We spent New Year’s Eve with a few couple friends and a whole lot of children! We enjoyed the best type meal of all, lots of appetizers! And a few kid-friendly items. We had quite the spread of delicious food. It was hard not to grab a plate or two or just take a seat at a bar stool next to the food and continue munching for the majority of the night.
That night it was freezing! Like most of the country we have experienced uncharacteristically low temperatures for a few weeks. When we get highs in the 20s for a few days, well we’d rather stay inside and bundle up! This didn’t deter the kids from taking part in shooting celebratory fireworks though! While they didn’t stay outside too long, it was still fun.
It’s been a few years since we’ve still been awake to see the clock strike midnight and this year was no exception. We let the kids stay up a bit past their normal bedtime before scurrying back home to hope they would get to sleep despite fireworks going off every few minutes.
New Year’s Day proved to be equally as chilly. It was sunny and crisp, but we spent the majority of the day indoors watching football. We also spent some time preparing what has become our traditional New Year’s Day meal.
Many cultures and countries have their “lucky” foods, and the South is no exception when it comes to New Year’s Day foods. While eating these foods is part superstition and part tradition, we’ve enjoyed creating our own family tradition of a meal with recipes that we’ve gone back to year after year.
Here’s what rounded out our menu along with some cornbread muffins:
Grilled Pork Tenderloin
2 pork tenderloins seasoned with salt and pepper
Marinade:
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
1/8(1oz.) soy sauce
Directions
Place tenderloins in gallon Ziploc bag. Pour marinade over tenderloins, remove air from bag, and seal.
Refrigerate for at least 3 hours
Grill over medium heat, turning once, until internal temperature is 140 degrees
Let meat rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing
Spicy Black-eyed Peas, via
Ingredients
4 slices bacon
1 medium chopped onion
1 (16 oz) package washed dried black-eyed peas
1 (12 oz) can diced tomatoes and green chilies
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup water
Directions
In a large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp. Remove bacon, crumble and set aside to use as topping for peas. Sauté onion in bacon drippings until tender. Add peas, diced tomatoes and green chilies, salt, chili powder, pepper and water. Cook, covered, over medium heat for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until peas are tender. Add additional water if necessary.
Sauteed Cabbage, via
Ingredients
1 small head white cabbage, including outer green leaves (2 1/2 pounds)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Cut the cabbage in half and, with the cut-side down, slice it as thinly as possible around the core, as though you were making coleslaw. Discard the core.
Melt the butter in a large saute pan or heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add the cabbage, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is tender and begins to brown. Season, to taste, and serve warm.
