1001 Foods you must Tast before you Die - Contemplating writing about and accepting a Challenge

After doing many of the online/blog lists that ask you to see how many of the following "100 things you have eaten or tried" I am to be quite honest bored. I always find them really rather lame and not enough of an adventurous list. The Omnivore's Hundred which currently 1172 people have taken and replied back to the post with their scores, (my post about it is here) was a fine list, but not a challenge. I need a foodie challenge!!!

Today when I was at the local super bookstore, I saw the book 1001 Foods you must taste before you die. I am a big fan of the 1001 Original Series and they have once for books you should read, art you should see, movies you should see, etc. Anyway, picked up the book, opened it up and the first page I see is "Corryvreckan Langoustine" and "Audresselles Lobster" neither of which I think that I have tried. I love that it just doesn't list Lobster, it lists lots of specific types of lobster with the reasons why you should try it. There is a three-four paragraph blurb on each one with a new little two-three sentence thing on the bottom under Taste. Also a picture of each type of item. I also like that the book is not arranged alphabetically, but rather by type of food - Fruit, Vegetable, Dairy, Fish, Meats, Aromatics, Grain, Bakery, Confections. It is awesome.

So the challenge contemplation arises when I think about blogging about these 1001 things and if I have eaten any or all of them and if I challenge myself to eat them. It would be a huge challenge. How would I organize it on here? Would it be something that I would track my progress of? would I take stock of how I stood on all fronts and then look at where the gaps are?

One idea I had, was to make it a bit of a group "foodie" 2009 process. Bring some friends in to the fold. Pre January I could evaluate where I stand on all of the 1001 items and then set out some guidelines. I think that then it could be quite fun to include some friends on the mission.

It does make me nervous that the first listing under Fruits is Elderberry Flower. I have never eaten elderberry flower on its own, but have had elderberry flower water and have had elderberry jam. I'll have to see if I make some guidelines that will have to count. If not I will be in big trouble.....