6 Food Resolutions for the New Year

New decade, new diet, who this.

With the turn of the calendar sparking the beginning of a new year (hello 2020!), eaters from all over the globe will be contemplating how to adjust their habits. Some may be motivated to eat better for health reasons. Others may be trying to save money from eating out. And even more may be looking to use their resolutions to build habits that get them back in the kitchen. Whatever your motivation is, we’re proud of you.

If you’re looking to adopt some food resolutions for the new year, here are six of our favorite:

Save Your Leftover Vegetables and Learn to Pickle

Vegetables are great. But throwing away vegetables is not. While we consider our consumption of veggies to be higher than average (we’ll leave the top spot for the vegans), there are often times where it can be difficult to make use of every ingredient in the fridge. Open the refrigerator door, and all of a sudden you see a shelf full of vegetables on their last legs. If only there was some way of saving it for another use…

To avoid creating waste, we recommend turning to a tried and true method for maximizing food use and extending its useful life: pickling.

Now the best part about pickling (aside from the end product) is that it is a low effort process and very easy to execute. Even the most amateur of homecooks should not feel intimidated by pickling leftover onions. At its core (accidental food pun), to pickle is to place vegetables into a brine of vinegar, water, salt, and sugar. Pretty straightforward, huh.

You can also get fancy by adding spices, aromatics, or other fun things to the brine to induce different flavors. In thinking through food resolutions to incorporate into your daily life, it’s hard to find something this easy and tasty.

Start Using Your Greens

When you hear the phrase “eating your greens,” what is the first thing that comes to mind.

We would probably guess that lettuce and its consumption in salad is normally the first thought of most. Second might be a more literal interpretation with green vegetables that make popular side dishes like spinach, green beans, or brussels sprouts.

Farm fresh greens. Simply the best!

Now while eating more green foods is universally a good thing, we are suggesting taking this resolution to the next level by USING your greens. Beets have greens. Turnips have greens. Radishes have greens. Are you using them?

The green stems of many root vegetables are an important source of micronutrients, and are often discarded during meal prep. Not only are they good for you, but real talk, they are good for you wallet too (hello, extra side dish included with the price of admission).

Break out your non-stick skillet. Add some olive oil, garlic, shallot, and then sautée your greens until wilted.

By the way, tell your doctor and financial adviser to get in touch with us so we can work our our commission.

Eat More Mushrooms

Depending on who you ask, there are wildly different thresholds for when an individual becomes an adult. Some consider it after a religious ceremony. Some when they fully become independent from their parental support.

For us, it is when you start liking mushrooms.

The concept of mushrooms as a polarizing food is one that we cannot comprehend. While we acknowledge that some adults are still mushroom averse, we want to challenge those same people to confront their misconceptions of mushrooms and to try to incorporate them into their diet.

That being said, we want to contextualize this resolution properly by being the first to fully admit that raw mushrooms are underwhelming. However, as an ingredient, mushrooms are essentially little sponges that absorb and retain flavor. In making this distinction, we can re-evaluate one’s distaste for mushrooms by challenging its preparation (maybe it’s the recipe and not the ingredient).

So for next year, do yourself a favor and try to use mushrooms more frequently as a viable meat substitute for any sauce-y/stew-y recipe. For what it’s worth, the earth will thank you for it.

Make Your Own Pasta

You know what they say. Once you start making your own noodles, the pasta-bilities are endless!

Forget the specialty grocery stores. Forget all the hip American-new restaurants. Forget all the adorable Italian grandmothers. You don’t need them. There’s nothing stopping you from elevating your existing pasta nights by making your own. It’s surprisingly easy, and very fun. Come on, you deserve this.

FYI - Fiddle figs are NOT included with your pasta extruder

Spend some time browsing the internet’s vast catalog of pasta recipes and tutorials, and then start experimenting! At the very worst, maybe use this as an excuse to get yourself a stand mixer with pasta attachments. We know it’s already in your Amazon cart. It’s time to pull the trigger. Again, you deserve it.

DIY Salad Dressing

A salad is not just a bowl of assorted vegetables. It is so much more. It can be a thoughtful meal combining different flavors and textures. For a salad, there’s a fine line between mediocrity and excitement (harsh but true). And even the most plain of salads can unlock its greatness by introducing one thing:

A tasty, punchy dressing.

Unfortunately, you are probably not going to find that dressing at the grocery store. It’s convenient. It’s easy. But it’s not going to do the job here. There are tons and tons of recipes every type of salad imaginable. With so many resources available, ditch the plastic bottle, and start making your own salad dressing. Get a mason jar. Get creative. And get seasonal.

Your work lunches just got a lot more fun.

Buy meat from the farmer’s market

We’re proponents for trying to eat less meat in favor of a more balanced diet. But because of this, when we eat meat, we’re going to want it to be good. Although more premium grocery stores, are doing a good job sustainably and ethically sourcing their proteins and seafood, there’s an opportunity to support your local farmers by buying meats from the local farmer’s market or through a CSA.

Fostering a relationships with farmers not only creates a more personal purchasing experience, but a rewarding one as well. At the farmer’s market, it’s okay to be that annoying person who asks too many questions.

Vendors can use the interaction to share information about the animal’s diet, livelihood, and overall wellness. This focus on the animal will translate to your dinner plate as well as it likely will result in higher quality meats. And who knows, at the very least, maybe you’ll make a new friend!

Let us know your New Year’s Food Resolutions below: