Barbara of Tigers and Strawberries, and others, had posted a meme of the “Omnivore’s 100” — 100 foods that every omnivore should try, and which ones they had tried or wouldn’t or couldn’t try, with commetary (here’s the original post. I casually remarked that someone should make a vegetarian’s 100, and Barbara obliged. Thanks Barbara! And now of course I’m bound to spread the meme, since it was made on my request!
I’ve eaten at least 69 of the items on the list, and possibly a few more I’m not certain about — not bad! Maybe because Barbara and I both like Indian and Middle Eastern food…
1. Real macaroni and cheese, made from scratch and baked Thanks to my former roommates, who made the Barefoot Contessa version once, I have had this!
2. Tabouleh A nice cold salad.
3. Freshly baked bread, straight from the oven (preferably with homemade strawberry jam)
4. Fresh figs Not a big enthusiast of figs, honestly. They’re okay.
5. Fresh pomegranate Fun to eat!
6. Indian dal of any sort I’m positive that I’ve had some dal at some point, since I eat a lot of Indian food.
7. Imam bayildi No, but I want to make it next week!
8. Pressed spiced Chinese tofu
9. Freshly made hummus I make my own hummus often.
10. Tahini Took me a while to get used to it, but I love it now.
11. Kimchi I may have had this, but I’m not sure. I’d definitely like to try it.
12. Miso Ditto #10. My most common use of it is in Isa’s Chickpea Noodle Soup.
13. Falafel One of my favorite foods, ever. Fried chickpea balls! What’s not to like?
14. Potato and pea filled samosas Ditto #13. Good samosas are YUM.
15. Homemade yogurt
16. Muhammara
17. Brie en croute I ate this (just this) for dinner once when I was about six or seven, as a special treat. I love, love, love brie, and anything baked in pastry is just awesome.
18. Spanikopita Spinach = yum.
19. Fresh, vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes I just recently enthused about the best ones I’ve ever had: Ella Bella Farm Dry-Farmed Early Girls.
20. Insalata caprese Another of my favorite dishes — a staple of my summers.
21. Stir-fried greens (gai lan, bok choi, pea shoots, kale, chard or collards) I like most of the dark green veggies (collards are a tad basic for me, they make my mouth feel funny), and sauteing/stirfrying them simply in a bit of oil is a great way to eat them.
22. Freshly made salsa Yup, I make it regularly. Yum!
23. Freshly made guacamole Ditto #22.
24. Creme brulee Tasty, but I’m not a fiend for it like some people. It’s very rich for me.
25. Fava beans I’ve made ful medames several times since I discovered fava beans, and have also eaten them fresh!
26. Chinese cold sesame peanut noodles Mmmmm. Nooooodle.
27. Fattoush I think I’ve had this at Middle Eastern restaurants, as a side dish.
28. New potatoes I recently made new potatoes with peas and dill (no cream sauce, I wanted something lighter). Very tasty — new potatoes have a great flavor and texture.
29. Coleslaw I hate it with mayonnaise, but my mom makes a great version with vinegar.
30. Ratatouille Yum.
31. Baba ganoush Double yum. It’s like hummus, but eggplant rather than chickpeas. Win!
32. Winter squash A staple of my winter diet; my favorite is butternut, but I also like acorn, kabocha, and other varieties.
33. Roasted beets Just tried these recently. They’re flavorful, but it’s a little bit ‘beety’ for me. I prefer beets mixed in with other things.
34. Baked sweet potatoes Yum.
35. Plantains Yum when fried.
36. Chocolate truffles Not a big fan of chocolate, but a friend used to make white chocolate lime truffles that I liked a lot!
37. Garlic mashed potatoes YUM.
38. Fresh water chestnuts I may have had these, but I may have only had canned.
39. Steel cut oats Interesting stuff, but strong-flavored. I prefer the rolled kind.
40. Quinoa A wonderful and quick-cooking grain. Good for breakfast! I want to try it this way.
41. Grilled portabello mushrooms I’ve had them but I don’t like mushrooms, in general, and portabellos are not an exception.
