Growing up we pretty much ate all similar types of things. Which mostly consisted of meat & potatoes. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE meat & potatoes and my mother is a FABULOUS cook. But, it made it interesting in having the desire to try new things. In fact, the first time I had Chinese (Leann Chin) I did not like it AT ALL. Thanks to some changes in culture & hanging out with my hubby, I've branched out. I now LOVE Chinese and have ventured into seafood and even Eastern Indian cuisine. I hear about something now and I want to try it, just cause I want to know what it's like and say that I've had it. Don't get me wrong though, I am not a food snob or even a foodie. I don't have a sensitive palate. I can't take a sip of wine and tell you that it was fermented in burned oak barrels or that it has tones of blackberries and chocolate. (The only thing my taste buds tell me is "It says 'wine' on the bottle, so it's good!").
I'm just on an adventure! An adventure that involves me cooking these new items. The problem lies in that I have a love/hate relationship with cooking. The hate is 100% due to the fact that I don't get home until 5:30-6:00. Then I want to chill for a second and thus I have to rush to come up with something quick (I'm a very slow cook) and have a meal ready to go. If we are eating by 7, we are doing good. Then I usually clean up the kitchen (I'm a VERY messy cook. It drives Ben crazy). By then, the dog is going bananas cause she needs to play so I rush outside, play and come inside and then it's time for bed. So, much for trying to wind down before bed. If I don't have to work, or I get home earlier, I LOVE LOVE LOVE to cook!!! I'm pretty sure it would be one of my favorite things to do, especially if I'm cooking with wine :)
Anyway, my most recent adventure was last week as I decided to try some goat cheese (although I think chevre just sounds like it tastes better). I found a recipe in Better Homes & Gardens, baked tomatoes with crusty bread. (Click HERE for the recipe!) I tried it before, but without the cheese, cause I was a little nervous about it. And, now that we have tons of grape tomatoes out of the garden, I figured I better try it out the real way. (But I didn't use mint because my mint plant looks dead and my basil is growing like crazy, so I went with the latter route!) Plus, it's cheese and cheese is my favorite food. Can't be too bad, can it? (I can get scared about weird cheeses though...) And thankfully the grocery store had bread right out of the oven and the cheese was on sale! The outcome was fabulous! I am convinced that this is my new favorite meal/appetizer/snack/what-have-you. The tomatoes were so sweet and flavorful and the cheese added a hint of tart creaminess. And oh, that bread. I could've sat down and eaten that whole loaf by itself!
I have rarely tried a certain food or recipe that Ben or I didn't like. That's pretty good odds in my book! Hopefully, I can keep it that way!! (and find more time to cook!). Next up, I'm thinking of trying my hand at Beef Wellington! We shall see how that one turns out!
