Mormon Foodies

My husband was down in Florida visiting his brother last month and his sister happened to be there also. She made spaghetti one night and she commented that she made it all the time at home. Mark said, "We almost never have spaghetti". His sister was surprised that we didn't eat spaghetti so she asked him what we DID eat. He couldn't really think of anything off-hand but he finally said, "I dunno, we eat a ton of different things - probably not really normal stuff."

So, tonight, as we sat down to Vietnamese Fresh Spring Rolls with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce (which my small town Utah man loves), he was like, "Oh yeah, I should have told her we eat these a lot."

The older I get, the more of a foodie I become. Tacos, Spaghetti and anything in a casserole are rarely on my menu. You're more likely to find Jasmine Rice, Fajitas and Gnocchi. I rarely use vegetable oil anymore - I'm more likely to pour a fine grade olive oil in my pans when I cook.

A few of the things I make are:

• Baklava (you'd be surprised at how easy it is)
  
• Gyros
• German food (I love my version of Red Cabbage with Turkey Kielbasa)
• Philly Cheesesteaks
• Thai Noodle Salad
• Fajitas
• Danish food
• Panzanella (an Italian bread salad)
  
• Crepes
• Pesto
• Fresh salsa
• Couscous with roasted veggies
  
• Roasted Vegetable pasta sauce
  

The only really traditional thing I make on a regular basis is Funeral Potatoes with Ham in them. That's comfort food - potatoes and cheese and sour cream and ham! But, most of the time, I find something adventurous for dinner! I use my crock pot a LOT but even then, it's usually for unusual dishes like ham and cabbage.

N doesn't always mind it - he discovered California Rolls and loves them. But D HATES it. He needs a complete breakdown of every ingredient in any dish especially if there's anything remotely green in it.

Sometimes it's hard to take something to a ward potluck because I don't cook like everyone else. Sometimes I just go ahead and take the Thai Jasmine Rice Salad with Mint in an unmarked bowl and then keep my head down until people start complimenting it.

I think we are a culture of casseroles at times. Don't get me wrong- some of my VERY FAVORITE cook books are those from ward Relief Societies - that's comfort food at it's finest and those recipes have been handed down forever. But, I grew up in a "comfort food" home and Mark grew up in a poor home so we both ate a TON of noodles with some sort of saucy stuff over them.

Also, the older I get, the more my stomach rejects a lot of heavy food - so more often than not, I find myself using a lot of vegetables and light sauces. Now, if that would just translate into weight loss, all would be right with the universe. Like I said, I'm a foodie and that means a LOVE food. And therein lies the problem...