42. Chipotle en adobo
43. Stone ground whole grain cornmeal I’m pretty sure that I’ve had this in cornbread.
44. Freshly made corn or wheat tortillas Yup, my brother was nannied by a Mexican woman who made tortillas for us a few times.
45. Frittata Meh.
46. Basil pesto I make this often. I love basil.
47. Roasted garlic Yum.
48. Raita of any type I make my own after my dad’s method, with lots of toasted spices, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and plain yogurt.
49. Mango lassi Yum.
50. Jasmine rice (white or brown) I’m not a rice connoisseur I guess. Jasmine rice is fine, but so is plain rice.
51. Thai vegetarian coconut milk curry I’ve made my own and had it in restaurants many times.
52. Pumpkin in any form other than pie In curries, stews, and roasted. (I like it in pie best though.)
53. Fresh apple pear or plum gallette
54. Quince in any form
55. Escarole, endive or arugula I really like arugula, though I don’t buy it often.
56. Sprouts other than mung bean Does alfalfa count?
57. Naturally brewed soy sauce
58. Dried shiitake mushrooms Sorry, I don’t like mushrooms.
59. Unusually colored vegetables (purple cauliflower, blue potatoes, chocolate bell peppers…) I like blue potatoes!
60. Fresh peach ice cream
61. Chevre Oh, how I love goat cheese, in all forms.
62. Medjool dates Vegan candy!
63. Kheer My favorite Indian dessert.
64. Flourless chocolate cake Not a big fan of chocolate, so, eh.
65. Grilled corn on the cob
66. Black bean (or any other bean) vegetarian chili I love the Black and Red chili I made a while back, and in the winter often make various types of veggie chili.
67. Tempeh I just tried tempeh recently. I’m still a bit ambivalent about it, but it’s nice in tempeh reuben!
68. Seitan or wheat gluten A nice change from tofu. I’ve had mock meat in many forms, but prefer not to make it a staple.
69. Gorgonzola or any other blue veined cheese Have had these, not wild about them, but they go nicely in moderation in some salads.
70. Sweet potato fries Really not my favorite, actually. Usually burnt or mushy.
71. Homemade au gratin potatoes A friend made these for Easter brunch this year — I’m sure I’ve had them before, but his were great!
72. Cream of asparagus soup Eh…not a huge asparagus fan. I may have had this but don’t recall.
73. Artichoke-Parmesan dip
74. Mushroom risotto I don’t! like! mushrooms! :)
75. Fermented black beans I may have eaten this. If so, I recall not liking it.
76. Garlic scapes
77. Fresh new baby peas Yep, these come to the farmer’s market in the spring and cost way too much and are YUMMY.
78. Kalamata olives I may have tried one of these. If so, I didn’t like it. Don’t like olives much.
79. Preserved lemons
80. Fried green tomatoes
81. Chinese scallion pancakes Love. Garden Fresh, here I come! I had some great ones in a handmade noodle restaurant in Vancouver too.
82. Cheese souffle I feel like I’ve probably eaten this — would have to ask my parents.
83. Fried apples
84. Homemade frijoles refritos Don’t really like refried beans.
85. Pasta fagiole I made a version of this and wasn’t hugely wild about it, but it’s good.
86. Macadamia nuts in any form Excellent in Macademia Blondies.
87. Paw paw in any form Had to look this up, to find out what it was!
88. Grilled cheese sandwich of any kind Classic!
89. Paneer cheese Saag paneer is my favorite, but paneer is interesting in other things too.
90. Ma Po Tofu (vegetarian style–no pork!)
91. Fresh pasta in any form We had a pasta maker briefly when I was a kid.
92. Grilled leeks, scallions or ramps
93. Green papaya salad Just had this at a Thai restaurant!
94. Baked grain and vegetable stuffed tomatoes
95. Pickled ginger Ginger in every form, that’s my motto.
96. Methi greens
97. Aloo paratha Yum.
98. Kedgeree Had to look this up too. Commonly a fish dish, but authentic versions use dal.
99. Okra Unlike many people, I love okra fried or in bindi masala and other Indian dishes.
100. Roasted brussels sprouts A great way to make these tasty little buggers.