Sunday, August 5, 2012

Who Knew?

Today was an interesting day for me. I made a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich for lunch. I made lasagna, mashed potatoes, and peanut butter cookies for supper.

Before we switched to local food, I didn't eat tomatoes. I didn't like tomato sauce. Period. I would tolerate it in some things b/c I love noodles, but I have always preferred alfredo sauce much more. Turns out that the tomatoes we're getting from the farm are absolute perfection and I genuinely like them! I voluntarily and excitedly put them in my salads and my sandwiches! I eat them whole! Who knew 2 months ago when we made this tiny change, that it would change so many things?

Most shockingly of all, who knew I would like to cook as much as I do?? I have never been much of a cook. I love to bake desserts but that's just because everyone is always eager to get them. All of a sudden I'm finding joy in cooking my meals from scratch. This is usually B's claim to fame, so it's fun that we have this in common now. I actually spent about 3 hours making dinner today and I was happy as a clam. Crazy!

For dinner tonight I made lasagna from scratch for the first time. I made both the ricotta and mozzarella cheeses, I made the sauce and assembled the lasagna. I obviously didn't make the eggplant or the tomatoes, but you get the point. I used some boxed noodles b/c I had them. (When they're all gone, I'd like to try to make them. I don't have a pasta roller thing, and wonder it it's worth it. I wonder if I would get my money's worth out of it?)Regardless, I am proud of myself for finding new recipes to conquer and being brave enough to give it a go. Last week pizza sauce, this week lasagna. Who knows what tomorrow brings. I don't, but I hope it's delicious!

Lastly, I know I've said it before but it bears repeating. When you cook with quality ingredients, it's really hard to make bad food. I can't even count how many times this summer we have cooked up something and thought or said out loud, "This could be a disaster." and not once have we had anything we wouldn't make again. I notice it most in the tomatoes for the sole fact that I'm eating them now, but it's true in all things. Notions like fresh and local get tossed around a lot, but they really do make a huge, huge difference in the quality of your meal. I know they cost more, but they're worth every single penny.

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