Ringing in the new year with good company and ample spirits is one of our oldest holiday traditions. Being surrounded by loved ones and bubbly champagne during the first seconds of January 1 sets the stage for a joyous future. (Well, aside from the post-celebratory headaches that some of us will experience in our very near-futures.)

The start of a new year represents hope and promise, and many see it as a way to start over, to leave the worries and sad events of the previous year behind and gain a fresh perspective. People all over the world perform good luck rituals to ensure this optimistic outlook, and most revolve around copious amounts of food—the ultimate symbol of prosperity. Because 2008 was full of hardships for so many of us, it seems even more imperative to make sure that 2009 treats us all a little better. Here’s hoping that keeping these good-luck staples on our tables on New Year’s Day will bring about a successful and plentiful new year.

Greens

Eating green, leafy vegetables is a good idea year-round, but on January 1, it may bring you more than good health. Because the color and shape of certain greens is similar to money, many consume vegetables like kale, chard, and cabbage in the hopes of a wealthier new year. The color green is also often seen in many countries as epitomizing growth and abundance. Southerners in the U.S. prefer collard greens. In Denmark, a popular New Year’s dish is sweetened kale cooked with cinnamon. People in Germany eat their cabbage in sauerkraut form.

Black-Eyed Peas

Any legume serves as a symbol of good luck for the new year, but black-eyed peas are the bean of choice for people in the southern U.S. This tradition’s origins come from the Civil War days. Vicksburg, a town in Virginia, was thought to be devoid of food during the battles until the people there found the peas. The legume has been considered lucky among Southerners ever since. They eat a dish called Hoppin’ John, which is comprised of black-eyed peas simmered with ham hocks, spicy seasonings, bell peppers, and rice. It’s usually served with collard greens and a side of cornbread, which is also representative of good luck, perhaps because of its golden hue.

Pork

Pigs can be symbols of financial success and progress in life for two reasons. First, because they’re rich in fat, so they’re seen as signs of abundance. Secondly, they tend to move forward when scavenging for food, unlike birds and lobsters, both of which are considered unlucky to eat on New Year’s Day. Therefore, the pig is a frequent star at New Year’s feasts. Those in Cuba, Spain, and Hungary roast their pigs and pig’s feet are a popular side dish in Sweden. In Germany, they take sausage form and collards in the U.S. just aren’t the same without some ham hocks thrown in, although eating hog jowls is also believed to ensure good health.

Lentils

Lentils look like tiny coins, and they expand while cooking, so many believe they represent economic prosperity in the new year. People in Germany must really want to cover their luck bases—they eat lentils, sauerkraut, and pork sausages together on New Year’s Day. That’s a good luck triple bonus! Not to be outdone, those in Italy eat sausage with lentils just after the stroke of midnight. Brazilians start their year with lentils and rice or lentil stew.

Noodles

The longer the noodle, the longer the life—so goes the belief in Japan, where they eat soba (buckwheat) noodles in soup during their New Year’s parties to ensure a healthy lifespan. The meal is called toshikoshi, which translates to “year-bridging.” However, breaking the noodles while eating them is bad luck, so if you’re making them for your celebration, be sure to slurp them up instead of biting off smaller pieces.

Fresh Fruit

Here in the U.S., we usually toast the new year with cocktails and party poppers. In countries like Spain, Portugal, Mexico, and Peru, citizens eat twelve grapes when the clock strikes twelve instead (twelve representing the months in the new year). This act is rooted in an overwhelmingly large grape harvest in Spain during the early 1900s—harvesters didn’t want the grapes to rot, so they came up with an enticing reason for citizens to consume them. They came up with the notion that the taste of the grape—sweet or bitter—will predict what lies ahead for each month. Not all popular New Year’s fruits foretell the future, though. Those who celebrate Chinese New Year feast on tangerines and oranges, and the Turkish favor pomegranates as symbols of riches.

Fish

Because of the way their silvery scales resemble jewelry, fish are thought to represent good fortune. In some parts of China and Europe, they’re also eaten to promote fertility. Pickled herring is on the New Year’s Day menu in Poland and boiled cod is traditional in Denmark. The Japanese eat herring roe (fish eggs) and shrimp, Italians consume dried and salted cod (called baccalà) and in some parts of Germany, people not only eat carp on New Year’s, but they also walk around with fish scales in their pockets or wallets for extra good luck.

Circular Desserts

Many people believe that foods shaped like rings or that are round in form embody the year being properly completed. The Dutch and Hungarians eat donuts; households in Italy and Holland serve balls of fried dough sweetened with sugar and honey on New Year’s Eve. Called ollie bollen in Holland, they are stuffed with sweets like raisins and fruit. Dutch folklore tells of nasty beings that would cut people’s stomachs open during the winter, and if the stomachs contained the special pastries, they were immune to the sword. Sometimes the desserts also have surprises, such as coins or small trinkets, baked on the inside that bring good luck to the person who finds them. Mexican and Greek New Year’s traditions both involve ring-shaped cakes with goodies hidden inside.

Since most New Year’s revelries revolve around consuming lots of delicious food and drink, it makes sense to include dishes that are thought to bring good luck, especially when they are as mouth-watering as ollie bollen or hot lentil soup. These tasty good luck charms are definitely finding a way to my table come New Year’s Eve … although I think I may take a chance and leave the hog jowls off the menu. There’s only so much prosperity my stomach can handle.

