Bring in the New Year with Soul Food

Soul Food is a historic tradition amongst the African-American community on New Year’s Day. Eating black-eyed peas on New Year’s has been considered good luck for at least 1,500 years. Collard, turnip, mustard greens and golden cornbread are also good luck.  Eating soul food at 12:00am on New Year’s Eve brings luck. It is often said “Peas for pennies, greens for dollars, and cornbread for gold.”

Soul Food is a familiar term used for food traditionally prepared and eaten by African-Americans in the United States. Many of the various dishes and ingredients included in “soul food” are part of our Southern US history. The style of cooking originated during American slavery. African slaves were given only the “leftover” and “undesirable” cuts of meat from their masters (while the white slave owners got the meatiest cuts). Despite the “leftover” ingredients, southern whites have grown to love soul food as well.

Soul Food also represents the comfort of lovingly prepared, good food and the gathering of family and friends.

Today when preparing soul food, we use healthier ingredients for seasoning. Instead of “fatback” or “pork fat” we use smoked turkey or sausage. So in the coming days, bring a little luck to your humble abode, and indulge in the historically prepared comfort of Soul Food. Here are a few of my recipes to try:

Collard Greens
Black-eye peas
Macaroni and Cheese
yams
Sweet Potato Pie