There's an unmistakable moment when you know you've made something really, really good. It's when your guests take that first bite, close their eyes, and nearly swoon with pleasure -- murmuring 'oh my god' or 'wow' as they slowly and reluctantly return to their senses.

As cooks, we live for those moments, don't we?

Well, this recipe is one of those. It's unashamedly chock full of sinful amounts of butter, crab, and Parmigiano Reggiano. But so what? It'll make you forget the past and look forward to a buttery, garlicky, sunshiny future.

And that, my friends, is the best way to start a new year.

(FYI: If the world does end in 2012, it's highly unlikely anyone will be saying to themselves, 'Darn, I wish I hadn't eaten so much real butter.' Just a thought...)

Growing up in an Italian household, holidays were connected with very specific foods -- and a holiday without them was unthinkable. A Christmas without lasagna, for example, would have been the gustatory equivalent of The Year Without a Santa Claus. No Easter Pie on Easter? Someone check the calendar; Easter must be next week!

On New Year's Eve in our house, the traditional 'good luck' dish for the new year was thin spaghetti dressed simply with olive oil, sauteed garlic and... yes, the fearsome, dreaded tinned anchovies. It certainly was a 'good luck' dish -- as in good luck getting us kids to eat it.

Older and wiser now, I've come to appreciate anchovies for their salty, briny intensity of flavor. I even throw together that New Year's Eve 'good luck' dish at other times of the year because it's so easy and so good. Just saute some finely chopped garlic in good olive oil, toss in some cooked angel hair or thin spaghetti, add a few tinned anchovy fillets and toss again. That's all there is to it.

Give it a try this year and it may become a New Year's Eve tradition in your house, too.

This year, I've decided that I'm going to leave those gaudy, breakable Christmas balls in the box and adorn my tree with these beautifully golden Clam and Feta Cheese Puffs instead.

This recipe makes nearly a hundred of these savory little delicacies, so I'll have plenty to decorate with and I'll be able to grab a snack or two every time I pass the tree (which will, no doubt, be quite often.)

Or maybe I'll just leave a plate of these out for Santa and then shake him down for some extra toys when he begs for the recipe. Ho ho ha!

Or I might just make these for a party. They're good for that, too...

Jambalaya. Even the word is fun. It just sounds like good times, doesn't it?

Jambalaya also means good eating. It's a classic New Orleans rice dish that's full of tasty things, all seasoned in that zesty Lousiana style.

This Holiday Shrimp and Crawfish Jambalaya features spicy sausage, shrimp, crawfish tails, and vegetables seasoned with thyme, basil, and plenty of garlic.

The recipe makes a big ol' batch and is finished in the oven so you can take it directly to a Christmas party or other holiday get-together, or just feed the masses at home.

Either way, you'll have a real fun jambalaya of a time.