Because we often vacation over New Year’s, we’ve found out what many different cultures eat at midnight to bring them luck and prosperity for the coming year. We’ve also noted various customs, starting with our own grandmother, who used a broom to sweep the old year out the front door and onto the lawn. Here are some food and New Year’s customs from around the world, plus an easy recipe.
Though we tend to associate cider with fall, a recent conversation with apple enthusiast Greg Hall of Virtue Cider reminded us that cider can serve as a hot winter drink as well. Hall, a beer expert and former head brewmaster of Goose Island, expects to launch his brand of hard cider, with the tagline “farm to bottle,” this spring. He shared a recipe for a warm cup of nonalcoholic spiced cider.
Santa Claus isn’t the only one taking to the skies this holiday season. Along with millions of other travelers, we are flying to see loved ones over the next several weeks and we know we’ll want to eat something along the way. But since many airlines cut costs in the past decade by reducing or dropping their in-flight food offerings, we either have to bring our own nibbles, find something healthy at the airport or opt to buy an in-flight meal or snack, since most domestic airlines have discontinued courtesy food service.
From now until New Year’s we have a slew of parties on our calendar. There’s nothing wrong enjoying a festive drink or two, but too much eggnog (343 calories per cup) or fruity cosmopolitans (213 calories in 4 ounces) can take a toll on our waistline. So we wouldn’t mind cutting calories where we can, given all the other holiday goodies vying for our attention. And that’s where low-calorie Voli vodka comes in.
Every now and then, when we have 15 or so browser windows open at the same time, we feel a bit overwhelmed, like we’re in the technology loop skit in Portlandia. But ’tis the season for giveaways, and Twitter, Facebook and our email inbox yielded some opportunities we want to share — all on one handy page.
Whether they’re professional chefs or Food Network fans, the foodies in your life deserve the perfect gift. And we’ve got tasty ideas ranging from fun stocking stuffers to food-related jewelry!
Until recently, we used to rummage through our chocolate stash regularly around teatime hunting for a fudgy afternoon pick-me-up. But we decided we didn’t want all the fat, calories and cholesterol that come with most chocolate confections and candy bars. So we invented this cinnamon-spiced hot chocolate made the old-fashioned way — with boiling water, not milk.
During the holidays, we’re always on the lookout for new twists on traditional holiday baking. So we’re eager to see the submissions to the Earth Balance Holiday Bake-Off Recipe Contest. The vegan pie, cake, cupcake and cookie recipes have to include at least one Earth Balance product, and also must feature one or more vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, nuts or seeds. The grand prize winner gets $1,400 to spend at Whole Foods Market.
Rome is one of our favorite towns: The Eternal City offers some of the most striking juxtapositions of ancient and modern sights — scooters zipping down the narrow streets, windows full of pizza slices tempting tourists across from the Baroque façade of the Trevi Fountain. Now, home pizza chefs have a chance through January to win a trip to Rome, an Aprilia scooter or a Sony digital camera in the Mezzetta Picture Perfect Pizza Contest.
Thanksgiving is unofficially the kickoff of the holiday weight-gain season. One minute we’re innocently reaching for some stuffing, and the next thing we know, we’re fighting January’s resolution gymgoers for an elliptical machine to combat the jaw workout of the previous weeks’ holiday treats. We asked Patricia Bannan, M.S., R.D., author of Eat Right When Time Is Tight (Norlights Press, 2010), how to not simply give up on healthy eating after the big feast. “Thanksgiving is just like any other meal — really!” Bannan reassures.
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