My friends and I had been talking about going out in Atlanta for this New Years since this is the first New Years that we are all finally 21! But we ended up deciding to celebrate in Athens where we know more people and have an apartment downtown :)
New Years Party Supplies:
1. Chocolate Covered Pretzels
One of my roommates has been making these regularly ever since I bought a single 75 cent chocolate covered pretzel to-go at a local coffee house as a painfully obvious excuse to flirt with the cute barista. Now whenever she thinks of me trying to flirt, she craves chocolate covered pretzels, haha. The original plan was to make half with dark chocolate and toffee pieces and half with white chocolate and sprinkles, however, the dark chocolate was not sticking to the pretzels and the toffee pieces were too heavy to stay on the pretzels. Solution: Dip in white chocolate and drizzle with dark chocolate!
2. Publix spinach artichoke dip. For some reason I feel guilty admitting that I bought this instead of making it myself. But this dip from the Publix deli is really really good! Awesome when heated up with pita chips :)
3. Champagne Punch (adapted from allrecipes.com) This was a hit!
- 1 can frozen limeade concentrate
- 1 can frozen pink lemonade concentrate
- 1 can frozen raspberry concentrate
- 1 750 mL bottle Yellow Tail Chardonnay
- 2 bottles Andre Extra Dry ($5 a bottle. we are so classy...)
- 2 liters seltzer water
- Ice
We meant to put frozen berries in this for garnish, but we forgot :(
Although I am a food snob, I don't have the palette yet to be a wine snob, hence the Yellow Tail and Andre. If you have the budget to buy nicer stuff, go for it, but this was actually very tasty!
4. Sparklers!!!
My favorite restaurant (Big City Bread Cafe) in Athens was having a special New Year's brunch today! I got a cup of 1000 Faces Coffee (a fair trade brand) and apple stuffed french toast. Roomie got eggs benedict on their famous biscuits with smoked salmon and spinach. Yum!
A Very Southern Dinner
Went back home (parent's house...unsure of whether home is where I grew up or where I pay rent) and Mom made buttermilk corn bread and Ham and Black-Eyed Pea Soup with Collard Greens. This is probably not a recipe that would have caught my eye, but it was delicious!
Ham, garlic, and onions.
Big pot of black-eyed peas! (The blurriness is steam.)
Voila! After cooking everything with chicken broth and lots of collards.
Southern tradition says that black-eyed peas on New Year's Day are supposed to bring luck and prosperity for the new year. This is exactly what I need when I graduate! Hopefully this meal will help...I had 2 bowls :)
Also, I really do enjoy collard greens even though I never think to cook with them. When cooked they kind of taste like spinach but crunchier. And they are super healthy: lots of vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, calcium, and fiber. Black-eyed peas have a lot of fiber, too, which makes this light soup very satisfying and filling!
2008 was a great year and I'm sort of sad to see it go. I accomplished a lot this past year including running 2 half-marathons, completing my first 3 triathlons, passing Biochemistry (B+), and starting this blog! I've been scared of 2009 for the past four years because it is the year I must leave college and be a real adult. Ahhh! Whatever happens in the next year, it will be an adventure at the very least.
3 comments:
What a great 2008 you had!! I hope the same will be true for your 2009!!
Nice party supplies! Sounds like you had a great year last year, but 2009 will be wonderful too. Graduating and starting life in the "real world" is so much fun :)
mmmm!! chocolate covered pretzels!! cute and delicious!!
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