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New Year's Day dinner planner

A lucky Southern-style supper: pork, Hoppin' John, collard greens and cornbread, and a lemon cake.

8 people · Friday, January 1 · served at 2:00 pm · start cooking at 11:32 am on the day (plus the day before)

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Everything fits: 1 oven and 4 burners are enough for this plan.

Cooking timeline

Worked back from serving time using each recipe's own steps and timers. Step links open the recipe at that step.

Days ahead: your make-ahead plan

Dishes ticked "Make it ahead" go on the day before, and up to 3 days before when a day already holds about 3 hours of work and the dish keeps (its own storage note says how long).

  1. The day before: Thursday, December 31

  2. On the day: Friday, January 1

Could also be made ahead: Collard Greens (up to 2 days), Cornbread (up to 2 days). Tick "Make it ahead" to move it.

What the recipes say you can do ahead

Make-ahead notes from the recipes

Up to 2 days ahead (from Wed, Dec 30)

  • Collard Greens: Collards taste even better the next day. Make them up to 2 days ahead, cool and refrigerate in their broth, then reheat covered over medium-low heat until steaming.

A day ahead (Thu, Dec 31)

  • Pork Loin Roast: Rub the paste on, cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Let the roast sit out 30 minutes before roasting.
  • Pound Cake: Freeze the unglazed cake, wrapped, up to 2 months. Thaw, then glaze.

The day before: Thursday, December 31

  1. Pound CakeHeat the oven to 325°F
  2. Pound CakePrep: steps 3–6, about 12 min
  3. Pound CakeBake at 325°F, 1 hr 15 min (step 7)
  4. Pound CakeCool, 1 hr 30 min (step 9)
  5. Pound CakeGlaze sets, 15 min (step 11)

Hour by hour

  1. CornbreadHeat the oven to 425°F
  2. Collard GreensPrep: steps 1–2, about 9 min
  3. CornbreadHeat skillet at 425°F, 10 min (step 1)
  4. Collard GreensSoften onion, 6 min (step 3)
  5. CornbreadStovetop: step 4, about 3 min
  6. Collard GreensGarlic, 1 min (step 4)
  7. Collard GreensSimmer hock, 40 min (step 5)
  8. CornbreadBake at 425°F, 20 min (step 7)
  9. Pork Loin RoastHeat the oven to 375°F
  10. Pork Loin RoastPrep: steps 2–4, about 12 min
  11. CornbreadReady 1 hr 30 min early: it waits happily at room temperature
  12. Pork Loin RoastRoast at 375°F, 1 hr 5 min (step 5)
  13. Collard GreensWilt greens, 5 min (step 6)
  14. Collard GreensSimmer greens, 1 hr (step 7)
  15. Hoppin' JohnCrisp bacon, 7 min (step 1)
  16. Hoppin' JohnCook vegetables, 6 min (step 2)
  17. Hoppin' JohnGarlic, 1 min (step 3)
  18. Hoppin' JohnToast rice, 1 min (step 4)
  19. Hoppin' JohnStovetop: step 5, about 12 min
  20. Hoppin' JohnSimmer covered, 21 min (step 6)
  21. Collard GreensPrep: steps 8–10, about 12 min
  22. Hoppin' JohnPrep: step 8, about 9 min
  23. Pork Loin RoastPrep: step 7, about 4 min
  24. EveryoneDinner is served
  25. EveryoneLeftovers in the fridge by now (2-hour rule)

How much to make for 8 people

Change "People" above and every dish, batch and the shopping list follow. Every side and bread is made for everyone.

DishServingsBatchesMakesSpare
Pork Loin RoastMain8180
Hoppin' JohnSide81½91
Collard GreensSide8180
CornbreadBread81102
Pound CakeDessert81168

Oven schedule and stovetop

One row per dish, from its own temperatures and times. An oven holds 2 racks; dishes within 25°F can share it (the plan says which temperature to keep), anything else that overlaps is flagged.

The oven on the day

11 am12 pm1 pm2 pm Cornbread425°FPork Loin Roast375°F
The oven on the day
WhenDishOvenRacksStatus
11:32 am–12:25 pmCornbread425°F1 of 2Fits
12:26 pm–1:46 pmPork Loin Roast375°F2 of 2Fits

Busiest stovetop moment: 2 burners at 11:58 am (you have 4).

Food safety

  • Pork Loin Roast: 145°F in the thickest part.
  • Keep hot food at 140°F or hotter and cold food at 40°F or colder; food shouldn't sit out more than 2 hours.
  • Reheat leftovers to 165°F. Most leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge.

Safe temperatures follow the USDA safe minimum internal temperature chart. Check with an instant-read thermometer.

Black-eyed peas for coins, greens for money and cornbread for gold, as many Southern families eat on New Year's Day.

Shopping list

36 items, merged across the menu, scaled to your headcount and rounded up.

Produce

  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast, One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day, Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day

Dairy and eggs

  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread
  • Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread, Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread, Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake

Meat and seafood

  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast
  • Southern-Style Collard Greens

Pantry

  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread, Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread, Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast, Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day, Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast
  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread, Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day, Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
  • Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread

Spices

  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day
  • Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake
Already have it? (4)
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast, One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day, Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast, One-Pot Hoppin' John for New Year's Day, Crispy-Edged Cast-Iron Skillet Cornbread, Lemon Cream Cheese Bundt Pound Cake, Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • Garlic Mustard Herb Pork Loin Roast, Southern-Style Collard Greens
  • Southern-Style Collard Greens
How the plan is worked out
  • Mains and desserts are shared: two pies for 8 people means each pie serves about half. Every side and bread serves everyone, so expect leftovers.
  • Batches round up (whole batches for baked things). A big roast is one piece scaled by weight; a whole turkey's roasting time follows USDA's timetable for its weight.
  • An oven holds 2 racks: a roasting pan fills it, sheet pans take a rack each and baking dishes go two to a rack. Dishes within 25°F of each other can share an oven.
  • Hot sides finish within 30 minutes of dinner (longer when the recipe says it keeps warm); breads, desserts and cold dishes can finish any time that day. When a dish doesn't fit near dinner and its recipe says how to reheat it, it's cooked earlier and reheated.
  • Untimed steps share the recipe's prep time; ovens get 15 minutes to heat. Real kitchens vary, so check doneness as each recipe says.