New Year's Eve Dishes: The Best Recipes

Christmas, Christmas, and just like that it's over. So much preparation, and the time flew by so fast. But we're well fed, rested and happy about the time we spent together :) I hope you had a lovely and healthy Christmas too.

Now it's time to think about New Year's Eve. If you're staying home with friends, a few good dishes will help you get through the long night. I decided to put together a list of New Year's Eve dishes that may make your preparations for welcoming the New Year a little easier.

The list may still get a few more additions.

You'll definitely want a few hot dishes and New Year's Eve salads.

New Year's Eve Dishes 2011

Red barszcz (Polish beet soup), a repeat of Christmas Eve. But it's a perfect New Year's Eve dish. It's warming and easy to make.

barszcz

This time we won't need uszka (little dumplings) for the barszcz, but pierogi with cabbage and mushrooms will be just right.

cabbage with mushrooms, pierogi filling

Or pierogi with lentils, which go well with barszcz, but also without it. I like them best pan-fried.

pierogi with lentils by M. Kuroń

Potato soup is also a great fit for a New Year's Eve menu. It's not complicated to make.

creamy Parmentier potato soup

Among the soups, cream of leek soup is also perfect. It's also simple and quick to make, and on top of that it's cheap.

wonderful cream of leek soup with bacon

Potato soup with parsnip, warming, hearty, delicate and creamy.

potato soup with parsnip

If you have more time for preparations, I recommend the delicious French onion soup.

French onion soup

And for those who love culinary adventures, the Thai banana soup is absolutely in place, and it warms you up wonderfully.

banana soup with chili

Maybe you have some leftover fish from Christmas? Fish soup is excellent on a cold winter day, too. It warms you up nicely and lifts your mood.

fish soup

With a large number of guests, chili con carne is the best. You can, and really should, make it the day before.

chili con carne

Roasts and poultry are a perfect fit for a New Year's Eve dish. Especially if you're planning a hot dinner.

Jamie Oliver's chicken in milk is inexpensive and incredibly easy. Chicken prepared this way turns out perfect and tender, with crispy, browned skin.

chicken in milk

Another chicken, which is basically a whole meal. Just add a salad on the side and dinner is ready. The chorizo gives the Spanish chicken a slightly spicy and “smoky” flavor.

Spanish chicken

It's the same story with roasted chicken with potatoes and zucchini. It's another simple New Year's Eve dish that's sure to turn out well.

roasted chicken with potatoes and zucchini

Lazy (or busy) gołąbki (cabbage rolls) are an excellent solution too. The patties are shaped quickly. You get quite a lot of them, but they taste just as good reheated, and you can freeze the extras.

lazy gołąbki

Hussar's roast (pieczeń huzarska) takes a bit more time to prepare, but it's worth it.

Hussar's roast

The last meat suggestion for a New Year's Eve dish is pork tenderloin with apricots. The apricots give the tenderloin freshness and a lightly sweet flavor.

pork tenderloin with apricots

Finger food dishes are very convenient for a New Year's Eve party.

The most popular snacks are probably small sandwiches. The base for them is most often a baguette. Of course, it's best when you bake it yourself.

Baguette

Falafel can be served with lettuce, but it's also an excellent snack.

Falafel with arugula salad and tahini sauce

Eggs stuffed with salmon spread, not just for Easter. Instead of the eggs, you can also use pumpernickel.

Eggs stuffed with salmon spread

Tomato appetizer, smelling of summer vacation, but tasting great in any season.

tomato appetizer

Herring with curry sauce, served with toothpicks, will tempt everyone to keep nibbling.

Herring with curry sauce

Dates stuffed with blue cheese are a great accompaniment to wine.

Dates stuffed with blue cheese

Goat cheese appetizer with prosciutto and sage, goes well with wine, very simple and quick, and aromatic at the same time.

Goat cheese appetizer with pancetta and sage

Salmon appetizer, uncomplicated but very appetizing.

Salmon appetizer

Zucchini omelet, straight from Spain.

