Do You Have Any New Year's Cooking Resolutions?

This lady makes whisking look like a blast!
This lady makes whisking look like a blast!

I hate to call them resolutions, really, since something as pleasurable as cooking shouldn't have to sound so joyless. How about intended cooking adventures or kitchen wishes? A little wordy, but it'll do.

No matter what we call them, everything in our lives right now--especially how we're choosing to nourish our bodies with what we eat--has the clean slate of a fresh beginning. And with so many of us thinking about what we want to be eating, it only follows to think about what we want to be cooking.

My cooking intention this year is about enjoying myself more in the kitchen. I've got the weeknight race-to-the-finish-line recipes in acceptable working order (well, some of the time). There are pork chops and quick pastas and beans and rice for nights like that. But I want to take back my kitchen on the weekends. Instead of high-tailing it out of there for brunch and dinner--a bad, expensive habit I've gotten into--I see myself walking in there Saturday morning with a grocery list and a head of ideas. I'll give myself the time to plot out a meal, go to the store, and make something that feels a bit more special than our weeknight fare. Fried chicken, maybe, or cassoulet, or eggplant lasagna. I want to bake, and bring friends muffins they can take with them to work on Monday and maybe even feel a little happier for it. All those over-an-hour recipes that I eschew on the weeknights? Sign me up.

Will this happen every weekend? Not unless I morph into some domestic superhero overnight. There are errands and emergencies and invites that will inevitably pop up. Sometimes, the brunch burger at my local joint will be calling my name. And that's OK. But sitting here with the year and kitchen looking shiny and new (well, not the kitchen--the holiday recycling is still overflowing), almost anything seems possible.

What about you? What are your cooking wishes in the new year? Do you want to try a new recipe every week? Actually use those many, many cookbooks on the shelf? Have people over for dinner more? Try an ingredient you've never used, like red rice or parsnips? Tell us: what are you looking forward to cooking in the new year?