well, i don’t know about you, but i had a blast ringing in the new year.  new year’s celebration is one of my favorite holidays, and last night was just what i wanted.  kyle, kari, nathan, alison, brandon, larissa, and i had a killer dinner at rosebud in morningside.  i mean, doesn’t crawfish risotto sound divine?  after several drinks and delicious meals, we headed back to buckhead to drink champagne, eat cheetos, and light sparklers in our pajamas.  it may not have been a black tie affair, but who cares?  it’s not about what other folks think; it’s about doing what makes you happy.

in a renewed spirit of “chase after your dreams” and “live the life you’ve imagined,” i wish 2015 and everyone experiencing it the best of luck.  spend your days doing what you want, for anything else is just a waste of time.

so, in the name of new year’s tradition, i give you my all-time favorite black eyed pea dip recipe.  no new year is complete without this classic dish, and if you haven’t had any yet, you still have a few hours!  now, if you’re a good andrich woman, you will do two things when making this recipe.  first, you will make it a few days in advance of january 1st so that it has time to chill and meld in the refrigerator.  second, you will also prepare it far ahead enough so that the grocery store doesn’t run out of regular cans of black eyed peas, because then you have to use black eyed peas with snaps, and then you’ll be standing with the bowl over the trash can, picking out each green bean because you waited until the last minute.

this recipe includes lots of chopping, so get out your best knife and cutting board and get to it!

ingredients

2 15.8-ounce cans of black eyed peas

2 green bell peppers

1 yellow onion

3.5 ounces diced pimentos

1 clove garlic, minced

1 jalapeno

1 packet of good seasons italian dressing mix

salt & pepper

tobasco sauce

directions

prepare good seasons italian dressing mix according to packet instructions.

spend about ten minutes trying to open the pimento jar, because for whatever reason it was vacuum-sealed on there like the zombie apocalypse was upon us.  i don’t think that statement really makes sense, but it seemed like the right thing to type at the time.  moving on!

dice up that onion.

chop up the bell peppers and jalapeno.

stand back and admire all your sick chopping skills.

take a sip of your salted caramel mocha and admire that the new nail polish your mom put in your stocking exactly matches the shade of the starbucks logo.  thanks, mom!

toss everything in a bowl, adding salt, pepper, and tobasco to taste.  cover and chill overnight in the refrigerator and then enjoy with fritos.