new years Archives - Fresh From Oregon

New Years Traditions ~ What’s yours?

December 30, 2014 · by Carrie Trax ·

What’s your family’s favorite New Year’s food tradition? Around the world many people celebrate the new year with many food traditions. On New Year’s eve you will smell a prime rib roast cooking in my oven. At midnight my family will share a piece of a New Year’s Pretzel. New Year’s Pretzels are said to bring good luck and prosperity in the new year and are to be eaten at midnight or before breakfast on New Year’s Day. There are a few different stories about the origins of the New Year’s Pretzel. Some say that the New Year’s Pretzels were fashioned after the way in which German monks prayed. By crossing arms across the chest in the traditional prayer style, the German monks would pray for peace, health and prosperity for everyone in the surrounding village.

On New Year’s day a pork roast covered with my homemade sauerkraut will be slow roasting in my dutch oven pot. I will serve the pork roast with creamy mashed potatoes. This is a tradition both my husband and I have celebrated since we were children. We were always told this would bring us good luck for the coming year.

This year I wanted to try a recipe the southern branch of my family prepares every year, black-eyed peas. I had a ham hock left over from Christmas and this will be perfect to flavor the dish. According to Southern folklore, the first food to be eaten on New Year’s Day for luck and prosperity throughout the year ahead are black-eyed peas. The practice of eating black-eyed peas for luck is generally believed to date back to the Civil War. Here are some ways people serve them:

Served with greens (collards, mustard or turnip greens, which varies regionally), the peas represent coins and the greens represent paper money. In some areas cabbage is used in place of the greens.
Cornbread, often served with black-eyed peas and greens, represents gold.
For the best chance of luck every day in the year ahead, one must eat at least 365 black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day.
Black-eyed peas eaten with stewed tomatoes represent wealth and health.
In some areas, actual values are assigned with the black-eyed peas representing pennies or up to a dollar each and the greens representing anywhere from one to a thousand dollars.
Adding a shiny penny or dime to the pot just before serving is another tradition practiced by some. When served, the person whose bowl contains the penny or dime receives the best luck for the New Year, unless of course, the recipient swallows the coin, which would be a rather unlucky way to start off the year.

How ever you serve them they are tasty and will be on my table this year.

Black-Eyed Peas with a Ham Hock

1 pound dried black eyed peas

1 ham bone or ham hock

2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon Tony Chachere’s creole seasoning*

salt to taste

Sort the beans and remove any stones or bad beans. Rinse with cold water and set aside. In a stock pot, bring ham bone or ham hock and 1 quart of stock to a boil; simmer for 1 hour before starting to cook beans. Add the black-eyed peas into pan with ham hock and add the other quart of stock and enough water to cover the beans by 2 inches. Add onion, garlic, pepper and creole seasoning. Bring back to a boil and simmer 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until beans are tender. Add salt. (If you are using ham hock, omit the salt. The ham hock will give the peas a more complex flavor and enough salt.) Allow beans to rest for @ 30 minutes before serving.

* I did not have this creole seasoning so I made my own up using this recipe ~ Creole Seasoning

There will be plenty of extra left so save to season chicken, seafood or your favorite southern dish.

Sources ~ About Travel and Just a Pinch

New Year’s Traditions … Bake some Good Luck!

December 30, 2013 · by Carrie Trax ·

Sweet New Year’s Pretzel with walnuts

Even though I live here in Oregon (8 years) I am originally from a town just south of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We had many great food traditions that I have not seen here in the Pacific Northwest. I grew up on Pork & Sauerkraut on New Year’s Day, Isaly’s chipped ham made into BBQ sandwiches, Holuski (cabbage & noodles), Pierogies, Golabki (Stuffed Cabbage) and many more. One of the traditions I brought with me is making a New Year’s Pretzel. This is a large pretzel made with a sweet bread dough and glazed with a confectioners sugar icing. It is said you need to eat a piece at midnight New Year’s Eve or before breakfast on New Year’s day to bring you good luck for the coming year. The recipe below makes two pretzels so I decided to make one the traditional way and to start a new tradition by making the second one with Fresh From Oregon flavors and I added cranberries and hazelnuts! Once you make these pretzels and taste them you will be making them each year and starting your own family tradition.

Divide dough in half

Shape into a horseshoe shape with
open ends towards you

Cross right side over left and
create a circle on the top

New Year’s Sweet Pretzel
1 1/2 cups milk, scalded and skimmed
1/2 cup sugar
4 ounces (1 stick) butter
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup warm water
1 tablespoon yeast
6 to 7 cups Bob’s Red Mill flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 eggs
1 pound confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
5-6 Tablespoons water
1/4 cup ground walnuts

Cross left side over right

Put the scalded milk, sugar and butter into the bowl of a stand mixer and let stir until the butter and sugar are dissolved. In another small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water with a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. It should begin to foam in about 5 minutes. Add 5 cups of flour, 1 tablespoon of salt, the yeast mixture and the 2 eggs to the milk mixture. Use a dough hook to mix until it is a soft, even batter. Add more flour 1/2 cup at a time until a soft dough forms. Continue to knead until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl. Take the dough out on a lightly floured board and give it a few turns to form a smooth ball. Put it into a greased bowl and cover. Let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Turn the dough out onto the board and divide in half. Roll each half into a long rope (36″ long) and shape into a pretzel. Lay the pretzel onto a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet and allow to rise for another hour. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes until dark golden-brown. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Make a frosting by mixing the confectioner’s sugar with the almond extract (or vanilla if you prefer) and enough water to make a spreadable icing. Pour the icing over the bread and sprinkle with the walnuts. I have seen these also decorate with the toasted almond slices and candied cherries.

