We did it right yesterday. Black-eyed peas and rice with a side of collards.
Á la Sammy. Which in this case means I used fresh peas (actually beans, I think, but not Phaseolus) that were much nicer than canned, mixed wild rice in with the brown rice, and added thin-sliced onions and ham to the collards.*
Yummy!
* I admit it; I ran out of steam, so no cornbread…. I trust this won’t compromise our luck in 2009….
2 January 2009 at 3:48 pm
james says:
We had black-eyed peas (from dried ones) made with the ham-bone from xmas, plus fresh collards, mashed potatoes, and cornbread (ahem!) that I made from scratch.
3 January 2009 at 11:04 am
Robert & Mary Jo says:
Is this some kind of southern food tradition to bring luck in the new year? We had pork chops, grits and scrambled eggs, does that qualify as a southern lucky meal for the new year?
3 January 2009 at 11:50 am
Sammy says:
Yes, it’s a Southern tradition. The greens are for wealth/prosperity in the coming year (duh!—like folding money). The peas (uh, beans) are also for wealth (coins), some say, but more say they’re for luck (generic). Some say you eat cornbread or sweet potatoes for more wealth (gold). The rice is for health. Pigs are good luck, some say—something about moving forward. But there are many variations on this (both specific foods and interpretations)! I would say that you were pretty close in your variation….