Fix-It and Forget-It

Rebecca is my daughter. She’s a very good cook. While I couldn’t get her to chop an onion when she was growing up, she’s become a cook who tries everything now—successfully. She also is the Manager of The Good Cooking Store in our little Lancaster County town of Intercourse, PA. She taught Language Arts to middle-schoolers for 7 years. Now we benefit from all of her energy and good ideas. Don’t miss what she has to say!

I have never written regular New Years' resolutions. The standard ones often seem unattainable. However, a new year does bring a fresh start and new opportunity. So, with that, here are my goals for 2012.

1. Make one new recipe a month. I enjoy being adventurous in the kitchen, but I do get stuck in a rut sometimes. I find that there is almost an art to selecting a recipe.

First, I need to create time to scour all of the many resources available for new recipes. I use the following criteria: a brief ingredient list, ingredients that I can find in my area without too much work, a short list of instructions, and I should be able to accomplish it in less than hour, preferably more like half an hour. Oh, and it should look incredibly scrumptious.

Then, I have to carve out the window of time when I will have energy to try the new recipe. I don't want to feel rushed or tired while preparing—or eating--anew dish.

2. Cook a meal alongside my husband at least once every three months. These are my favorite moments. Cooking together brings back memories of some of our earliest meals in our cozy first apartment. Again, I don’t want to be hurried; I want to savor this...

3. Eat more veggies. I like veggies. I really do. I just never seem to eat nearly enough of them. My husband and I succeed in making tasty main dishes, but sometimes the sides get forgotten.

4. Walk the dog more. This one involves something more traditional--exercise. But it is so much more than that. It's time with my husband, a chance to breathe in fresh air, time to notice the shift in nature at this time of the year, and most importantly--a chance for us to talk--uninterrupted. No TV, no radio, no hustle and bustle. Just the two of us. And Ruby.

5. Slow down more. I'm known for being a little clumsy. It's mostly due to my constant impatience. I feel like I'm always rushing to get to a moment of rare calm. Instead, I want to be intentional about carving out the calm in my life without the preceding rush.

Well, in order to get started, I think I'll try out the following new recipe this month. It satisfies two of my goals: make one new recipe a month and eat more veggies. I look forward to incorporating my goals into the upcoming year. What resolutions do you have for 2012?