Shaping a Pretzel
1. Roll into a 36″ rope
2. Shape into a horseshoe shape with open ends towards you
3. Cross right side over left and create a circle on the top
4. Cross left side over right
5. Bring ends up to the top and press into the dough

Bring ends up to the top and press into the dough

Fresh From Oregon New Year’s Pretzel
To add the Pacific Northwest to this pretzel add about 1/2 cup of dried cranberries and 1/4 cup finely chopped hazelnuts to dough when you divide it in half and before you roll it into a rope. After you glazed the pretzel sprinkle with with dried cranberries and hazelnuts.

Recipe from: Pittsburgh Magazine

Bring in the New Year with Homemade Pierogies

December 29, 2012 · by Carrie Trax ·

Homemade Yam & Cranberry Pierogies

Homemade Potato & Cheese Pierogies

In my family we celebrate the New Year with pork & sauerkraut with potato cheese pierogies. I have been told this is a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania tradition where I am from. My dad’s side of the family is also from Poland and I believe this love for the pierogies is deep in my roots. When my grandmother and her sister were young they worked part time making hand made pierogies. When my husband and I moved to Oregon 7 years ago we had to explain each year to our friends these traditions and that there is nothing better than homemade pierogie. The filling I make each year and my family’s favorite is potato, cheese and onion. This year I wanted to add a new filling to my recipe box and start my new west coast tradition so I made a yam and dried cranberry filling and sauteed them in butter with hazelnuts.

Enjoy the the following recipes and make a new tradition for your family.

Potato & Cheese Pierogies

Potato & Cheese filling:
(This is enough filling for two dough recipes)
2 ½ pounds potatoes, peeled
1 Tablespoon salt
1 stick (½ cup) butter
½ cup chopped onion
1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

Put the potatoes in a pot and cover with cold water and add the 1 tablespoon salt. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Cook until the potatoes are soft, or about 10 to 15 minutes after they start to boil. When the potatoes are done place in a bowl and mash with a potato masher, set aside. Melt the butter with the onions in a frying pan over medium heat until soft (or longer, depending on your preference). Add the cooked onions, cheese, salt and pepper to the potatoes and mix until combined. Let cool. I like to make my filling the day before I plan on making the pierogies.

Yam & Cranberry filling:
1 1/2 pounds yam (2 large), peeled
1 Teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons dried cranberries, finely chopped
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground pepper

Put the yams in a pot and cover with cold water and add the 1 teaspoon salt. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Cook until the yams are soft, or about 10 to 15 minutes after they start to boil. When the yams are done place in a bowl and mash with a potato masher. Add the butter, cranberries and brown sugar and mix until combined. I also like to make this the night before.

For the dough:
(Make the night before)
3 cups Bob’s Red Mill white flour
1 large egg
2 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature, or olive oil
¾ cup lukewarm water, more if needed
1 teaspoon salt

Combine the flour, egg, butter, ¾ cup water and the salt, preferably in a bowl, although you can also do it the old-fashioned way, which is right on a clean kitchen counter. Mix the dough until it comes together in a rough ball. Knead the dough on a flat, lightly floured surface for approximately 5 minutes or until it forms a smooth ball. Add water as needed if the dough seems chalky or hard, and add flour until the dough no longer sticks to the counter.

Let the dough rest for at least a half-hour if you plan to cook the pierogies immediately, but, if possible, cover and let it rest in the refrigerator overnight to give the gluten in the dough more time to smooth out. Bring to room temperature before you get ready to roll it out.

Divide the dough into two pieces, roll out one piece about ¼-inch thick (or thicker, if desired) and cut into circles, about 3 inches in diameter. Repeat with the remaining piece of dough. You will have dough left over from both times you rolled out, just combine and knead together. Set aside to let rest for 5 minutes, then roll out and cut into circles of dough.

Fill each circle with a heaping tablespoon of potato/cheese or yam/cranberry filling (you can use a mini ice cream scooper for this), fold the dough over the filling and seal by pinching the edges well. It is important to pinch and seal the outer edge so the filling does not come out when you boil them.

Step 1: Fold over and pinch in the middle.

Step 2: Work down both sides of the dough pinching shut as you go.

Step 3: Check to make sure you can not see any filling.

Step 4: Place on lightly floured baking sheet until ready to boil.

Cook the pierogies in a large pot of rapidly boiling water for about 5 minutes, they will also float to the top. Do not overcrowd them in the pot, I cook about 8 at a time. Place cooked pierogies on a wire rack to dry which you have placed over a baking sheet to catch any excess water.

For pan-frying the potato & cheese pierogies add some sliced onion and butter to a frying pan and cook the onions about 2-3 minutes. When the onions start to brown add in the pierogies and brown on both sides this takes about 30 seconds on each side. For the yam & cranberry pierogies melt about 4 tablespoons of butter in a frying pan, add pierogies brown on each side, about 30 seconds per side. Sprinkle in about 1 tablespoon of finely chopped hazelnut and cook another 30 seconds. To freeze extra pierogies place in a container in layers with plastic wrap between layers and top with a piece of plastic wrap.