The New Year has been celebrated since ancient times, although back then it was marked in spring, at the vernal equinox. The ancient Babylonians, for example, celebrated the New Year for 11 days after the first new moon after the equinox. According to the entertaining Web site www.wilstar.com, the most common Babylonian New Year's resolution was to return borrowed farm implements.

For those of us on the "modern" Gregorian calendar (fine-tuned in the 16th century), the old year ends Dec. 31, and thus we have our New Year's Eve. Like the Babylonians, we feast and make resolutions. And though we may not carry on for 11 days, we want our celebration to contain a little theater, a bit of dramatic flair. We bring out our best: champagne, oysters and caviar. We dress up. At midnight, we kiss and we sing.

To add a bit of dramatic flair to your New Year's Eve, I can recommend no better cookbook than the new, stunningly photographed "Opera Lover's Cookbook" by Francine Segan (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2006). As acclaimed soprano Renee Fleming writes in the introduction, "No other art form is linked to food and eating to such a colossal degree." There is, for example, the grand banquet in "Don Giovanni," the tempting lunch basket and Scarpia's supper in "Tosca," the boisterous cafe in "La Boheme." Foods have been named after opera singers: Peach Melba after Nelli Melba and Chicken Tetrazzini after Luisa Tetrazzini. A Bellini cocktail (champagne and peaches) is named after the famed composer. Likewise Tournedos Rossini. Fleming even has a pastry named after her, "La Diva Renee," created by star chef Daniel Boulud.

The desserts here come from this cookbook and would be suitable for serving right around midnight, several hours after dinner has been consumed. They can all be made well in advance. Which gives you plenty of time to look for those borrowed farm implements.

FIGARO'S ORANGE CAKE

butter and flour for preparing the pan

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

4 eggs, separated

zest and juice of three Seville or navel oranges

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup whole milk, at room temperature

2 cups confectioner's sugar, plus more as needed

almond slices

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Butter and flour a 9-inch cake pan and set aside.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar together on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the egg yolks, one at time, mixing well after each addition. Add two-thirds of the orange zest and two-thirds of the juice.

Slowly stir in the flour, baking powder, salt and milk. Mix on low speed until well combined.

In another bowl, whip the egg whites. When they begin to get frothy, sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Continue beating until the egg whites hold a stiff peak.

Gently stir about one quarter of the whites into the batter to lighten it. Fold the remaining whites in until just combined - do not overmix. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert, remove from the pan and cool the cake completely.

If serving the same day: Whisk together the confectioner's sugar and remaining orange juice until smooth, adding more sugar if the glaze is too thin. Turn the cake right-side up, place it on a serving platter, and pour half of the glaze over the top, allowing it to drip down the side. Let the cake stand for 10 minutes, then top with remaining glaze. Garnish with remaining orange zest and almond slices. If making in advance, wrap the unglazed cake in plastic wrap and keep for up to a day. Then glaze and garnish as described.

Yield: 10 servings

Recipe from "Opera Lover's Cookbook" by Francine Segan (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2006)

'LA BOHEME' FRUIT-AND-NUT FANTASY

6 large dates, finely chopped

6 dried figs, finely chopped

1/4 pound candied orange peel, finely chopped

8 to 10 amaretti (hard, Italian almond macaroons), crushed

1 cup finely chopped assorted nuts, such as hazelnuts, walnuts and almonds

1/3 cup pine nuts (pignoli)

8 ounces soft torrone (Italian nougat candy) or marzipan, finely chopped

2 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped

1 ounce milk chocolate, finely chopped

10 dried apricots, finely chopped

1/2 cup dried cherries or cranberries

1/4 cup golden raisins

2 fresh pears

2 fresh apples

1 cup orange juice

1/2 to 1 cup liqueur of your preference, such as limoncella or Amaretto

In a large bowl, combine the dates, figs, candied orange and amaretti. Mix well to coat the fruit with the amaretti crumbs. This prevents the sticky dried fruit from clumping together. Gently mix in the nuts and pine nuts. Add the torrone, chocolates, apricots, cherries (or cranberries) and raisins and mix gently with your hands or a wooden spoon. If not serving immediately, cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a cool dry place; it will keep up to two weeks.

Just before serving, peel, core and dice the pears and apples and add to the reserved fruit mixture. Add the orange juice and splash on the liqueur to taste.

Yield: 12 to 14 servings

Recipe from "Opera Lover's Cookbook" by Francine Segan (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2006)

Marialisa Calta is the author of "Barbarians at the Plate: Taming and Feeding the American Family" (Perigee, 2005). For more information, go to www.marialisacalta.com.

New Year's Eve is a night for drama; bring some to your table with a dessert worthy of Mozart himself, Figaro's Orange Cake. Photo credit: Photography by Mark Thomas for "Opera Lover's Cookbook" by Francine Segan (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2006)