和志趣相投的伙伴和充足的精神迎來了新年，這是我們最古老的傳統之一。在新的一年的第一天，被愛和充滿泡沫的香檳酒包圍著的人們，高興的為未來準備著。（那么，除一些讓我們為慶祝而煩惱的東西外，我們當中也會體驗到在未來需要的是什么）新的一年的開始代表著希望和承諾，并且許多人會把它作為新的開始，把過去的憂傷和擔心都留在過往，給自己一個新的起點。

全世界的人都遵循著有好運氣的儀式來體現自己樂觀的人生觀，絕大部分人都會圍繞豐富美味的食物旋轉，這是繁榮興旺的最終標志。因為2008年。對于大部分人來說充滿艱難的，這似乎就更加需要去肯定在2009年，能帶給我們好一點的生活。希望在新的一年上天能繼續給我們帶來好運和豐足的食物。

綠色蔬菜

吃綠色葉菜類的蔬菜是全年中最好的選擇，而在今年1月1日，它可能讓你更健康。因為某些綠色的蔬菜的顏色和形狀都很有價值，許多消費蔬菜如羽衣甘藍，菜，白菜，都希望能在新的一年更有價值。綠色的顏色也常常作為許多國家的物質增長和豐富的資源的縮影。美國的南方人喜歡羽衣甘藍。在丹麥，一個很流行的新年食物就是甜甘藍菜煮肉桂。而德國人就喜歡吃酸制的大白菜。

黑眼豆豆

任何豆類都作為象征新的一年的好運氣，但黑眼豆豆就是美國南部人民的特別的選擇。這一傳統的起源來自內戰。維克斯堡，在弗吉尼亞州的一個小鎮，在戰爭期間它被認為是缺乏食物的地方，直到那里的人民發現豌豆。豆莢一直被南方人視為幸運的食物。他們吃了一碟叫Hoppin 'John的食物，這是由黑眼豆豆，火腿 ，辛辣的調味料，甜椒，和大米一起煮的。通常它都和羽衣甘藍和玉米一起搭配，這也代表好運氣，也許是因為它的金色色調。

豬肉

豬有兩個原因讓它可象征人生的成功和進步。首先，因為他們有豐富的脂肪，所以他們看起來有飽滿的形象。其次，他們往往在消化食物的同時會向前前行，不像鳥類和龍蝦，這兩個被認為在新的一年是不吉利的食物。因此，豬肉經常成為新的一年的食物幸運星。在古巴，西班牙和匈牙利喜歡烤豬及豬的腳，這也是瑞典的一種廣受歡迎的小菜。在德國，他們采取的形式和羽衣香腸和美國不相同的只是有沒有放入一些火腿，而吃豬肉在那里也是被認為是可以讓身體健康的。

扁豆

扁豆看起來像小硬幣，他們擴大了烹飪的層面，所以許多人認為他們能代表新的一年的經濟繁榮。德國人很想要掩飾他們運氣，他們在新的一年會吃小扁豆，酸菜，豬肉和香腸。這是一個可以增加三倍運氣的獎勵！它并沒有被淹沒，在意大利人們在吹著中風的午夜吃香腸夾雜著扁豆的食物。巴西人也在新的一年里開始扁豆和大米或扁豆燉肉好食材！

面條

面經歷的時間越長就有多長的生命，毋庸置疑，在日本，在新年里他們吃蕎麥（蕎麥）湯面，以確保有一個健康的壽命。而吃飯被稱為toshikoshi ，它轉化為“今年彌合。 ”然而，為了打破吃面條會讓他們帶來壞運氣，因此，如果您要用面來慶祝你的成功，那么一定要完整的把它吃完而不能把它咬斷！

新鮮水果

這在美國中,我們通常為新年有雞尾酒的和黨發出砰的響聲的人祝酒.在國家，如西班牙，葡萄牙，墨西哥和秘魯，當鐘響了十二下的時候,公民吃十二顆葡萄代表在新年中十二個月（ 12個代表在新的一年）。在西班牙20世紀初這種行為的根源是一個防止大片的葡萄在收獲的時候人們不想葡萄腐爛，所以他們想出了一個誘人的辦法來讓人們食用。他們提出了這一想法是把葡萄的味道是甜或苦來預測今后每個月的運氣。并非所有的出名的水果都能預言未來，但在中國慶祝農歷新年節日的水果是柑橘和橙子，而土耳其贊成石榴作為象征財富。

魚

由于它銀色的魚鱗類似于珠寶，魚被認為是代表好運。在我國一些地區和歐洲，他們也會吃魚以促進生育能力。腌鯡魚是波蘭人在元旦的菜單和煮鱈魚是一種傳統的丹麥食物。日本吃鯡魚子（魚卵）和蝦，意大利和德國的一些地方用鹽干鱈魚（稱為baccalà ），人們不僅吃鯉魚過新年，但他們也把魚鱗裝入口袋里或錢包來增加額外的好運氣。

圓形甜品

許多人認為，食品的形狀像戒指，或者是圓的形式可以體現今年可以順利結束。荷蘭和匈牙利吃甜甜圈;意大利和荷蘭的家庭在除夕制作球油條甜糖和蜂蜜。奧利博倫在荷蘭，他們是裝滿糖果如葡萄干和水果。荷蘭民俗講述了在冬天，骯臟的東西會讓人的肚子切開，如果肚子里有特別糕點，這可以讓他們幸免于劍。有時，甜品也有驚喜，如硬幣或小飾物在烤的那部分里面，好運氣的人就會發現它們。墨西哥和希臘新年的傳統都涉及環形蛋糕的隱藏著好運的東西。

由于大多數新年狂歡都消耗大量的美味食品和飲料，它被賦予意義，包括菜肴被認為是帶來好運，尤其是當他們成為令人垂涎三尺的ollie bollen 或熱扁豆湯。這些美味的食物在這個除夕夜里讓我們在餐桌上找到另一種風味...雖然我想我可能需要一個機會，讓菜單上沒有豬肉。而這只能是一個很大的胃才能容納那美味佳肴！