I’ve never been a person who has made resolutions. I don’t know if it’s never appealed to me or I thought I never needed them or perhaps it just never occurred to me. This year, inspired by a friend who made a list of (and accomplished all) “13 things to do in 2013,” I decided to make my own resolutions of a sort. I say of a sort because these aren’t the “go to the gym” every day kinds of wishes. Nope.
I realize that as it’s now already mid-January that the luster of making resolutions has passed for many. Some people who’ve made resolutions have almost certainly failed by now. It’s been thirteen days after all. Me? I’m not yet a failure because I haven’t started. Therefore, I’m a success by technicality! Yes!
The list is pretty short which hopefully means very do-able. But read on, as there’s one item I’d LOVE some help with!
1. Write more
I’ve already written twice as many posts as there were in the last three months of 2013 (because there were none and this is my second post in January) so I’m already feeling pretty good there.
While something more specific and measurable (e.g. finish writing the cookbook) might seem more prone to succeed, instead of making big goals and being incredibly disappointed when I fail I’ve decided to embrace tiny accomplishments. I will write more. It’s not important what I write or even the exact quantity; what matters is that there is more.
2. Figure out what I’m allergic to
I hate the idea of food allergies or sensitivities, as they seem to be en vogue or something invented so people have something to complain about/make them seem more interesting/give them an excuse to embrace their inner pain-in-the-ass. The only trouble is that something I’m eating is making me feel a lot of gross a lot of the time. So, crap, I’ve become one of “those” people. (Except that now, I feel for some of those people, the ones who really can’t eat everything, and I’m sorry for being a judgmental jerk.)
I’ve tried giving up dairy and red wine before but I’ve never really stuck with something for long enough to figure out what the culprit is. But I’m going to actually figure it out this year. Which—sob!—means cutting out a bunch of foods and slowly figuring out which one literally hates my guts.
3. Cook with one new ingredient each month
This is where YOU come in! I’d like to branch out and use some new and unusual ingredients in my cooking this year. Here’s what I’ve come up with to try so far:
- Rabbit
- Coconut oil
- Duck
- Lychee
- Jicama or radish*
- Cactus (leaves or fruit, any part will do)
As you can see, most of these aren’t too crazy but they are outside the realm of what a normal home cook uses.
What ingredients am I missing? Help me add to the list!
Have a great recipe for one of these ingredients? Sharing IS caring!
*Yeah yeah, I know this one is broad but it may turn into separate items if we don’t come up with some additions to round out the list.
