My tendency is to buck traditions. Some part of my DNA just bristles at the must-dos. But when it comes to New Year’s Day, my table includes black-eyed peas, cornbread, something leafy and green, and a coconut cake. I figure every year should start off with a dose of good luck, good fortune and comfortable familiarity before plunging head-first into deadlines.
Every year I look for variations on Hoppin’ John, the traditional Southern dish of cow or red peas and rice that is steeped in West African cookery. This year, I am going back to one I tried a couple of years ago that became an instant favorite. Made by the loving hands of the late Emily Meggett, whose joyful cookbook Gullah Geechee Home Cooking: Recipes from the Matriarch of Edisto Island came out in 2022, just before her death in 2023.
I found the recipe before I actually had the cookbook in hand through this post on America’s Test Kitchen’s website >> americastestkitchen.com/articles/6659-the-matriarch-of-edisto-island-divulges-the-secrets-to-hoppin-john . The post captures the lovely moment when Ms. Emily and food historian-author-editor Toni Tipton-Martin made it together.