30 before 30

Update: Completed on August 15th, 2012, 3 days before my 30th birthday!

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As I mentioned previously, I am embarking on a 30 before 30 cooking project. Some general guidelines about this project:

• I chose the items based almost entirely on my own personal curiosity to try said dishes – dishes I basically have not attempted before, and haven’t done so because I either didn’t have the proper excuse, or because I thought the projects seemed too complicated/intimidating.
• There are plenty of classically complicated recipes out there that I didn’t include, and I’m okay with that. I don’t really have a desire to make beef wellington, so that didn’t make it on the list.
• Some recipes on the list are probably not all that complicated. I’m okay with that as well. Like I said, this has to do more with my own desires and curiosities, and at the end of the day, it’s about having fun in the kitchen and enjoying the end result.
• I didn’t want to include recipes that would result in an enormous amount of food, because that just seems wasteful. Example: turducken.
• I will also avoid having to purchase too much special equipment. I already have access to a propane torch (thankfully), I already own a stand mixer (also full of thanks on that one), and I may consider buying a dutch oven and/or cast-iron skillet. But I do not plan on buying a pasta maker or novelty bakeware, as an example.

Here is my final list of projects, all of which I plan to tackle before August 2012. I will blog about each experience, and link the items to their corresponding posts once they’re completed. I won’t be going in the exact order listed below, and I aim to cross at least one item off the list every two weeks or so.

1. Macarons
2. Roast chicken and bread salad (Zuni Cafe recipe)
3. Lattice cherry pie
4. Donuts
5. Pho
6. Naan + other Indian dish
7. Baguettes
8. Hamburgers + homemade buns + learn to grill
9. Boeuf bourguignon
10. Creme brûlée
11. Lemon merengue pie
12. Roast duck
13. Chicken nuggets (Local Lemons’ recipe)
14. Mole
15. Croissants
16. Sourdough bread
17. Tiramisu
18. B’stilla
19. Ravioli
20. Injera + ethiopian dish
21. Souffle
22. Carnitas + tortillas
23. Princess cake
24. Curry paste
25. Tamales
26. Thin Mints
27. Oreos
28. Bagels
29. Gnocchi
30. Baked alaska

Here goes nothing . . .