Schatzi: Of course someone did a Vegetarian’s Hundred to follow-up the Omnivore’s Hundred.
1) Copy this list into your site, including the instructions!
2) Bold all of the dishes you’ve eaten–or make them a different type color.
3) Cross out any of them that you’d never ever eat.
4) Consider anything that is not bold or crossed out your “To Do” List.
1. Real macaroni and cheese, made from scratch and baked (It’s something I have yet to master, having only made it once—I am a lazy chit, and unambitious—but I have fond memories of Malia baking cheesy flat noodles intermingled with hot dog slices. Oops, that’s hardly vegetarian! What an auspicious start.)
2. Tabouleh (With plenty of sharp onion!)
3. Freshly baked bread, straight from the oven (preferably with homemade strawberry jam) (I prefer it simply with butter or chevre, but there is nothing like fresh baked bread.)
4. Fresh figs (The smell grosses me out.)
5. Fresh pomegranate (The first time I ever ate a pomegranate, my mother had brought one home for me to try. I was in seventh grade, and I sat on the living room floor, picking out the little red jewels and eating them, while waching The Last Temptation of Christ. Fitting, no? I am still fond of them, but they are a leisure fruit.)
6. Indian dal of any sort
7. Imam bayildi (I’m not sure. I may have had it as meze at a restaurant, but I tend to not order much eggplant for myself. It does sound good, though.)
8. Pressed spiced Chinese tofu (I am not fond of tofu.)
9. Freshly made hummus (I am fortunate in having people constantly make this for me, and feed it to me: Eli, Malia, Jenni.)
10. Tahini (I believe there are not one, but TWO jars of tahini in my kitchen as I write.)
11. Kimchi (Stinky good.)
12. Miso (I love miso soup on a chilly day, or when hungover.)
13. Falafel (I one day hope to purchase some from a street vendor, then fall in love with him, give up clubbing, and become a librarian.)
14. Potato and pea filled samosas (These will never fail to make me happy, whether my boss’ wife feeds them to me, I purchase them frozen, or have them out at a restaurant.)
15. Homemade yogurt (Not that I am aware.)
16. Muhammara (Somehting else I believe I have tried when at a restaurant, but I can’t guarantee it.)
17. Brie en croute (It’s best deep-fried.)
18. Spanikopita (Another no-fail for me, spanakopita is like heaven. Fortunately, Eli will happily provide me with some whenever I need it.)
19. Fresh, vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes (Gross. I spit them right back out.)
20. Insalata caprese
21. Stir-fried greens (gai lan, bok choi, pea shoots, kale, chard or collards) (I love collard greens—why wasn’t I born in the South?)
22. Freshly made salsa (One of the few fresh tomato permutations I can stand.)
23. Freshly made guacamole (I’ll eat a smidgen and no more; it just doesn’t appeal to me.)
24. Creme brulee (I love custards.)
25. Fava beans
26. Chinese cold sesame peanut noodles (Noodles are second only to rice for satiety.)
27. Fattoush
28. New potatoes (I love cooking with them: barely steamed, lightly salted with fresh parsley, they’re like candy!)
29. Coleslaw (I always hated coleslaw til I tried it at Kenny & Zuke’s, and then at Podnah’s. Turns out, it was just the nasty mayonaissey ones I hated. I am dearly fond of vinegar.)
30. Ratatouille (I made this once for a vegetarian boyfriend, and I actually loved it, which was suprising, considering that it’s made up of things for which I have no fondness: tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini. It became a regular menu item when we were together.)
31. Baba ganoush (It’s delicious, and one of those dishes that confounds people: “You hate eggplant, but you love baba ganoush?” Garlic improves everything.)
32. Winter squash (I need to do more with squash, I haven’t really since I dumped the vegetarian.)
33. Roasted beets (I loathe beets—but love borscsh.)
34. Baked sweet potatoes (A winter staple: I bake it, then add some butter, salt, pepper, and maybe brown sugar if I’m feeling naughty. Sweet potatoes are one of Nature’s perfect foods.)
35. Plantains (I’ve only had them at Pambiche, and fried, but they were delicious.)
36. Chocolate truffles (Om nom nom.)
37. Garlic mashed potatoes (One of the most comforting of comfort foods, they can be eaten fresh, cold, reheated, in a sandwich, off a plate, do I love them, Sam I Am.)
38. Fresh water chestnuts (Only canned, I think.)
39. Steel cut oats (I cannot swallow oatmeal, no matter how hard I try. And I love oameal cookies and oatmeal bread. I don’t understand it.)
40. Quinoa
41. Grilled portabella mushrooms (I don’t eat mushrooms unless they’re integral to a dish, and I won’t eat anything that is primarily mushroom. I will cook them, and I will taste them, but they disgust me.)
42. Chipotle en adobo
43. Stone ground whole grain cornmeal
44. Freshly made corn or wheat tortillas (Even the most mediocre Mexican food is amazing in a fresh tortilla.)
45. Frittata (I am a lover of eggs.)
46. Basil pesto
47. Roasted garlic
48. Raita of any type (Grandma, my boss’ mother, learned quickly that it was a necessity to serve raita with any snack she brought me.)
