I "redboxed" the video, Julie & Julia yesterday and have suddenly become more adventurous in my cooking. The movie is based on a book about a woman who takes a year to cook her way through Julia Child's cookbook on French cuisine. I enjoyed the movie. It was very refreshing!
I have never thought of cooking as being something to enjoy. When I was younger it was just one of my chores. As I age, I find that I am more interested in cooking as a stress reliever and as a way to guarantee the freshness of the food I put into my belly. Where I once feigned at the thought of using extra virgin olive oil, I now relish the goodness! I will also add coconut oil to my pantry as it is probably more nutritious than EVOO.
My step away from the typical Polynesian diet probably began when I was 19. I was out on a date and he took me to a house in the middle of a neighborhood (similar to Hukilau Cafe in La'ie, Hawai'i but much further off the beaten path) in Portales, New Mexico. The food was AMAZING! It was spicy, full of beans and rice and homemade tortillas. It was absolutely delicious. I can still remember the taste of the sopapilla and how soothing it was after ingesting the hot spicyness of the meal. Ever since then, I have been infatuated with foods from all parts of the world.
Remember the movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding? When it came out, I tried a couple dishes from that movie. Moussaka was the result. It's a dish that is layered with eggplant, meat sauce, cheese, and topped off with a wonderful bechemel. Google all of that stuff if you're interested. It is just absolutely delicious. That very Greek dish is a regular on my dinner menu's. Tomorrow I will be attempting spanakopita. I saw it on a FoodNetwork show. It looked absolutely delicious. I will definitely take some pictures of the process and the result to share with you.
Am I getting domesticated? I haven't worked in months and I'm totally enjoying it! I'm pretty sure my husband is enjoying all the cooking also. He gets three square meals from me now instead of just dinner. Who would have thought it was in me? Well, good luck to me on my spanakopita!
