My Year of 25

I was expecting to have a 1/4 life crisis when I turned 25 or an epiphany of some sort. To be completely honest, I didn't feel a thing. It was just like any other birthday. It was a little disappointing, I wanted to feel something pertaining to this supposedly epic turning point in my life.

So I started digging around in my life. I analyzed my job, my relationship status, my friends, my geographical location and my family. I set questions to each area: Am I happy? If not, what can I do to make the situation better? Those questions led me to other, more complicated questions: What part of my life needs more attention? What part needs less?  How is this year going to be different?

I've been searching and brainstorming for the last two months on how I can make this year different for myself. My friend Lauren is doing 25 things that she has never done before, which got me thinking. I want to do something to further my knowledge, develop a skill and make me a healthier person in the process. But how?

When I was in Knoxville last, Brady cooked dinner for me. He made meatloaf, green beans, red spud mashed potatoes and croissants. It was excellent. The 5 hour drive home and all of last week, I've been inspired to cook. I came back and made Organic Chicken Creamy Basil Parmesan with sun dried tomatoes and fresh steamed green beans one night, pasta salad another, and so on...

Epiphany!

I want to cook 100 recipes this year. That's roughly 2 recipes a week. Out of the 100, I want to choose my favorite 25 and make them my own by changing them up via trial and error. I will be documenting my experience on this blog.

I'm setting some rules for myself:

• At least 60% of ingredients have to be organic 
• I can only use one pre-made ingredient per recipe (such as chicken broth or a seasoning packet)
• I must try, to the best of my ability, to stay away from preservatives (canned goods, etc.)
• Use as many fresh ingredients as possible
• I can only repeat a recipe if I'm changing it up semi-drastically. 
• I have to complete all 100 recipes by January 14, 2012

By doing this, I'm hoping to create a hobby and healthy habit that I can carry with me through the rest of my years. I hope you all join me on my journey! I can't wait to get started!