What wonderful things the new year brings!

With the new year comes new resolutions, but I always kick mine off with a Southern tradition: Hoppin' John and greens.

As Southern lore goes, we eat greens to bring prosperity and black-eyed peas for luck in the coming year; add some cornbread to bring a little extra gold into your life.

Anywho, that is what we do here in the South, but I came up with a twist on the classic with MadJon's Hoppin' John Cajun style, which adds a little more hop into John's step.

For the turnip greens, I added in a touch of oyster sauce to bring out the earthy flavors.

Champagne is another tradition, and I just love the tartness of cranberries with a dry champagne.

Try the recipe for pork loin soaked in brandy and garlic cloves, and stuffed with a brandy cranberry sauce. It is delicious. Serve bubbly with the apple cranberry walnut crumble pie for dessert just before the clock strikes midnight and bring in the New Year with style!

I do wish you a very happy, healthy and prosperous 2012. Happy Cooking, y'all.

"Cooking with Madjon and Friends" airs daily on ASTV, Atlantic Broadband channel 95 at 5:30 a.m., 2 p.m. and 5:30 p.m., and new episodes premiere on Mondays at 5:30 p.m.

For more of Hutson's recipes, visit aikenstandard.com/cooking.

She can be reached at madjon51@aol.com, or visit her blog and find her on Facebook, CookingWithMadJon.

Find printable versions of these recipes in the Dec. 30, 2011 E-edition of the Aiken Standard. Current print subscribers have free access to the E-edition, but must register to access. E-editions are available by the week, month, and year for any non-print subscribers. Find more information on the E-edition page.

MadJon's stuffed pork loin with cranberry apple sauce

TOTAL TIME: 1 Hour 55 Minutes

PREP TIME: 30 Minutes

COOK TIME: 1 Hour 55 Minutes

YIELD: 10-12 servings

Ingredients

5 lbs. Pork Loin, boneless

1/2 lb. bacon

5 Cloves Garlic

1/2 cup Brandy

2 cans Whole Cranberry Sauce

1/2 cup Sugar

Orange zest of 2 oranges

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. garlic powder

Salt and pepper, to taste

Apples, diced

Directions

1. Peel garlic, slice in half. Insert halves into pork loin by slicing the sides of the meat about 1 inch in. Salt and pepper meat, then place in a gallon sized zip-loc bag. Pour 1/4 cup Brandy onto the meat and marinate in the fridge over night.

2. Preheat oven to 350º F. Slice pork on the side like a butterfly, and salt and pepper again. Dust with onion and garlic powders.

3. Mix together cranberry sauce, diced apples, sugar and brandy. Pour some of the sauce on the butterflied pork and fold. Set remaining sauce aside. Wrap bacon slices around the pork, and place in a shallow roasting pan. Pour the remaining cranberry mixture over the meat.

4. Roast for 1 hour and 55 minutes or until the center reaches 150º. Cook to 145º if medium cooked pork is preferred. Remove from oven and let rest for 20 minutes before slicing.

MadJon's Cajun Hoppin' John

TOTAL TIME: 1 hour

PREP TIME: 20 minutes

COOK TIME: 1 hour

SERVINGS: 12-14

Ingredients

5 cans black-eyed peas

1 sliced ham, diced

1 onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

2 jalapeños, seeded and diced

1 serrano pepper, seeded and diced

4 cloves garlic

1/2 stick butter, or 4 Tbsp.

15 oz. chicken broth

2 Tbsp. lime juice

2 tsp. cumin

1 Tbsp. dried cilantro

1 tsp. cajun seasoning

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. onion powder

3 Tbsp. olive oil

2 cups rice

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Rinse rice and cook according to instructions.

2. Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add the black-eyed peas, chicken broth and diced ham. In a separate pan, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and saute until clear, about 5-7 minutes. Add garlic and diced peppers and cook until tender.

3. Add onions and pepper mixture to the black-eyed peas. Then add cumin, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders, cilantro, cajun seasonings and lime juice. Simmer on low heat. Add the cooked rice and let it cook until it thickens.

Sauteed Turnip Greens

TOTAL TIME: 45 Minutes

PREP TIME: 20 Minutes

COOK TIME: 15-20 Minutes

YIELD: 8 servings

Ingredients

2 bunches fresh Turnip Greens, cleaned

1 onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and pepper, to taste

3 Tbsp. oyster sauce

1/2 cup almonds

3 slices bacon

1/4 cup sugar

Directions

1. Cook the bacon in a pan until crisp.

2. Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat and add diced onions. Cook onions for 5-7 minutes until almost clear, then add garlic. Continue sauteing for 2 more minutes. Do not overcook garlic as it may burn.

3. Add turnips and sugar. Stir until tender. Add oyster sauce and cook for a minute more.

4. Remove from heat. Serve with almonds and bacon crumbled on top.

Banana Nut Muffins

TOTAL TIME: 1 Hour

PREP TIME: 20 Minutes

COOK TIME: 30 minutes

YIELD: 24

Ingredients:

3/4 cups margarine

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 medium bananas, mashed

2 eggs, beaten

2 tsp. vanilla

2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup buttermilk

3/4 cups walnuts or pecans, chopped

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Topping:

1/2 cup sugar

1 Tbsp. butter, melted

1/2 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325º. Line a muffin pan with paper holders and spray with non-stick spray.

2. Cream butter and sugar throughly. Add the mashed bananas and blend with eggs and vanilla.

3. In a separate bowl, sift flour, salt, soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Slowly add the flour mixture to banana mixture and mix well. Add buttermilk to the mixture and beat until all is smooth.

4. Use a ice cream scoop to scoop the mixture into the muffin pan. Mix the topping ingredients and top the muffins.

5. Bake for 30 minutes or until the insides are done. Check by poking with a fork or toothpick and make sure that no batter sticks to it.

Apple Cranberry Walnut Oatmeal Crumble Pie

TOTAL TIME: 1 Hour 45 Minutes

PREP TIME: 30 Minutes

COOK TIME: 1 Hour

YIELD: 10 servings

Ingredients

2 pkgs Instant Oatmeal (Brown Sugar flavored)

3 Tbsp sugar

2 Tbsp butter

5 cups apples

1 tsp. salt

3 Tbsp butter

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 Tbsp. orange juice

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. pie spice

4 Tbsp. flour

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Directions

1. Prepare the pie crust. Blend 2 cups flour, 1 1/2 cups softened butter, 1 tsp. salt and 5-6 Tbsp iced water. You may add 2 Tbsp. of sugar to the mix. Roll into a ball and place in the cooler for 2 hours. After removing from the cold, slice the ball in half. Flour a flat surface and roll one half of the dough out to create a pie crust. Either freeze the second portion or roll it out for a second pie.

2. Preheat the oven to 425º. Melt 2 Tbsp butter and mix with oatmeal packages. Add dried cranberries and walnuts, then set aside

3. Wash apples, peel and slice them. Add lemon juice, salt, sugar, melted butter, orange juice, vanilla and pie slice until well blended. Then add flour and mix well.

4. Press pie crust into pie pan. Layer the sliced apples in the pie. Top with oatmeal mixture. Bake for 10 minutes at 425º. Reduce heat to 325º and continue to bake for 45 more minutes. Rotate pie half way through bake time to guarantee even baking.