Lucky New Years Foods

New Years brings with it some fun, and some odd, superstitions.  But one thing is for sure; there are some great lucky foods that are worth a try!  We’re all familiar with the tradition of pork chops, black-eyed peas, collards and applesauce for dinner on New Years day, but did you know that donuts and bagels are lucky too?  Here are some of my favorite lucky New Years foods that I shared with Page Crawford on WNCN Today this morning:

•     Lucky Fruit.

o   Grapes.  Grapes are considered a lucky fruit and in some cultures are used as a predictor of the coming year.  You can eat 12 grapes at midnight and every sweet grape is an indication of a good month, while every sour grape denotes a not so lucky month in the year ahead.  So add a few frozen grapes to your drinks in lieu of ice or create grape kabobs for everyone to munch on.

•     Coming Full Circle.

o   Circular Foods.  Much like a wedding band is a symbol of unending love, circular foods like donuts and bagels are considered lucky and symbolize coming full circle.  So here’s another fun excuse to make a trip to the donut shop on New Years Day, or make bagel pizzas for dinner.  And don’t forget there are plenty of healthy options too, like baked banana donuts or a zucchini bread bunt cake.

•     A Fun Twist on the Traditional.

o   Black-eyed Peas.  Why not have some fun with the age-old tradition of eating black-eyed peas on New Years by mixing up some Texas Caviar, a fabulously sweet and tangy black-eyed pea dip.  You can make your dip today and munch on it all New Years day while you’re watching football.

Texas Caviar

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed

1 cup frozen or fresh corn

1 small jar pimentos

2 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 red onion, chopped

1/2 green pepper, chopped

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup sugar

Salt and pepper

In a small pan over medium high heat, bring vinegar, oils and sugar to a boil and cook until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool.

Add all the veggies in a large bowl and pour the liquid over the top.

Cover and refrigerate overnight. Stick a spoon in there and mix it around every so often.

Before serving season with salt and pepper if desired

When it comes to New Years, a little decorating goes a long way.  A big thank you to our friends at CelebrateExpress.com for the fun New Years decorations and hats!

And a big Clueless Chick thank you to our friends at the Krispy Kreme in Raleigh, NC for providing donuts for this mornings show!  As always, you can find me at Krispy Kreme on New Years Day getting some lucky donuts for my boys.

Happy New Year!

Until next time,
Jennifer
aka Chick #1