The Passion
Those of you that know me even slightly well know that I have a special relationship with food. I’m not addicted to eating or anything (though I will admit to a hearty appetite and generally consuming more than the average male), but fresh ingredients and new flavors excite me! Seriously. Queue the scene from Ratatouille where Remy is tasting cheese and strawberries:
I have a very similar reaction.
The Challenge
In addition to getting overly eager about certain foods, I’ve noticed another element arise in myself. Almost 10 years ago, when I was starting college (eek! scary thought), I came to this realization: if someone enjoys a type of food that I do not, I MUST be missing out in some way. Now, I know that people have different tastes and that our taste buds change every seven years or so, but I could not let go of the idea that there were people out there enjoying certain types of food without me. Enter my 18-yr-old self challenge: I will develop an acquired taste for any and every food I do not like!
Since then, these are the foods I’ve overcome and now thoroughly love (or at least am making progress with):
- Shrimp
- Mushrooms
- Mussels
- Brussel Sprouts
- Red Wine
- Lobster
- Crab
- Raw Oysters (still working on this, but showing recent improvement!)
- Raw Kale
Foods I have yet to conquer:
- Bleu Cheese (suggestions welcome!)
- Eggplant (still a hit or miss – sometimes I enjoy it; other times the texture gets the best of me)
Aside from an obviously growing love for seafood, I am more and more intrigued by things that grow from the earth. I’ll skip entire aisles in the grocery store (packaged and processed foods, etc.) and spend more and more time in the produce section. I love that I can pick up an avocado and know that the only ingredient in it is… avocado. That being said, the only thing more gratifying than filling my plate with a colorful array of produce is, well, actually growing that colorful array myself.
The Community Garden
I’ve grown flowers and a simple herb garden in the past, but since moving into my current apartment, I haven’t had any earth of my own to till and my apartment sadly doesn’t get enough sunlight to keep anything alive. Well, 2014 is presenting me the exciting opportunity to participate in a community garden on our rooftop. I couldn’t be more delighted!
Right now we’re not much farther than having a plot full of dirt (that in itself was quite the job – try hauling 20+ 30lb bags of top soil up to the rooftop – you will feel the burn!), but I can’t wait to start planting and watching the changes and growth from day to day.
Much more to come. Thanks to neighbors Ally and Corey for getting the ball rolling! And yes, I will be growing eggplant in our community garden.
-Andi
Bon(k) Voyage 