49. Mango lassi (not a fan)
50. Jasmine rice (white or brown) (The first time I tried it was when my mom first took me out for Thai. I was so impressed by everything, but especially the rice.)
51. Thai vegetarian coconut milk curry (Only with meat—anything else is a waste!)
52. Pumpkin in any form other than pie (Soup, rolls, cake, mashed. Also, Kitty Girl gets it mixed with her wet kaukau sometimes.)
53. Fresh apple, pear or plum galette (I ought to make one.)
54. Quince in any form (That quince paste they serve with some Spanish foods. Dad and Gina’s house had a quince out front, but I don’t remember ever eating one.)
55. Escarole, endive or arugula
56. Sprouts other than mung bean (In my Botany class—focus on Sustainable Agriculture—we grew our own sprouts from various vegetable seeds. I grew radish sprouts, and they were the finest in the class: lush, green, and peppery. I prefer radish sprouts above all others now.)
57. Naturally brewed soy sauce (Salt has some fascinating information on shoyu.)
58. Dried shiitake mushrooms (Bleagh!)
59. Unusually colored vegetables (purple cauliflower, blue potatoes, chocolate bell peppers…) (Blue potatoes do not mash well, but they’re otherwise delicious, as are Okinawan sweet potatoes, a purple tuber.)
60. Fresh peach ice cream
61. Chevre (Chevre is my one true love. I have a pound of it at home.)
62. Medjool dates (Now I want Liliha Bakery date bars, surely one of the most remarkable confections known to man.)
63. Kheer (The first rice pudding I ever tried, and the best.)
64. Flourless chocolate cake
65. Grilled pole corn (My favorite memory of this is an evening spent in Malia’s yard while she grilled vegetables; we also ate a wonderful kasha casserole I made.)
66. Black bean (or any other bean) vegetarian chili (My mother made the best vegetarian chili; she put poppyseeds in it. Is this normal?)
67. Tempeh
68. Seitan or wheat gluten (Satan?)
69. Gorgonzola or any other blue veined cheese
70. Sweet potato fries (They may be fast food, but they’re local: who doesn’t like Burgerville’s sweet potato fries?)
71. Homemade au gratin potatoes (My Chevre and Potato Gratin is the best.)
72. Cream of asparagus soup
73. Artichoke-Parmesan dip (It’s ubiquitous—can you even remember a time when it wasn’t an appetizer nearly everywhere? I am working on perfecting my recipe.)
74. Mushroom risotto (I will probably never eat a mushroom risotto, as much as I enjoy a good risotto.)
75. Fermented black beans (Does it count when I just leave them sitting in the pot on my stovetop for a week, continually eating them? Maiya would say so.)
76. Garlic scapes
77. Fresh new baby peas (Off the plant is best.)
78. Kalamata olives (I fell in love with olives as a child, and will confess to still enjoying those big, black pearl canned ones. They are my holiday snack; I nosh on them while cooking holiday dinners and doing my holiday baking.)
79. Preserved lemons
80. Fried green tomatoes (I had them at my first deep-fry party, and fell in love. Best tomatoes ever.)
81. Chinese scallion pancakes
82. Cheese soufflé (One of my most beloved comfort foods, cheese soufflé was a holiday treat in my family; Tutu would always make one for Christmas dinner, and it was hands down my favorite item on the menu. When I grew older and Mom and I moved to the Mainland, where we no longer had family dinners of the same magnitude, she would still make it for me on special occasions, like when I was about to return to Iowa for six months. Just thinking about it nearly brings me to tears. However, Eli is perfectly willing to make me one any time it’s needed, the dear.)
83. Fried apples
84. Homemade frijoles refritos
85. Pasta fagioli
86. Macadamia nuts in any form (A most delicious nut!)
87. Paw paw in any form
88. Grilled cheese sandwich of any kind (I enjoy picking up a kid’s grilled cheese at Grand Central on Broadway.)
89. Paneer cheese (Not really a fan.)
90. Ma Po Tofu (I try to avoid excessively hot things.)
91. Fresh pasta in any form (I should start making it. I bet Eli has.)
92. Grilled leeks, scallions or ramps
93. Green papaya salad (I prefer fresh papaya right off the tree, and will often bemoan the lack of edible papayas in Oregon. And lecture Mainlanders who don’t like papaya on how they’ve never had a good one.)
94. Baked grain and vegetable stuffed tomatoes
95. Pickled ginger
96. Methi greens
97. Aloo paratha (I find it difficult when eating at Indian restaurants to restain myself from odering fifty varieties of bread—they’re all so delectable!)
98. Kedgeree (the original Indian version without the smoked fish, not the British version with fish) (I have actually eaten this due to working in close proximity with a very generous Indian family. Thank goodness for Grandma, and her love of feeding me!)
99. Okra (My mom swore by it, but I still have yet to try it.)
100. Roasted brussels sprouts (I didn’t grow up with Brussels sprouts, but when I first had them at my ex Evan’s place for Christmas Eve dinner, I fell in love. Little cabbages? With bacon and butter? How could I not?)
My score: 81/100.
