New Year’s food resolutions

December 30, 2021 by
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Looking back at the post I wrote in 2019 about New Year’s food-related resolutions, I am amazed at how positive it sounded. Just a few months later the world would be turned upside down by the coronavirus and lockdowns. Because 2020 was such a messed up year, I didn’t even bother with resolutions for 2021. That’s a good thing, because this year didn’t pan out much better than the previous one.

However, I have my fingers crossed that 2022 will not be a repeat of either 2020 or this year, so I will venture into the realm of resolutions once again. Since I am in the midst of a DIY kitchen renovation, I have not been cooking or baking much at all and I am eager to get back into the swing of things by next spring, assuming we don’t find any other surprises (remodeling a 100-year-old house is not for the faint-hearted). My number one goal is to organize the newly-created pantry that I stole from a room we used as an office. I have been to every home organization site I can find, looking for the best ways to utilize the space. There are so many different ideas and products that it is difficult to settle on any one system, but I have a plan that I will follow as soon as the shelves are in place. First, we need to do drywall and a floor (the photo above is not from my pantry), so I have not pressed the order button quite yet.

My secondary resolution is to make better use of the filters in the EYB Library for recipes I want to try. This year I started sitting down with new cookbooks and flagging all of the recipes as either “I want to cook this” or “Recipes to try”. I am using the former for savory items and the latter for sweets to give it a further breakdown. What are you food or cooking related resolutions for 2022?

Category: Antipasto

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14 Comments

  • tui  on  December 31, 2021

    My resolution is to actually try more of the recipes I have bookmarked as “I want to try this”.

  • Rinshin  on  December 31, 2021

    My kitchen, pantry, two closets are packed full of shelf stable food items and I think I need help and it is getting out of hand since pandemic. My husband says I can open a Japanese and international market with all the food I have on hand. My plan is to go through what I have on hand before getting enticed with “wow, what’s that?”and ordering at least 4-5 pieces.

  • valbe  on  December 31, 2021

    I plan to follow Darcie’s goal to make better use of FYB’s amazing filters – to keep track not only of the recipes that I would like to try but also the ones I have! And also to search for recipes to make, often last minute, by ingredients, course and recipe type!

  • GenieB  on  December 31, 2021

    Wish i had a kitchen big enough to have a pantry! I live in a smallish apartment with hardly any storage space. I bought metal shelving which resides in my dining alcove. It is my “pantry” for small appliances, flours and other dry goods, extra spices, and things I buy ahead online.

    I have one deep cabinet that I use for canned and bottled things. Unfortunately I have to get down on my hands and knees to get to the back of it, which is not so easy when you are 76. In another cabinet, I have packages of dried fruit, chocolate chips, pancake mix, seeds. I’d really love to have a pantry again, but most apartments just don’t feature them.

  • sayeater  on  December 31, 2021

    I’m with Rinshin. I have enough pantry items to open up my own Asian, Mediterranean, and baking stores. It’s a bit out of hand so I need to buckle down and use the ingredients I already have. Thank goodness for EYB filters!! My goal for this year is to regularly meal plan to make best use of my pantry, time, money and energy.

  • lkgrover  on  December 31, 2021

    One of my resolutions is to be less wasteful of fresh vegetables. (For example, I use half of the 2 carrots for a recipe, and forget about the rest. Unfortunately, the grocery stores near me only sell carrots in bunches, not singly. This is the case for many vegetables.)

    I am also hoping to buy new appliances in 2022 — more energy efficient, and a better use of refrigerator space.

  • FJT  on  January 1, 2022

    I usually challenge myself to cook more new recipes from my cookbooks, but I reached a total of 175 new recipes in 2021 and it might be hard to top that. I should probably resolve to buy fewer cookbooks and just stick to the ones I have, but making resolutions you know you’re not going to keep to seems a bit silly! As we’re looking ahead to another international move early next year I think my challenge for 2022 will be to go through all my cookbooks and determine if I really want all of them and get rid of any that no longer excites me – that’s going to be tough!

  • Indio32  on  January 1, 2022

    For me, COP26 was a bit of an eye-opener generally. Going forward am looking at a more planned approach to meals to reduce waste. Why buy veg etc only to have to throw it out after a week un-used. Definitely looking to add more variety especially in animal products ie less primal cuts and more offal/wild game. Being more aware of oven usage. Cooking more than 1 item at a time and stopping turning it on just to warm some croissants/pitta or re-fresh a baguette. Seen current UK gas/electricity prices! =8O
    I think to sum up 2022 it’s going to be more about mindfulness.

  • pitterpat4  on  January 1, 2022

    I was just posting on Facebook that I can’t with any type of resolution this year. Over the past few months I have been trying to cook more at home and eat a more healthy, balanced diet.

  • Pamsy  on  January 1, 2022

    FJT – 175 new recipes in 1 year is impressive!

    I know I could make better use of EYB searches and filters, so that’s my resolution for 2022.

  • mrsbloomsdale  on  January 1, 2022

    My resolution is to keep better records of what I have cooked, and on recipes that I have developed so I don’t have to start all over again the next time those seasonal ingredients come around.

  • eliza  on  January 1, 2022

    Happy new year to all at EYB. I don’t usually make any resolutions, but one thing I want to do this year is sous vide cooking. I bought a SV circulator in 2021, and I’m just starting to discover it’s many uses. I must say that so far I love it! I’ve done some desserts, confit garlic, and some meats so far, and I can’t wait to delve into the possibilities with vegetables, infusions, and more desserts to name just a few.

  • mjes  on  January 1, 2022

    My resolution is to clean out my overflowing pantry by concentrating on recipes that use ingredients that are already open … for some reason things like birch extract or pine tip syrup or barley malt or hop buds . . . just seem to have taken over the space. In the pandemic I didn’t get to spend my time browsing ethnic grocery stores but rather browsed online speciality stores … which led to many ingredients being used once or twice before I moved on.

  • darcie_b  on  January 5, 2022

    These are all fantastic resolutions, and I can totally feel your pain, mjes. I am working my way through opened containers of ingredients and successfully used four types of beans in a soup yesterday – it was liberating to get rid of four jars!

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