New Year’s Eve Dinner: recipes and preparation

The New Year’s Eve Dinner is one of the most important moments of the holiday season, as it rings out the old year and ushers in the new. Below is a home-made menu - a starter, a first course, a second course and a dessert - that is sure to impress your guests

New Year’s Eve Dinner: the full menu

• Chickpea and prawn pralines on a potato and leek cream
• Cuttlefish tagliatelle with cream of peas
• Potato-crusted fillet of sea bream
• Dates stuffed with Mascarpone cheese and walnuts

Chickpea and prawn pralines on a potato and leek cream: recipe and preparation

The chickpea and prawn pralines are a light starter that is quick and easy to prepare: the perfect dish to start your New Year's Eve dinner with sophistication.

Ingredients for 8

This recipe requires very few ingredients that are easy to find in the shops:

• 6 leeks.
• 400 g yellow flesh potatoes
• 1 l vegetable stock
• 400 g chickpeas, boiled
• 30 g parsley
• 2 shallots, minced
• 600 g shrimp, cleaned
• 4 egg yolks
• 300 g flour
• Extra virgin olive oil to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

1. First of all, prepare the leek and potato cream. Discard the base and the dark green part of the leeks. Rinse thoroughly and cut the leeks irregularly, then sauté them in oil.
2. Peel and dice the potatoes, then sauté them with the leeks. Cover with plenty of vegetable stock and cook for about 20 minutes. Blend to form a smooth cream.
3. Now blend the chickpeas, prawns and parsley in the kitchen aid. Add the egg yolks and minced shallots and blend again. When the texture is smooth and thick, season with salt and pepper and then start to shape the pralines, which will then be rolled in flour.
4. Heat some oil in a pan and sauté the pralines on all sides.
5. Finish cooking the pralines in the oven at 190° for about 4 minutes.
6. Pour the cream onto the serving dish and arrange the pralines on top.
7. Serve hot

Cuttlefish tagliatelle with cream of peas   

A delicate fish-based first course is the ideal continuation for a consistent New Year’s Eve menu. We recommend this all-seasons dish that is sure to go down well with your guests: cuttlefish tagliatelle with cream of peas.

Ingredients for 8

• 400 g peas
• 600 g cuttlefish
• 2 shallots
• 2 garlic bulbs
• 400 g cherry tomatoes
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt, pepper, thyme and icing sugar to taste

Preparation

1. Remove the ink sac from the cuttlefish, then wash them and cut them into thin strips lengthwise and blanch them in boiling water for about a minute.
2. In a pan, sauté the unshelled garlic in oil and add the cuttlefish. Stir fry over a high heat for about 2 minutes, then season with salt and pepper.
3. Cook the peas in boiling water for 4 minutes and then cool them in water and ice to preserve their bright green colour.
4. Mince the shallots and brown them in oil, then add the peas and cook for about 3 minutes. Season with salt, then blend and sift in a fine mesh sieve.
5. Wash and halve the cherry tomatoes. Place them on an oven tray and sprinkle with a little icing sugar, salt, pepper, thyme and oil, then cook at 110° for 2 hours.
6. Pour the cream of peas into a bowl, arrange the cuttlefish tagliatelle on top and garnish with the tomato confit, then drizzle with oil.

Potato-crusted fillet of sea bream: recipe and preparation

This main course will make for an unforgettable New Year's Eve dinner: potato-crusted fillet of sea bream. A quick and traditional way of serving sea bream.

Ingredients for 8

• 8 sea breams, medium size
• 8 potatoes
• 2 eggs
• Mustard, white wine, oil, salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Clean and fillet the sea bream, making sure to remove all the bones.
2. Peel the potatoes and cut into thin slices. Place in a pan with cold water and boil for 2-3 minutes.
3. Remove the skin from the sea bream and then brown on the belly side.
4. Mix a little white wine into the mustard and then brush over the sea bream.
5. Arrange the potato slices so that they look like scales.
6. Brush with the egg and then cook in the oven until the fish has a lovely golden colour.
7. Arrange on dishes and serve hot.

Dates stuffed with Mascarpone cheese and walnuts: recipe and preparation

A traditional Christmas recipe, based on typical seasonal fruits, that is quick and easy to prepare: dates and walnuts with Mascarpone cheese. Let’s see how to prepare 24 stuffed dates.

Ingredients

• 12 dates.
• 50 g icing sugar
• 100 g de mascarpone.
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 12 walnut kernels
• 1 tbsp rhum

Preparation

1. Begin by pouring the Mascarpone cheese and icing sugar into a bowl and mix them together.
2. Flavour with the cinnamon and rum, then mix until smooth with a whisk. Pour the mixture into a pastry bag with a star-shaped nozzle.
3. Cut the 12 dates in half, remove the pits and stuff the 24 resulting pieces using the pastry bag.
4. Place half a walnut kernel on top of the Mascarpone cream, pressing slightly so that it settles into the filling.
5. Cool the stuffed dates in the fridge for about 2 hours and serve cold.

Your New Year’s Eve menu is now complete: 4 quick and easy recipes that are sure to impress your friends and family. All that’s left to say is, enjoy your meal and have a happy new year!