The Vegetarian Hundred

I was browsing through the Food for Thought blog recently as he had made a nice comment about my ukulele post so I was curious to see what his blog was about and surprisingly there wasn't a ukulele in sight! Despite the lack of a uke, Food For Thought post's are enjoyable, with interesting recipes and views about being a Londoner, I particularly found it fascinating as I used to live in London in another life. His latest post on Empanadas has convinced me to have a go at making them.

While there, I came across his response to the Very Good Taste blog's The Omnivore’s Hundred , a list of 100 things that the writer thinks every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life and I thought I'd give it a go but as I was trawling to the original site I came across The Vegetarian Hundred list on the Tigers & Strawberries blog which I preferred as a meme, particularly as it seemed more appropriate for Earth Hour week.

So, here's my response to the The Vegetarian Hundred blog meme.

The rules: copy the list, including the instructions, and bold any items you have eaten and strike out any you would never eat, and then post it to your blog. If you want, you can leave a comment on Tigers & Strawberries, linking to your results, or you can link back to this post so I can try and keep tabs on what folks have eaten and not eaten.

1. Real macaroni and cheese, made from scratch and baked - the only kind to have, this is a firm comfort food favorite in our house
2. Tabouleh
3. Freshly baked bread, straight from the oven (preferably with homemade strawberry jam)
4. Fresh figs
5. Fresh pomegranate
6. Indian dal of any sort
7. Imam bayildi
8. Pressed spiced Chinese tofu
9. Freshly made hummus
10. Tahini
11. Kimchi
12. Miso
13. Falafel
14. Potato and pea filled samosas
15. Homemade yogurt
16. Muhammara - looked this up, its a hot red pepper dip, originally from Aleppo in Syria, which I shall now try
17. Brie en croute
18. Spanikopita
19. Fresh, vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes
20. Insalata caprese
21. Stir-fried greens (gai lan, bok choi, pea shoots, kale, chard or collards)
22. Freshly made salsa
23. Freshly made guacamole
24. Creme brulee
25. Fava beans
26. Chinese cold sesame peanut noodles
27. Fattoush
28. New potatoes
29. Coleslaw
30. Ratatouille
31. Baba ganoush
32. Winter squash
33. Roasted beets
34. Baked sweet potatoes
35. Plantains
36. Chocolate truffles
37. Garlic mashed potatoes
38. Fresh water chestnuts
39. Steel cut oats
40. Quinoa
41. Grilled portabello mushrooms
42. Chipotle en adobo - had to look this up, this is a Latin American chilli pickle
43. Stone ground whole grain cornmeal
44. Freshly made corn or wheat tortillas
45. Frittata
46. Basil pesto
47. Roasted garlic
48. Raita of any type
49. Mango lassi
50. Jasmine rice (white or brown)
51. Thai vegetarian coconut milk curry
52. Pumpkin in any form other than pie
53. Fresh apple pear or plum gallette
54. Quince in any form
55. Escarole, endive or arugula
56. Sprouts other than mung bean
57. Naturally brewed soy sauce
58. Dried shiitake mushrooms
59. Unusually colored vegetables (purple cauliflower, blue potatoes, chocolate bell peppers…)
60. Fresh peach ice cream
61. Chevre
62. Medjool dates
63. Kheer - I had to jog my memory, this is an Indian rice pudding and I have  cooked it, just needed to be reminded, some say that is the original of the English rice pudding
64. Flourless chocolate cake
65. Grilled corn on the cob
66. Black bean (or any other bean) vegetarian chili
67. Tempeh
68. Seitan or wheat gluten
69. Gorgonzola or any other blue veined cheese
70. Sweet potato fries
71. Homemade au gratin potatoes
72. Cream of asparagus soup
73. Artichoke-Parmesan dip
74. Mushroom risotto
75. Fermented black beans
76. Garlic scapes I had to look this up, but once I saw it, I realised what it was, but I never knew the name, I get mine from Paddy's Market , its a milder flavour than garlic.
77. Fresh new baby peas
78. Kalamata olives
79. Preserved lemons
80. Fried green tomatoes
81. Chinese scallion pancakes
82. Cheese souffle
83. Fried apples
84. Homemade frijoles refritos
85. Pasta fagiole
86. Macadamia nuts in any form
87. Paw paw in any form
88. Grilled cheese sandwich of any kind
89. Paneer cheese
90. Ma Po Tofu (vegetarian style–no pork!)
91. Fresh pasta in any form
92. Grilled leeks, scallions or ramps
93. Green papaya salad
94. Baked grain and vegetable stuffed tomatoes
95. Pickled ginger
96. Methi greens
97. Aloo paratha
98. Kedgeree (the original Indian version without the smoked fish, not the British version with fish)
99. Okra
100. Roasted brussels sprouts

Not much of a surprise that I have scored 98 from the possible 100, I love food, I especially love vegetarian food and have been eating good food for a long time.