Zucchini omelet

Mini hot dogs - incredibly easy, cheap and quick. These little yeast rolls with a hot dog inside are perfect for nibbling or as a side with beer.

mini hot dogs

Puff pastry with apple and gorgonzola with walnuts added. Little pockets with an unusual filling, but they go great with alcohol, and even with soups.

Puff pastry with apple and gorgonzola

An even faster and easier New Year's Eve dish is breadsticks wrapped in bacon.

breadsticks wrapped in bacon

Savory muffins with bell pepper and feta, which you can make the day before.

muffins with bell pepper and feta

Cheese cookies, perfect with beer.

crisp cheese cookies

Little pretzels (precelki) are also perfect for nibbling. You can make them as plain round cookies, either sweet or salty.

Pretzels

Tasty, light and foolproof cheese balls in an herb coating and grapes in gorgonzola.

cheese balls in a green coating

grapes in gorgonzola and nuts

And always good for nibbling in between - cebulaki (savory onion snacks).

cebulaki

Spring onion skewers, which are perfect as a side with meats or simply as a snack.

Spring onion skewers

Omelet rolls with baba ghanouj and roasted bell pepper. Simple, tasty and colorful.

Omelet rolls with baba ghanouj

And for raw veggies, as a dip, yogurt sauce.

yogurt sauce for vegetables

Baba ghanouj, a dip made from roasted (or grilled) eggplant. Excellent with sandwiches (I like it best with pumpernickel), crackers and raw veggies.

Baba ghanouj eggplant dip/spread

If you're planning to serve bread or small sandwiches, various spreads will be perfect, like tuna spread, leek and cheese spread, mackerel spread or salmon rillettes.

tuna spread with olives

leek spread for bread

mackerel and egg spread

salmon rillettes

Among the salads, I suggest the salad with bulgur and roasted vegetables, the neighbor's salad and the light salmon salad.

bulgur with vegetables

Neighbor's salad

light salmon salad with mustard-dill sauce

Waldorf salad, fresh, delicate and light.

Waldorf salad

If you want to surprise your guests with an elegant dish, I suggest scallops with cauliflower puree.

scallops with cauliflower puree and caper-raisin sauce

But there can't be a party without dessert.

Baked apples are already a winter classic that kids and grown-ups alike will love.

Baked apples with raisins and almonds

You can make the leftover challah dessert ahead of time. The top of this dessert is sweet and crunchy, slightly toasted. The inside, on the other hand, is a bit like pudding in texture.

leftover challah dessert

A cake that is still a hit at my house even after years, and I think everyone likes it - rafaello. It can't be missing from a New Year's Eve menu.

rafaello

The cheese and currant cup is a dessert that's very quick to make, but you can also make it the day before and take it out of the fridge a dozen or so minutes before serving. You can use any frozen or fresh fruit.

cheese and currant cup

These little ones are impossible to resist. They're adorable and tasty. They practically jump into your hands - vanilla mini cupcakes with farmer's cheese frosting

vanilla mini cupcakes

Also small, delicate and heavenly tasty, crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside… macarons. You can make them any color you like.

macarons

Another hit that my family never gets tired of. Also simple and quick to make, and on top of that delicious: the no-bake name day cake (almond cake).

no-bake name day cake

And finally, New Year's faworki roses, donuts and faworki (crispy fried pastry ribbons, also called chrusty), which I think everyone knows.

faworki roses

donuts

almond faworki

Schmalzgebäck, tiny and very addictive doughnuts from Germany.

Bite-sized doughnuts / Schmalzgebäck

Gniazdka (nests), Spanish pączki or Viennese pączki. No matter what they're called, they're known and loved by many.

Gniazdka (nests), Viennese pączki, Spanish pączki

And to drink, punch. Seriously warming and seriously good :) I suggest getting rum, white wine, a few extras and punch cups ready, and I wish you lots of fun!

punch

Apple punch, delicious with or without alcohol. If you're planning to spend New Year's Eve outdoors, I suggest taking the punch along in a thermos, and it will warm you up perfectly.

Apple punch

I hope you'll find something for yourself among my suggestions for New Year's Eve dishes. I wish you happy preparations and a bubbly, fun-filled night :)