Hoppin John

I have no idea why you're supposed to eat blackeyed peas on new years day. Fortunately, I happen to like them, so I made up a bunch. Technically, 'Hoppin John' is a version of beans & rice made with  blackeyed peas, but I'm pretty sure that it's the peas, not the rice, which are the luck-inducing factor. I was feeling a trifle disorganized on the first of the year, and didn't get this post up that day, but I don't guess anybody else will care either.

Cook these the same way you would green beans, with bacon, onion, and salt. They take about an hour and a half, if you use the frozen fresh ones that you can get in little baggies at Fred Meyer.

They are supposed to be eaten with collard greens and cornbread, and although I like cornbread, I can do without collards. Nothing against collards, but they are a bit fiddly, and I would just as soon eat some other green.

I seem to remember saying on new year's eve that, during January, it's totally valid to feel that  it is a worthy goal to a) eat breakfast before noon, and b) wear pants before breakfast. I just want you all to know that today, I have done those things. Barely.