I am not sure what’s gotten into me.

When I get out my recipes for dinner lately, I am disappointed if there is not enough stuff to cut up.  Seriously, what is that?  What’s happened to me?  I used to love my buy-one-get-one-free convenience foods and the ease of making dinner in five minutes or less, as the packages claimed.  

Then came the realization that preservatives  were contributing significantly to my chronic migraine headaches.  Now, the more I cook “from scratch,” the more convinced I am of this truth.  I just feel better overall.  Not to mention, the accompanying peace and joy that comes from knowing exactly what I am feeding my family, nutrients and all, just feels right.  The extra effort required has been more than worth it.  

Tonight’s revelation?  Fresh veggies are the bomb!  I fear that canned green beans will just taste soggy from now on.  Call me a snob, it’s ok.  :)

Chris broiled a delicious ribeye steak, and I made homemade mashed potatoes and stir-fried green beans and red peppers.  This was my first attempt at homemade mashed potatoes – and it was not as hard as I thought it would be!  I even went wild and crazy on the fam and turned them in garlic mashed potatoes.  Watch out world, Tara is on the loose.

The green beans and red peppers?  I’ll admit I was doubtful when I looked at the ingredient list:  1/2 lb of green beans (you know, the kind from the fresh fruit and vegetable section of the grocery store), a red pepper, water, olive oil, and marjoram.  Yup, that was it.   Then I took a bite.  Oh, my stars.  It was so good!  I stood corrected – it did not need any other spices for there was so much delicious flavor within the green beans and peppers themselves.  

As I am embarking on my new learning-to-cook adventures and share the successes and mishaps along the way, I am going to stand by what I lovingly call my “dummy cookbook.”   I bought it when we first got married and it is worth its weight in gold.

I am going to go dream of things to chop up now.