The Greek New Year's Eve tradition uses vasilopita, a cake or sweet bread that hides a coin.
The cake is cut and shared around New Year's Day, often at midnight or during a family gathering. The person who receives the slice containing the coin is traditionally believed to have good luck for the coming year. Families may also assign symbolic slices to religious figures, the household, or absent relatives.
Vasilopita is named after Saint Basil, whose feast day is celebrated on January 1 in the Greek Orthodox tradition. A popular legend says that Saint Basil recovered valuables from citizens and returned them by baking them into loaves, although versions of the story differ.
Recipes vary by region and household. Some versions resemble a moist cake flavored with citrus or mahleb, while others are closer to sweet bread. The coin is wrapped carefully before baking, and diners are warned to eat cautiously. Vasilopita is not the same as tsoureki, the braided bread more strongly associated with Easter.