Deliciously Directionless: New Year Resolutions worth making + a Contest!

A very Happy New Year to you and I hope it’s a delicious one and leads you to new directions! I have been MIA from the blog for a bit since I was travelling, but I did update my Facebook page and Twitter feed with some travel updates and contests. I travelled to pleasantly cool Bangalore and from there made my way to the coffee county of Coorg (or Kodagu). I stayed on a coffee plantation, drove around roads lined with coffee, pepper and poinsettias, ate a lot of good Coorgi food and came back with some honey, peppercorns and of course coffee! It's a must visit; more about it in a later post.

Enough about me; how did you bring in the New Year? And how many of you made resolutions (and have already broken them)?! Write in and share with me. Meanwhile, here are some foodie resolutions worth making this year.

1) Visit a new country / region and eat local.

That means, no Indian restaurants outside India, no McDonalds (yuck!) and definitely no Starbucks!! Unless you visit the US of A... This year, I’m dreaming of Italy, where pasta is not swimming in sauce and cream is NOT added to pesto – recipe here! Also, try my recipe of Spaghetti alla Puttanesca.

Which destination is on your wish-list in 2013? Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2013 – Top 10 Countries could be your starting point. Or this list of Top 10 destinations for Indie Travelers by Boots N All.

2) Buy some new cookbooks.

Last year, I added these books to my collection:

The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan
Kitchen by Nigella Lawson
Indian Food Made Easy by Anjum Anand – this one was the spoils from a Twitter Contest by TimesCity!

In 2013, I have my eye on these books. And if anyone wants to gift me something for no reason at all, here’s your clue!

Home Bake by Eric Lanlard
Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom by Julia Child
Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan
Nigellissima by Nigella Lawson
Food is Home by Sarjano

3) Don’t skip Breakfast!

Enough has been said about the importance of your first meal of the day. Yet, coming up with recipes to keep things interesting every day is a challenge. Last year, I had posted couple of weekend breakfast recipes for you to try out.

And now, to spice things up, here’s a contest! The Breakfast Projekt is giving you a shot at winning a gourmet hamper from Olive Tree Trading. All you have to do is send in one (or more) breakfast recipe before Jan 8, 2013. Details below. Contest is open to Indian nationals only. Did I mention that I’m one of the judges? So send in your entries and if my fellow-judges and I love your breakfast idea, you could be the lucky winner!

On that note, I'm signing off. I’ll be back with a new recipe next week.