rites and superstitions to beg the fates for favor in the new year. Many of these concern food and, although we tend to lean toward reality and less to chance, we still enjoy tempting fate in our favor with customs and foods.

Prosperity, health, and happiness have been the usual wishes for a new set of calendar months and are forecast in many ways. In Southern United States, eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day has been considered lucky. I am not sure of the origin of this custom, but the following dish for black-eyed peas is extremely nutritious and very economical—so it should be an omen of prosperity and health which would likely result in happiness:

Happy New Year Black-eyed Peas

2 ½ cups soaked but not cooked black-eyed peas, drained
6 oz. ham, diced
4 oz. Mexican chorizo, crumbled
1 ½ Tbsp. olive oil
½ medium onion, diced
1 lg. clove garlic, minced
½ large green pepper, diced
½ large red pepper, diced
½ tsp. dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. dried chervil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp. vinegar (apple cider preferred)

Place peas in large Dutch oven or kettle. Heat oil in large skillet. Add chorizo, ham, onions, garlic and peppers. Saute over medium heat for 8 minutes. Add to peas in kettle. Add 4 cups water, the bay leaf, thyme and chervil. Bring to a boil, skim off the foam; lower the heat and simmer, partially covered 45 min. to 1 hr. or until tender but not mushy and most of the liquid is absorbed. Add salt, pepper and vinegar. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

Although the Chinese New Year is celebrated sometime between January 21 and February 19, I have always enjoyed incorporating Chinese New Year traditions into our New Year celebration. For one thing, a great Chinese buffet for a New Year’s Eve party is a welcome change from the Christmas decorations and buttery excess. A great way to finish this party is to pass around home-made Chinese fortune cookies and read your prophecy for the coming year. These are a little tricky, but really not hard to make and, of course, you can make up the fortunes which can be really fun.

Follow the directions exactly for the best results.

Chinese Fortune Cookies
Makes about 1 dozen

1 egg white
1/8 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. almond extract
Pinch salt
¼ cup sifted flour
¼ cup sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 2 large baking sheets. Write fortunes on strips of paper about 3 inches long and ½ inch wide. Whisk the egg white and flavorings until foamy but not stiff. Sift the flour salt and sugar together and whisk into the egg white mixture. Place teaspoonfuls of the batter at least 3 inches apart; wait until batter has spread out to approximately 2” diameter. Tilt the baking sheet to achieve a uniform and round appearance. Do not put too many on one sheet as you must work quickly while they are hot to shape them. Once they are too cool, it is too late. (You can use any hardened cookies for crumb topping on ice cream.) Bake for 5-7 minutes or until ½ inch of outer edge of the circle has turned golden brown. The center will remain pale. While one sheet is baking, prepare the other. Remove from oven and quickly move cookie with a wide spatula and place upside down on a wooden board. Quickly place the Fortune on the cookie close to the middle and then fold the cookie in half. Place the folded edge across the rim of a measuring cup and pull the pointed edges down, one on the inside of the cup and one on the outside. Place folded cookies into the cups of a muffin tin to hold their shape until firm.

Be careful not to burn your hands—working quickly is really important. It is a good idea to put no more than 2 or 3 cookies on the first sheet until you see how many you can do before they get cold. While making several batches, I found I got much better at it and so could do more at one time.

Happy New Year!