New Year's Eve Treats

New Year's Eve! Even if you are just celebrating in your house, here are a few ideas of something special to do. Oh yes, and here's a cute picture of two boys celebrating Kwanzaa. Today is Day 6,  Kuumba, or Creativity, by the way. Perfect for trying a new recipe.

My 1959 Foodarama Party book suggests a futuristic theme for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.  First you are supposed to put blue Christmas tree lights on your CEILING - I kid you not. Then a "ceiling galaxy of suspended aluminum-foil stars, rocket ships in flight and yellow balloon planets."

But wait - there's more: 

Set a pretty table in the living room for the holiday eggnog.  Try a silver bowl centerpiece with silver or blue ornaments.  Add tall white candles to complement the centerpiece.  String picture wire overhead, suspend a toy spaceship, tiny silver stars and yellow planets by threads of varying lengths and have a few 'Martians' descending from the spaceship.  Make the Martians of round ornaments with painted-on features and taped-on pipe cleaner arms and legs (as many as you think necessary) (Yep, it really gives that hint.).

Wow. That is just crazy. Here's the promised photo of what I brought to Christmas. I had posted a photo of a tree covered in shrimp from a holiday cookbook, but didn't want to serve it. So my husband and I came up with this. It was a big hit - and very easy to do. I did rope my oldest niece into helping me put up all the strawberries and grapes. Cover a foam cone with foil.  Pin on some holiday ribbon or little bells , then use toothpicks to put up fruit.

Tomorrow begins a New Year. Just about all my resolutions happened this year, so I'm a little afraid. In 2011 I want to relax more and keep on with healthy changes I'm making in several areas. That does include of course more vintage items in my life. I'm always afraid I'll wake up thinking it's 1950 in my house, but it's worth the risk.

Tomorrow also begins Warm Up With Flaming Foods Month, to celebrate Molly MacRae's new book Lawn Order. We have lined up SO many awesome mystery writers to guest blog and Molly is going to put some recurring fiction up here as well. Plenty of weird recipes are coming, don't worry...

Happy New Year!