Cooking on the Colorado
Recipes to use for family New Year's meals and parties
Leigh Pless

Since we won't be talking until after the new year, I wanted to pass on some of our New Year's Day traditions. Don't ever eat chicken on New Year's Day; chickens scratch backwards and you don't want to be backing up all year long. Same goes for crawfish and lobster.

Always eat pork … pigs root forward and that is the direction you want to go.

Black-eyed peas are for luck, if you put a dime in the pot when you are cooking them, it is for luck and wealth (don't eat the dime).

Any leafy green vegetables are for wealth. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and have a Happy New Year!
Hopping Johns
1 C. dried black-eyed peas
1/4 lb. salt pork, diced
1 medium green bell pepper,
chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 C. uncooked regular rice
1 Tblsp. butter
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper, to taste

Pick over peas; wash thoroughly. Place in a heavy saucepan; cover with water. Soak overnight; drain. Add salt pork, green pepper and onions.

Cover with water and simmer 2 hours or until peas are tender.

Cook rice according to package directions. When peas are done and water has cooked very low, add remaining ingredients.

Cover and cook over low heat until all liquid is absorbed. Serve hot.

Southern Black-Eyed Peas

1 lb. dried black-eyed peas
1 smoked ham hock
1 large onion, chopped
Red pepper, to taste
Salt
Put ham hock in large saucepan and cover with water. Boil for 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile wash and clean peas. Add to boiling water along with chopped onion.

Water may be added in order to cover peas. Add red pepper, but be careful adding salt because the meat will give peas some salty taste.

Cook over medium heat until peas are soft, but not mush, about 45 minutes to an hour.

Festive Black-Eyed Peas

This is delicious served over rice with garlic bread.
1 lb. dried black-eyed peas,
soaked overnight
3 C. water or enough to cover
peas
1 lb. link sausage or your favorite
sausage
1 small onion, chopped
3 Tblsp. brown sugar
1 Tblsp. prepared mustard
1 tsp. salt
8 ozs. prepared barbecue
sauce

Cook peas in water until just tender. Drain and retain 1/2 the liquid. Brown sausage and onions together. Drain. Place peas in a 3-quart casserole. Add sausage and onions.

Stir in liquid, brown sugar, mustard, salt and barbeque sauce. Bake for 1 1/2 hours in 200 degree oven.

Buttery Cabbage

1/4 lb. bacon
1 medium head cabbage,
coarsely chopped
1/4 C. (1/2 stick) butter
1 tsp. salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

In a large pot, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pot; let cool, then crumble and set aside.

Add the remaining ingredients to the pot.

Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cabbage is tender, stirring frequently. Sprinkle with the crumbled bacon, toss, and serve.

Red Cabbage with Apple

1 large onion, cut in half and
thinly sliced in long slivers
2 Tblsp. oil
1 red cabbage, shredded
1 medium-size tart apple,
peeled and shredded
1 tsp. caraway seed (optional)
2 Tblsp. brown sugar
1/2 C. red wine vinegar
1 C. water
Salt, to taste
1 clove minced garlic

Heat the oil. Add onion and cook until soft. Add cabbage and apple. Stir often for 5 minutes, then stir in caraway seed, brown sugar, red wine vinegar, water, salt and garlic.

Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until cabbage is very tender and most of the liquid has evaporated. Serve hot!

Spinach Hater's Spinach

2 pkgs. chopped, frozen spinach 1 can cream of mushroom soup Salt, pepper 2 Tblsp. dehydrated minced onion Garlic salt 3 Tblsp. toasted sesame seeds 1/4 C. sliced almonds 1 C. sharp Cheddar cheese Cook spinach and drain well. Mix in remaining ingredients, using only one-half of the almonds. Put into buttered 1-quart casserole. Sprinkle with remaining almonds. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Spinach Parmesan

2 (10 ozs.) pkgs. frozen chopped
spinach
1 (8 ozs.) container sour cream
1/3 C. Parmesan cheese
1/3 tsp. garlic salt
3 slices white bread, cubed
3 Tblsp. margarine, melted

Cook spinach according to package directions. Drain and press water out of spinach. Mix spinach, sour cream, cheese and garlic salt.

Pour into buttered baking dish and top with bread cubes. Pour margarine over bread cubes. Bake at 350 degrees until bread cubes are lightly browned, about 20 minutes.

Can be prepared ahead and refrigerated before baking. Variation: Stuff spinach mixture into tomatoes, drizzle with melted margarine and bake.

Pork Tenderloin Diane

1 lb. pork tender loin, cut into 8
crosswise pieces
2 tsp. lemon pepper
2 Tblsp. butter
2 Tblsp. lemon juice
1 Tblsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. Dijon-style mustard
1 Tblsp. minced parsley or
chives

Press each tenderloin slice to a 1- inch thickness. Sprinkle surfaces of medallions with lemon pepper. Heat butter in heavy skillet. Cook tenderloin medallions 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Remove medallions to serving platter; keep warm. Add lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce and mustard to skillet. Cook, stirring with pan juices, until heated through. Pour sauce over medallions. Sprinkle with parsley or chives and serve.