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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Mash black-eyed peas with fork, cook with tomatoes and golden onions, stir in ground peanuts for this unique Kenyan vegetarian stew over rice.

Maharagwe is an East African spiced bean dish simmering black-eyed peas in coconut milk with turmeric, chili powder, tomatoes, and cilantro. Vegan, creamy, and served over rice.

Wake-Ewa is a hearty Nigerian black-eyed pea stew simmered in a spiced tomato and onion sauce with chili, coriander, and thyme. Serve over rice or with fufu for a filling plant-based meal.

Eye of round roast marinated overnight in Chinese hot mustard, garlic, soy, and Worcestershire, then high-heat roasted with potatoes. A budget cut cooked right.

Singapore chilli crab: cracked blue swimmer crabs simmered in a sweet-tangy tamarind, ginger and bird's eye chili sauce. Hawker stall classic, messy, hands-on, completely worth the cleanup.

Flour-coated round steak browned and slow cooked with tomato sauce, onions, and green peppers until fork-tender. A hands-off comfort food dinner that simmers all day while you do your thing.

Penne with fresh tomato basil sauce simmers chunky ripe tomatoes, garlic, and fresh basil in olive oil for a quick pasta sauce. Summer Italian classic finished with Parmesan and torn basil leaves.

Texas caviar made with black-eyed peas, colorful bell peppers, jalapeño, and red onion. A quick, crowd-pleasing Southern dip or side dish ready in 30 minutes.

A vegetarian black-eyed pea salad tossed in a bold dressing of sambuca, fresh basil, lemon juice, and balsamic vinegar. The anise-kissed liqueur gives this bean salad an unexpected, aromatic twist you won't find anywhere else.

Vegetarian gumbo with black-eyed peas, okra, corn, tomatoes, and the holy trinity in a homemade vegetable stock. A plant-based bayou bowl ready to ladle over cornbread.

Spicy black-eyed peas simmered with cumin, chili powder, dry mustard, canned tomatoes, and Tabasco. A quick Southern side dish served over rice or with grits.