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Time really does fly when you are
having a great time! Cooking and enjoying wonderful whole foods on a
day-to-day basis gives you fantastic energy and creates a great zest for
life. It seems that summer has just ended when the great odometer of
life rolls over and it is time to once again celebrate the coming of a
brand new glorious year.
The beginning of a new year is a time
for reflection. We take this opportunity to plan better things for
ourselves, our family, our friends and the world. This year we are
having a New Year's day brunch at our seaside residence. We feel very
fortunate to have this home with the eternal ocean close by, lulling us
to sleep at night with its ebb and flow. The culinary theme of our party
will be certain foods which are touted to bring even more luck and good
fortune in the New Year.
Almost every country in the world has
at least once special dish that is supposed to be included on the menu
on the first day of the New Year. This is a dish that is said to bring
luck, wealth, happiness, and success. Even if you do not believe in such
things, it is fun to eat foods which are thought to be lucky, and, who
knows, it just might work out in your favor.
The Japanese celebrate the New Year in
grand style. The festivities begin on January 1st and last for three
days. During this time everyone, even the cook of the house, is supposed
to rest. All of the food for the entire three-day celebration is cooked
ahead of time so that the cook only needs to defrost, reheat or fry the
food before serving.
This sounds really good to me, but I
know that I could never pull that one off!
Among the foods that the Japanese believe to be especially lucky are
soba noodles, which should be eaten without breaking them to ensure long
life. Mochi, which is cooked and cut into pieces and eaten by the family
for the opportunity for luck and good health, is served at every New
Year's meal.
Many Italians ring in the New Year in
an interesting way. They toss old things out of their windows in order
to make room for new and lucky things to enter their households in the
coming year. They like to eat lentils on the first day of the new year,
as they are thought to bring money into the household.
Lady Luck just seems to like beans.
Sweet black beans ensure good health in Japan, and black-eyed peas are
thought to bring good luck to those who live in the southern part of the
United States.
Around the globe, greens are said to
ensure money in the coming year. Almost any green the color of
greenbacks will do. So remember to eat your collards, kale, and mustard
greens. Even if you don't receive a windfall, your liver will benefit
from these vegetables and feel very fortunate indeed!
Originally published in Christina Cooks
Holiday 2003
LUCKY NEW YEAR'S DAY MENU
Steamed Cod Heaped with Scallions
and Ginger
In Denmark, the dish for luck is boiled cod. I thought that this
steamed fish recipe was pretty close to that idea.
2 pounds cod fish
1 tsp. sea salt
2 Tb. mashed ginger
1 1/2 Tb. shoyu soy sauce
2 Tb. mirin
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
8 scallions, finely minced
1 Tb. sesame oil
Rinse the fish with cold water and wipe dry. Make diagonal slashes on
each side of the fish and rub it all over with the salt. Use about one
third of the ginger mash to stuff into the slashes in the fish. Place
the remainder of the ginger into a bowl with the shoyu, mirin, and oil.
Mix together well, pour over the fish along with the scallions, and let
marinate for about ten minutes. Steam for approximately ten minutes per
inch of thickness of the fish. When the fish is cooked, heat a little
bit of sesame oil in a pan and drizzle this over the fish, as steaming
tends to give the fish a dull finish. Place gently on a serving dish.
This is tasty served hot or cold.
Black-Eyed Pea Stew
2 cups black-eyed peas which have been soaked and cooked until almost
done
1 large onion
2 carrots, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. chile pepper spice mix (optional)
4 Tb. olive oil
2 cups vegetable stock
sea salt to taste
Spicy Squash:
1 medium-sized squash, cubed
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. curry powder (optional)
pinch grated nutmeg
2 cups spring water
sea salt to taste
To make the black-eyed pea stew, sauté the onions, carrots, garlic,
thyme, and spices in the oil in a large saucepan for 5 minutes. Add the
stock, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and stir in the
black-eyed peas. Cover and simmer, adding more stock or water as
necessary until the vegetables are tender. This should take about 15
minutes. When the beans are completely cooked, season to taste with salt
and cook for 5 more minutes.
To make the spicy squash, bring the water to a boil, add the onion and
let simmer for a few minutes. Add the squash, garlic and spices and
simmer, covered, until the squash is cooked, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Season with salt and served with the black-eyed peas.
WILD RICE WITH APPLES
Rice is a universal symbol for prosperity, abundance and good luck. This
recipe is from Christina's book, Cooking the Whole Foods Way. She
mentions that this dish is a particularly lovely complement to a holiday
meal.
1 cup wild rice, rinsed well
1 cup basmati rice, rinsed well
2 1/2 cups spring or filtered water
sea salt
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons rice syrup
grated peel of one orange
juice of one lemon
1 tart apple (such as Granny Smith), cored and diced
1 celery stock, diced
Place both the wild and basmati rice and the water in a pressure cooker
and bring to a boil, uncovered, over medium heat. Add two pinches of
salt, seal and bring to full pressure. Place over a flame deflector,
reduce heat to low and cook 45 minutes. Remove pot from heat and allow
pressure to reduce naturally. Transfer rice to a serving bowl.
While the rice is cooking, warm the orange juice, olive oil, rice syrup,
orange peel, and a pinch of salt in a small pan over low heat. Remove
from heat and stir in lemon juice and diced apples. Toss rice and celery
with apple and orange dressing and serve warm.
SOBA NOODLES WITH GARLIC, ONION AND
SESAME SEEDS
This recipe is also from Christina's Cooking the Whole Foods Way.
8-ounce package soba noodles
1 teaspoon light sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 or 3 shiitake mushrooms, soaked until tender and sliced
1 to 2 teaspoons freshly grated gingerroot and juice
2 or 3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon mirin
shoyu soy sauce
1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley or mint
parsley or mint sprigs for garnish
Cook noodles as directed on the package, 8 to 10 minutes or until
tender. Drain, rinse well and set aside. Heat oil in a skillet over
medium heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 2
minutes. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring 3 to 4 minutes. Add ginger
juice and pulp to taste, green onions, mirin, a dash of shoyu and sesame
seeds and cook, stirring 2 to 3 minutes. Toss mixture with noodles and
stir in minced parsley or mint. Serve garnished with parsley or mint
sprigs.
WINTER GREENS WITH MARINATED MUSHROOMS
AND WALNUTS
This is also from Cooking the Whole Foods Way. How could I ever give a
party without using recipes from Christina's cookbooks? I feel very
lucky that she wrote them and that I own them!
2 to 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
pinch sea salt
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 or 5 button mushrooms, brushed clean and quartered
3 to 4 tablespoons walnut pieces
1 bunch hearty greens (kale, collards, broccoli rapini), large stems
removed
Whisk together vinegar, salt, garlic, and olive oil in a bowl. Add
mushrooms and stir to coat. Allow to marinate 1 hour.
Meanwhile, lightly pan-toast the walnuts over medium heat until
fragrant, about 3 minutes. Finely mince and set aside to cool. Leaving
the greens whole, quickly steam them until they are a dark, rich green,
about 5 minutes. Slice the greens into bit-size pieces. Just before
serving, toss the greens, walnuts, mushrooms, and remaining marinade
together. Serve immediately.
Pan-Fried Mochi
Mochi, cut into 2-inch squares
1 Tb. toasted sesame oil
Heat the oil in a skillet; add mochi and cook, covered, over low heat
for 5 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Turn over and add a
small amount of water to create steam and soften the mochi. Cover again
and cook for several minutes more until the mochi is just tender. Be
careful to watch the mochi so that it does not melt.
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