Culinary Resolutions for 2009

Cookography put out a call to fellow food bloggers for their Culinary Resolutions for 2009. Me being a band wagon jumper, I sat down and contemplated what I would like to accomplish in 2009 (culinary wise that is…we won’t get into my hippie notion of “finding my center”). So without further ado, I present to you Shaw Girl’s Culinary Resolutions for 2009:

1. Use more whole grains in my baking/cooking. Remember Andrea Beaman from Top Chef? Well she has a book filled with healthy recipes and tips on eating seasonally called The Whole Truth: Eating and Recipe Guide. I bought it a few years back and actually followed it religiously for a while. But then I fell off the wagon…and into a vat of lovely bacon. I’ve not been the same since. I can attest to the difference it makes incorporating more whole grains into one’s diet and I really need to get back to that.
2. Prepare better for the lean produce months of Winter. During the Spring and Summer I was awash in fresh fruits, veggies and herbs. But unlike the very smart squirrel outside my window, I didn’t store any of it for the Winter’s endless time of tubers. So this Spring and Summer, I will plan ahead and freeze berries for the Winter, make and freeze various pestos and study up on other ways to freeze the bounties of Spring and Summer.
3. Better organize my kitchen. At one point I had a very organized kitchen…then I moved into a basement apartment. My lack of space should have made me more organized, but it’s done the exact opposite. Well no more! This year I vow to organize my seemingly endless amounts of kitchen gadgets and supplies to make me a more efficient cook/baker.
4. Try to use more natural light when photographing my creations. I admit that I cook and bake whenever the mood strikes me, not in accordance to natural light availability. Because of this, I am often frustrated with the glossy look to my photos. Custom white balance and a dSLR can only do so much when fighting the tungsten present in most flourescent light. My best photographs are ones in which I shot in natural light. With that in mind, I am going to try to shoot more during the few snippets of good light available to me…in my basement apartment.
5. Start a new blog series. I answer questions all the time about cooking and baking but never think about addressing them on my blog. I have been meaning to open up my blog to questions from readers with various culinary conundrums but I’ve also been meaning to clear off the top shelf in my closet. Sure I’m good for laughs and food porn, but I would also love to help share my love of cooking with others. With that in mind, if you have any culinary questions, email me at adventuresinshaw@gmail.com and I will be more than happy to address them (or at least attempt to address them..or ask more experienced people to guest blog and answer them for you).
6. FINALLY get a copy of Mark Bittman’s “How to Cook Everything”. I have frequently used recipes from this cookbook but don’t actually own it. So for 2009, I’m going to get a copy and cook something from it once a month. Even more daring? I will try to select recipes I’ve never made before or (wait for it) even eaten! This is daring and a little risky but I am going to give it a go!

So there…I’ve put them in the public domain for all to see in hopes that I will actually follow them. I’ve already started using more whole grains (will be sharing a fantastic recipe for granola this week) and I’m reading up on properly freezing pestos and sauces. That’s progress, right?

For more culinary resolutions, check out Pete Bakes, The Bitten Word or Joy the Baker!