For the love of food!!

A friend suggested to me the other day that I might be an emotional eater.....duh! Of course I am! But, I don't discriminate emotions - I eat no matter what the emotion. However, when you examine our culture, food is associated with every celebration; sad or happy. When we have birthdays, we go out for dinner and have cake. When someone dies, we send food to the funeral home. Every holiday is an excuse to eat - think Christmas, long weekends, Easter, etc, etc. Just come in to my store during any holiday season and you will see first hand the connection between food and a celebration.

I love food; most kinds of food, that is. Especially the 'bad foods'. I remember reading an article or watching a show on TV that suggested that people who love food really take the time to appreciate each and every bite. I can't say that I do that; I don't know why I eat so fast. It's not like I had to fight for food while growing up. But, I do enjoy food. One of my elementary school teachers once called me 'Mistress Mummer' because I would hum while I was eating a Chipper during recess. I still do that and, usually, Mom looks at me and says, 'you really love your food, don't you?' and then laughs. Apparently my grandfather used to hum at the table too. Must be genetic.

I remember saying many times in university that I wished that there was a television station dedicated to food and that I would watch it faithfully if it existed. You can imagine my excitement when I found the FoodNetwork when I got satellite tv in 2003. I pay over $100.00 a month for God knows how many channels but the receiver is usually set to 603 - FoodNetwork Canada. I am also hooked on weight loss shows but that is fodder for a future entry.

We often joke at work that we are all addicted to food. I don't necessarily believe that I am addicted to food. Food is a necessity for life; without it I would die. That is fact. It is certainly possible that I could use food as a crutch now and again but it's not an addiction. Although, I do certainly admit that I probably use food incorrectly and make bad choices where food is concerned. Basically, we are just a bunch of enablers at work; no one has to twist the other's rubber arm when food is involved.

It is cruel and unjust that fat is the major vehicle of taste. Yes, it is sad but true.....fat confers more flavour. Have you tasted a shortbread cookie made with butter compared to one made with margarine? Or cheesecake with full-fat cream cheese instead of low-fat cream cheese? There IS a difference....for the better. Not better for the arteries though.....

Now, I don't think that there is anything wrong with loving food. Afterall, just look at the hundreds of ethnicities out there, the spices, the herbs,....My sister has a much more developed palate than I and is much braver than I for trying different foods. She is always visiting some part of the world through its food. I say that she is exotic.....exotic to me is Greek and then that is only really chicken on a stick.

When I was a kid, I despised anything to do with fat and grizzle. I wouldn't drink homogenized milk because someone told me that it was 'full-fat' milk and I envisioned globs of fat floating in the milk. Unfortunately, that kinda turned me from milk period. Now, anything but skim is too thick. I would painstakingly remove all traces of fat and grizzle from pork chops and steak before I ate it. I hated chicken breasts with the skin on it. The joke at the table was that I left more meat on the bone than what I ate. Given that, Mom doesn't understand how I got to where I am now.

I have a decent collection of cookbooks. I own a KitchenAid mixer. I subscribe to the what's cooking magazine. I am interested in trying new recipes as long as they contain the stuff that I like. I am not a gourmet and really, not a very good cook. There are some things that I do well but there are lots that I don't. I suck at stir-frys. I am lazy when it comes to cooking, I think. It is easier to throw something in the oven than take the time to cook it.

So, part of this journey is to restructure my relationship with food. We probably need to become better friends. But, the love will remain.....