Tokens of Luck and Pancetta

Preparing for the New Year didn't just consist of stocking my fridge with plenty of bubbly and making resolutions that I'll never keep. It also included corn.

Corn.

And cornmeal.

A few other sundry ingredients too.

All purchased in the name of baking cornbread - a sweet, golden treat which, if Southern tradition is to be believed, promotes good luck and good fortune in the year to come.

2006 was a pretty darn good year. I'm hoping for more of the same in 2007. So, I hedged my bets and baked not one, but two fragrant, yellow loaves to help greet the new year. (Pictured above.)

And, if that wasn't enough, my New Year's celebratory dinner wasn't half-bad either. Below, please find a bowl of the evening's lip-smacking Fettucine with Pancetta and Parsnips.

Nothing traditional about it. But, who the heck cares? All agreed that it was mighty good. Downright tasty!

Good taste. Now, that's something to aim for in 2007 - to be a bonafide "taste maker."

Anna Wintour can eat her heart out. (Especially if she sautes it with some pancetta!)