Noodles
Super-long noodles are thought to bring long life in the New Year, especially if you can make them without breaking them in half. Any noodle will do, as long as it’s long, so break out the rice noodles, the Italian pasta, the ramen noodles… sky’s the limit.
Check out our Dan Dan noodles, our creamy steak fettuccine, our miso Bolognese, our dirty martini pasta, our ramen carbonara (featured here), or our pasta al limone for ideas, then get creative with your favorites.
Round Sweets
Dumplings
Dumplings are an important part of New Year’s traditions from around the world, from Chinese 餃子 (jiao zi) and Russian pelmeni to our very Delish take on dumplings, Smash Dumplings (pictured here). They’re shaped like little money pouches or the coins themselves, and are meant to represent prosperity, wealth, and health.
The homemade kind are truly a labor of love, so gather some family members and have everyone help with assembly. And don’t worry about getting them perfect-looking—even the wonkiest of the bunch are sure to bring health and wealth in the New Year.
Pork
Grapes
Donuts
Many Germans start the new year by eating lucky “Berliner” donuts, usually filled with jam or a Baileys cream filling. Watch out, though: Old tradition suggests filling one or two with mustard, and whoever gets those will have a year of bad luck (and no lovely jam flavor!).
If you’re up for the challenge, our powdered donuts, our paczki (pictured here), our sufganiyot, or our Boston cream donuts are labors of love that are guaranteed to bring you luck in the New Year. Want something a little easier? Our pull-apart jelly donut is baked, not fried, and is perfect for sharing with loved ones.
Onions
In Greece, you’ll find onions hanging from doorways over New Year’s, a tradition that dates back to Ancient Greece when it was thought that onions increase fertility. Now they’re a sign of rebirth and expansion (just think of all those layers!).
We’re all about alliums, and know just what you should make with all those leftover onions in the days ahead—our Tennessee Onions (pictured here), our French onion soup, our sour cream & onion dip, our baked bloomin’ onion, or our pickled red onions.
Champagne
Tamales
Mexican tamales aren’t just fun to eat, they’re a great solo or group project for anyone who loves to cook, and they’ll guarantee strong bonds between family and loved ones in the upcoming year.
Make it a party by involving your friends, enlist your partner or spouse for a different kind of date night, or get the whole family involved. Tamale making is a joy, and tamales are a great canvas for different kinds of fillings.
Get the Tamales recipe.
Fish
Fish symbolizes abundance around the world, but the way it’s eaten is different depending on where you live. In Asian cultures, people feast on whole fishes around the Lunar New Year, and in Europe, people eat carp, herring, and cod.
We suggest you start a new tradition with one of our favorite fish recipes, like our firecracker salmon (pictured here), our mahi mahi tacos, our Arctic char with pistachio gremolata, or our spicy tuna rolls.
Rice
Cornbread
Galette De Rois
We bet you’ve heard of a Mardi Gras king cakes, but do you know about the French galette de rois? Similar treats are the more popular cakes among European countries, with many enjoying the flaky pastry (or similar ones) on New Year’s Eve and Day.
Known as banitsa in Bulgaria, rosca de reyes in Spain, and vasilopita in Greece, there’s one thing that connects them all: a tiny trinket (a bean, coin, or baby figurine are all popular) hidden in one of the slices. Whoever finds it is said to have good luck the rest of the year.
Lentils
Pomegranate Seeds
Pretzels
The breaking of a New Year’s pretzel (or neujahrsbrezel) for luck and prosperity is a long-time German tradition. It can be eaten either at midnight or for breakfast on New Year’s Day. Unlike regular savory pretzels, these are made of a sweet enriched dough, sort of like a babka or brioche.
If you’re a pretzel purist, feel free to make our homemade soft pretzels, our cinnamon sugar crunch pretzels (pictured here), or even just go store-bought (maybe alongside some homemade pub cheese or funfetti dip?). What’s really important is sharing and breaking them with loved ones (the pretzels also represent interconnectedness), so you do you.
Buttered Bread
In Ireland, it’s said that there are a number of traditions involving bread on New Year’s, so many that January 1 is known to some as the “Day Of Buttered Bread.” One entails banging bread against a door frame to chase away bad luck, while another invites good luck in by sharing the baking bounty with friends, loved ones, and neighbors.
We know which one we’ll be going with—join us in baking some Irish brown bread, sourdough, or brioche, all topped with our homemade garlic butter, Tuscan butter (pictured here), or red wine butter. Bonus: These are the perfect baking project for that limbo time between Christmas and NYE!
Oranges & Honey
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