It is almost New Year’s Eve, time to get the final preparations done to ring in the new year. Once again, I am reposting some previous ideas that I do year after year. Thank you for your indulgence with these round-up posts of previous writing as I deal with other things. I hope long time readers will enjoy these traditions, and new readers will see something fresh for the last of the holiday celebrations.  Putting away the red and green, I usually like to do tablescapes for the New Year in black, white and gold. This one used black chargers, white dinner plates, and some black and gold salad plates. Gold candles and a couple of gold New Year’s items on a black charger make the centerpiece.

Another year, I had black octagonal shaped plates set on white dinner plates and gold chargers. The tablecloth was just a length of black fabric with gold dots. This was a breakfast meal, so the little pitcher was on the table to hold syrup.

In yet another year, I used the same color scheme and some of the same elements to do an Asian Inspired New Year tablescape. I used my collection of black lacquer dishes with square gold chargers. Much of what is on this tablescape (and the two above) has been donated back to the thrift shop, although I still have the black/gold plates, the black lacquer dishes and chopsticks. This post (New Year Thrifted Tablescape) has not only a closer view of the table, but also some Asian inspired recipes and my Sakura Tsuki art quilt.

New Year’s Day breakfast is the ideal time to use the last of the egg nog for Cinnamon Egg Nog French Toast. Just pour the egg nog in a bowl, add a couple of teaspoons of cinnamon (as much as you like), then dip the bread and cook on a hot griddle.

We had a wonderful prime rib dinner on Christmas day. If you did the same, it is a good time to show my Beef Barley Stew for Two that I make with the bones and scraps of meat left over.

Or maybe you had turkey or another main course. See my Creative Leftovers post for more ideas like baked pasta or a leftovers mornay.

We have a good luck lunch on New Year’s Day, and I am reposting the recipe so you can make sure you have what you need before the weekend. It is like a Hoppin’ John, but  I call it Jumpin’ John because it isn’t a side dish, it is a meal!

Gather all your ingredients together before you start.

Start with sauteing the onion in olive oil.

Add the sausage and cook until browned.

Add the remaining ingredients.  I use leftover rice from a previous meal.

Stir to combine, reduce heat and simmer until heated through. If you like a bit of heat, add a dash of sriracha or Tabasco sauce.

Enjoy with a piece of crusty bread.   For dinner, just add a side salad.  If you usually add greens to your peas, you could do that too.  It is a real rib-sticking, hearty meal on a cold day.  It also takes well to adjustments in the quantities, like a little more rice if you happen to have a little more leftover, or a bit more kielbasa if you like more meat.  It is ready in just a few minutes!

Jumpin’ John Black Eye Peas and Rice

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 pound kielbasa or other smoked sausage, cut into bite size pieces
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 15-ounce can black-eyed peas, drained
1 cup cooked long-grain rice
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp molasses
1 tbsp worchestershire sauce
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp lemon-pepper seasoning
Optional – dash of hot sauce
Chopped green onion for garnish, optional

Cook onion in oil until translucent. Add sausage and cook until browned.  Add tomato sauce, paste, peas, rice, and rest of ingredients.  Stir to combine.  Heat through. Ladle into bowls, garnish with green onion and serve with crusty bread and butter. Serves 4.

Download the pdf – Jumpin’ John

Once again on New Year’s Eve, I want to remind you to put your money outside on Sunday night. This is something my mother did, so I do it too. I am not sure where she got it from, but I seem to remember something about it being a Scottish tradition. You hide some money outside on New Year’s Eve, (doesn’t matter how much) then bring the money into the house on New Year’s Day. It is supposed to bring good fortune with it, so you have money coming in all year. No, I am not superstitious, this is just something fun to do, and seems to be a conversation starter too. Ask your friends if any of them have ever heard of it. And for my readers who saw this last year, or in prior years, did you do it last year?

Just in case you missed it on my last post, here’s my New Year’s cards post. This is a great idea for those too busy during Christmas to do any stamping. It has a little poem I made up you can use as a greeting inside.

Maybe you need a small quilting project for the week between the holidays. How about making a Sudoku Quilt? The post contains the complete tutorial for a small square quilt perfect as a table topper or lullaby quilt. It is easily made larger or smaller just by adjusting the size of your nine patch squares. Make one in sewing fabrics like I did here, or use seasonal fabrics for holiday tables. Start now on one with red and white for Valentine’s day.

My grandmother always said that what you do on New Year’s Day is what you will do all year. So, no housework or laundry was allowed. Cooking was only OK if you enjoyed it. Spending time with people you cared about was the most important thing, so we had to visit her every year on New Year’s Day, so she could be assured she would see us all year. She passed away many years ago, but I still like the idea of doing on that day only those things I want to do all year. Most years, for me and My Sweet Babboo, this has been a quiet day with just each other, piddling with things that we liked doing, like a bit of sewing for me, noodling around in his workshop for him, some sports on TV and a good meal. This year, I am thrilled to be able to spend part of this day with friends as we have been invited to an open house. Four of my favorite friends will be there, and the lady throwing the party is not only a quilting pal, but a car club buddy as well. What a wonderful way to begin a new year, the best we’ve had in a long time! I hope it is a harbinger of good days to come. May you have a wonderful day as well, and I’ll be back in the new year with Stashbusters on January 5.

Enjoy the holiday weekend, and Happy New Year!

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Last chance for after Christmas clearance sales! Thank you for using my links when you can. Your purchases help pay the costs to keep obnoxious ads off my blog, and support the costs of server space, domain, photo storage and more. Thank you.

Fat Quarter Shop has new items in the sale section. Check out Today’s Flash Sale. This month get 20% off the Basic of the Month Pure Solids from Art Gallery Fabrics, 30% Off the Notions of the Month needle minders from many designers, Patterns of the Month by Zen Chic, and see the Precuts of the Week! We start over with Stashbusters in January, so now’s the time to stock up on last minute deals and count them in December.

This week shop the Sale Section at Milk Street. 

Have a happy start to the holiday season with great new books to learn something new. C&T Publishing Best Sellers and New Releases.

Check out Sulky Threads for their wonderful cotton quilting threads!!

Shop online at Amazon with the Home Holiday Guide! Marvelous ideas for your home and for gifts for everyone in your family, every age group, with awesome ideas for sewing friends, gardeners, cooks and more.