((Yes the title is in fact supposed to be a bad pun on Change of Seasons.))
I've kind of slowly come to the sad realization that my early attempts to cook were, in fact... bad. Pretty much the only thing I could cook worth eating came out of a quick bread or cake mix box. I've pretty much officially retired almost all of my early recipes at this point as just not being half as amazing as I thought they were, but I've learned that about a lot of things. I remember, for example, enjoying "Snow Caps" Non Pariels, and they still carry very distinct memories and points of nostalgia for me... but I can't stand the goddamn taste of the things.
Making quickie chicken BBQ wraps with melting Monterey Jack and Chicken cooked in BBQ sauce used to be an amazing bit of comfort food, ditto Kraft Mac and Cheese with Bacon Bits... but now I really don't much care for either, much as I remember digging into them with zest and finding them delightfully comforting and yummy.
Now my idea of comfort food is more time consuming, hot chocolate powder whipped into full fat milk on the stove and topped with marshmallows and real dairy whipped cream... or Baked Potato Soup made from scratch, served up with hot rolls on a cold day. Cold Weather begs for comfort food doesn't it?
I still love ice cream of course but I've been even gravitating away from the flavors I used to like, choosing stuff like Haagen Daas "Apple Pie" ((or better yet, real apple pie, even if chopping all the apples the way I like them gives me a hand cramp...)) over coffee and vanilla bean.
I don't know if that's a reflection on anything in particular, maybe it is since my expanding taste for new foods has gone hand in hand with things that make me feel like I've grown as a person.
...I'm not even sure where I'm going with this post anymore. I was going to kind of wrap it up with a halfassed joke about BBQ-Chicken and M-Jack paperweights sitting in my gut all night, but I think I kind of got derailed somewhere in thinking that I feel like my cooking isn't the only thing that's come a long way, and wondering if anyone else has woken up to the fact that they've grown, and what things in their lives might have grown with them.
I also note that I don't feel my personal growth has devalued the things that used to give me such nostalgic pleasure... I mean I'll always enjoy the memory of holding a box of miniature Non Pariels in an antique gate fronted elevator and watching the floors go by... even if I don't enjoy the candy any more. However my new taste in foods also means new tastes and scents that will be the bookmarks to wonderful memories down the road.
What about you reader? What seasonings have changed in your life?
For me I think it's less about what I no longer like and more about what I do like (figuratively and literally.) I used to run screaming whenever words like "tofu" or "eggplant" or even "broccoli" were mentioned. I was reticent, as a youngster to try strange delicacies like Ramen noodles or Bagels because they were unfamiliar and therefore to be feared and hated. A few friends could coerce me to try things out of politeness, but I dreaded the moment when the food would enter my mouth and undoubtedly disgust me. But once my tastebuds made contact with the strange food, they found they rather enjoyed what my brain had previously feared. As time went on, I learned that trying new foods, along with new perspectives, made life much more pleasant!
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