Short of breaking china for good luck, a list of New Year's Resolutions is de rigeur at the start of the year. But instead of thinking of the list as a drag–like going on a diet of carrot sticks–let's think of it as a challenge. If we don't succeed, we try again. Or reward ourselves with carrot cake with cream cheese frosting instead.

If you're stuck with the same old habits, obsessions and outlook towards food, now is the time to become a better foodie. Here are some suggestions:

1. Eat well, don't diet. We all want to eat healthier but we'll never give up lechon or leche flan made with 12 egg yolks that easy. So the best thing for a foodie to do–so many foods to try, so little time–is not to go on a diet per se. That means munching on potato chips but having steamed broccoli for dinner. Or putting just half a cup of garlic fried rice on your plate. Drink skim milk, feast on lean chicken, and increase the greens in your chopsuey. Your body will thank you for nourishing it with the good stuff, healthy or otherwise.

2. Cook an exotic recipe at least once a week. Instead of staying glued to Spoon on television, heat up your own kitchen. Surprise your family by trying an exotic recipe each week. You'll never run out of ideas–tons of recipes are at your fingertips (remember the cookbooks you received as gifts last Christmas?). Exotic ingredients are almost always available in large supermarkets and specialty shops–from Korean mixes to Indian spices and Greek yogurt.

3. Do a Julie on Julia. Master a cooking technique–poach an egg, temper chocolate, or julienne vegetables. Not only will your cooking skills improve, so will your menu repertoire. And you can brag about it during foodie get togethers.

4. Eat something you've never eaten before. A kumquat may sound like a gerbil with bulging eyes, but it's actually a small citrusy fruit. Try it and taste the sweet and sour contradictions. Bring home a new fruit, vegetable, spice or ingredient and you might discover something new, something delicious.

5. Overcome a food fear. Unlike resolution number 4, you're not trying something new here but bringing new perspective to a food you loathe. Think like Jeffrey Steingarten who wrote how he overcame his distaste for kimchi and blue food in The Man Who Ate Everything. If he could do it, so can you.

6. Expand your repertoire of places to eat. The mall may house your most favorite restaurant in the whole wide world, but that doesn't mean you have to dine there every weekend. Travel to Binondo and eat dimsum in any of the mouthwatering restaurants along Benavidez or Carvajal streets. Cruise along Jupiter Street in Makati or Tomas Morato in Quezon City and try the latest restaurant that opens. Go to all the vegetarian restaurants in Manila. Next year, plan for an ultimate food trip to Singapore or Italy.

7. Plant a small garden and harvest your own veggies. Even if it's just a pot of basil and oregano growing on your windowsill, you can proudly say it came fresh from your garden. It will also save you some extra bucks and help you think more about your environment and your food source.

8. Be in touch with the season. Don't eat mangoes or strawberries when not in its usual season. Buy produce that are in abundance at certain times of the year–they taste better when grown locally and ripened naturally.

9. Chew slowly. Be more attentive to what you eat and really savor what you're eating. Not only is it healthier to chew more slowly, it also helps you pay attention to the whole meal instead of breezing past the most incredible kare-kare your tita cooked.

10. Spruce up your workspace–the kitchen. You don't need to renovate the whole kitchen for the New Year, but sprucing up your favorite place in the house should be a must. You can buy colorful kitchen towels, a new casserole, or a set of jars for your gourmet pasta. And a new gadget–like a lemon zester or a mezzaluna knife–could inspire you to spend more time in the kitchen to create a fabulous full-course meal.

Photo by Cellulaer Dweller

SPOT.ph wants to know, what's your foodie resolution for the year?