Eve recipes

Ensalada de Nochebuena, a traditional Mexican Christmas Eve salad with oranges, bananas, beets, jicama, pineapple, peanuts, pomegranate seeds, and sugar cane on a lettuce-lined platter.

Ring in the New Year with this sparkling champagne pomegranate punch spiked with citrus vodka. Jewel-toned, fizzy, and ready in under 5 minutes. Just stir, pour over ice, and toast.

Citrus curried cashews toss raw cashews with lemon juice, warm curry powder, and kosher salt, then slow-roast to crisp. A salty-tart, spice-dusted cocktail nut for holiday parties and DIY gifting.

Fruity Mary punch simmers red wine with brown sugar, apple, orange, pineapple, and star anise, then finishes with a splash of orange curaçao. A warm holiday mulled wine served in heat-safe mugs.

Sweet cherry peppers stuffed with lemony tuna, capers, and optional anchovy, finished with a balsamic vinegar drizzle. These bite-sized Italian-style appetizers are the life of any New Year's Eve party and ready in under 30 minutes.

Grapefruit, Campari, and pomegranate cocktail blends tart grapefruit juice with deep red pomegranate and ice into a foamy pale-pink base, then gets topped with bitter Italian Campari. A festive New Year's pitcher drink.

New Year's Eve polenta squares crisp tube polenta under the broiler, then top each bite with a tangy sun-dried tomato, caper, and parsley pesto. A make-ahead cocktail-party appetizer that feeds a crowd.

Pretzel and peanut butter truffles roll crunchy peanut butter and chopped salted pretzels into bites, freeze them firm, and dip in melted milk chocolate. Three ingredients and no baking required.

Pomegranate and blood orange mimosas mix tart blood orange juice with ruby pomegranate, then top each flute with chilled sparkling wine. A jewel-toned New Year's Eve toast that takes minutes to pour.

Spanish pan con tomate with Serrano ham slow-roasts plum tomatoes for a sweet, garlicky spread piled onto toasted baguette and topped with thin slices of jamón. A classic tapas party platter.

Pan-seared beef tenderloin topped with melted blue cheese and sweet balsamic caramelized onions. A simple, elegant steak dinner that's ready in 40 minutes.

Initial testing looks positive. A tasty chocolate cookie that is both low fat and low calorie.

Along the coast of the Southern US eating Hoppin' John on New Year's Day is thought to bring a year filled with luck and prosperity. The beans symbolize coins or pennies. Sometimes a penny is added to the pot or can be left under the bowls of Hoppin' John. Greens such as Collards, chard or kale can be added and symbolize the color of money and are said to add to ones wealth in the new year. The day after New Year's Day the leftovers are called "Skippin' Jenny," and further demonstrates one's frugality. A common tradition in the south US is each person at the meal should leave three peas on their plate to ensure the New Year will be filled with Luck, Fortune and Romance. Another tradition holds that counting the number of peas in a serving predicts the amount of luck (or wealth) that will be collected over the next year.

Akudjura (dried bush tomato) crusted Ribeye steak served with broccolini, shitake mushrooms and wattleseed jus.

Winter greens can be bitter but not when cooked this way. Perfectly complimentary flavors and belly filling warmness. If you've never tried collard greens before this recipe is more than worth the effort.

Black beans and black-eyed peas tossed with jalapeños, cherry tomatoes, bell pepper, and fresh cilantro in zesty Italian dressing. No cooking required. The ultimate game day dip for a crowd.