Ring in the New Year

2011 is right around the corner!  I've always been a huge fan of the New Year- especially since I loathe and despise Christmas and the "holiday season." I'll be the first to admit I'm a bit of a Scrooge when this time of year rolls around.  However with the new year on the horizon (5 days!!!!!) I can see through the fog to the light at the end of the tunnel. Give it to me already!

Setting new goals and starting over are a great incentive to, well... start over.  If something isn't working change it.  I'm also a huge fan of changing locations and seem to have started a trend of moving once a year.  If it's not working- get out of there, and start fresh.  There is also an underlying obsession of nesting that I have, which makes me oh-so-excited to move into a new place and set up shop- all in the hopes that this new location will bring new positive energy.  I have a new job, a new diet, and I'm hoping things will start to fall naturally into place. (Please please please let my life fall into place!!! )

This year, my least favorite holiday (if you were paying attention- you would know the answer is Christmas), brought me an unexpected excitement- VEGANOMICON. That word looks incredibly daunting when written in all capitals- doesn't it? Daunting it is.

Goal: cook my way through VEGANOMICON.

Obviously I've been influenced by Julie and Julia, only one of my favorite movies in recent years- or year? How long has it been out?  Basically for those of you who haven't brushed up on your chick flick movie titles- Julie and Julia (Amy Adams and Meryl Streep- best actress ever.... MAMA MIA!- oh sorry, did I just break out into song and dance? My bad....)  a movie about a modern day New Yorker who cooks her way through the infamous Julia Child's cookbook- Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

The difference here, is that I would not be able to eat one darn thing in Julia Child's cookbook....  Beef bourguignon, calves feet, and steaming live lobsters aren't exactly my forte....

Veganomicon, obviously a vegan cookbook, will be my new obsession.

I've never been one for originality... Clearly writing a blog about cooking your way through a cookbook, was not my original idea- but its still super cool, right?  Right.....?  Meh....

Unlike in the movie- I will not be setting a date for completion, as my work schedule and minimum $ in the bank, will naturally inhibit my ability to complete this project in a timely matter. So, that being said:

Goal:  cook my way through VEGANOMICON by the end of 2011-  seems reasonable right?? Maybe I should go check to see how many recipes there are in there before I set that goal in stone.... Meh....

Now, all of that being said- I have yet to enlighten you on my cooking "skills"... or lack thereof. So what if I have to look up how to cook a potato, or the best way to cook zucchini....  Lately, I've been trying to master the art of making soup.  As I've read, soup is one of the easiest things you can make- however I've continued to fail multiple times...

Improvisation hasn't seemed to have worked in my favor in the past- so maybe following a specific recipe, with detailed directions, can help me get on track. After all, who wants to admit they're a horrible cook?