Hoppin' John for New Year's!

(top img src: http://www.amazon.com/My-Dear-New-Years-Day/dp/B000P5FHGM)    (bottom img: http://www.hoppinjohn.org/

Ingredients:

• 1 pound dried black-eyed peas
• 2 small smoked ham hocks or meaty ham bone 
• 2 medium onions, divided
• 3 large cloves garlic, halved 
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup long-grain rice (brown for love or white for looks)
• 1 can (10 to 14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes with chile peppers, juices reserved
• 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 jalapeno or serrano pepper, minced
• 2 teaspoons Cajun or Creole seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• salt to taste
• bunch green onions, sliced

Preparation:

Soak the dried beans in water over night, refreshing the water twice prior to cooking (they say it helps reduce the "enzyme effect".)

Line a tray with foil and roast the hocks in a 350F oven for 25 mins. Remove and pat dry. (I prefer roasted hocks for the taste and reduced fat content.)

In a large Dutch oven or kettle, combine the black-eyed peas, ham bone or ham hocks, and 6 cups water. Cut 1 of the onions in half and add it to the pot along with the garlic and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer gently until the beans are tender but not mushy, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Remove the ham bone or hocks, cut off the meat; dice and set aside. Drain the peas and set aside. Remove and discard the bay leaf, onion pieces, and garlic.

Add 2 1/2 cups of water to the pot and bring to a boil. Add the rice, cover, and simmer until the rice is almost tender, about 10 to 12 minutes.

Mince the remaining onion then add to the rice along with the peas, tomatoes, and their juices, red and green bell pepper, celery, jalapeno pepper, Creole seasoning, thyme, cumin, and salt. Cook until the rice is tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in the sliced green onions and the reserved diced ham. Serve with hot sauce and freshly baked cornbread.

Some recipes for Hoppin' John contain tomatoes or okra, and the swap in of okra for the beans makes it a Limpin' Susie. (LOL!)

I also enjoy including chopped mustard and kale greens; I cook them separately to use as a bed on the plate.  that seems to keep them more fresh than including them in the one pot method such as suggested at MyRecipes.com
(http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1687663)


Another great source of early American cookbooks for inspirational and traditional recipes:
http://www.foodbooks.com/facsimil.htm


And for my vegetarian friends, GroupRecipes has a classic version:
http://www.grouprecipes.com/44137/vegetarian-hoppin-john.html
Or, if you're not up to it, just buy this: