100 Things to Eat Before You Die

Michele has this list, compliments of Very Good Taste; it's 100 things you must eat before you die. What you have to do:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating. (okay, I can't do this, but I've made notes)


Here's my list, with some editorializing as we go along:

1. Venison: I grew up in the Adirondacks - what do you think?
2. Nettle tea.
3. Huevos rancheros: yum.
4. Steak tartare: no, but I love carpaccio.
5. Crocodile: nope, but I've had fried alligator.
6. Black pudding: I doubt this will ever make my list.
7. Cheese fondue: for dinner many, many times. I even have a recipe.
8. Carp: dunno, maybe.
9. Borscht: beets? No.
10. Baba ghanoush: eh. I prefer hummous.
11. Calamari: love it - especially sauteed at Pico's.
12. Pho: I wish this had been the chicken soup I grew up on.
13. PB&J sandwich: right now I never want to eat one, ever again (thanks, Ike) but in general one of my favorites.
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses: that's a big never, little buddy.
17. Black truffle: pate de fois gras studded with black truffle - Heaven.
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes. Boone's Farm?
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries: yes, especially blueberries picked on hikes as a kid.
23. Foie gras: one of my very favorite things.
24. Rice and beans: with sausage and cheese from Treebeard's. Wowza. I ate it 3-4 days a week when I was pregnant with One.
25. Brawn, or head cheese: not in this lifetime.
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper: no, no, and no again.
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters: oh, goodness, yes.
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl: only if it's really good.
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float: I always liked orange floats better as a kid, though.
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O: oh please don't remind me.
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat: they alway had this at my favorite Indian dive and all the guys would eat it. No thanks.
42. Whole insects: not if this was the only thing left on Earth to eat.
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu (pufferfish): never.
47. Chicken tikka masala: my all-time favorite Indian dish.
48. Eel: as sushi. Meh.
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin: never.
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle: I've even made it. And almost had to move, I made such a wreck of the kitchen. German friends tell me this is normal.
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV: I grew up 2 hours from Montreal - of course.
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips: no, but I feed them to the dogs.
61. S'mores: yes, but I'm really a roasted marshmallow purist at heart.
62. Sweetbreads: never.
63. Kaolin: never ever.
64. Currywurst
65. Durian - Michele says "I hereby make #65 Cheese Whiz." I agree.
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake: deep fried dough with powdered sugar? Just hose the sugar off me and put me in bed when I'm finished; I'll be in a happy food coma.
68. Haggis: [shudder]
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill: I made have grown up in the backwoods, but I've never been this much of a redneck.
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie: my head hangs down with shame.
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant: someday ...
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare: eating rabbit creeps me out, even when it's cut up and smothered in mustard sauce.
87. Goulash
88. Flowers: At Sooke Harbor House on our honeymoon.
89. Horse: how could you?
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam: more shame. I blame my mother; she thought this stuff was food.
92. Soft shell crab: it's good fried in a sushi roll ...
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish: in Texas? How can you avoid them?
95. Mole poblano: Husband's big thing. I can take it or leave it.
96. Bagel and lox: don't forget the tomato.
97. Lobster Thermidor: too rich.
98. Polenta: makes me think of cream of wheat.
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee: I don't drink coffee. Sue me.
100. Snake: I had nightmares about snakes for my entire childhood; I don't think so.