None of my friends (at least not my friends in LA) cook. They complain about not knowing how to cook or not having the desire to learn. So I decided to offer up prepared Suzie Foods so that after a long day of work, people can come home, pull some delicious homemade food from the freezer, heat it up and enjoy it without worrying about how it was made and if it's got crazy preservatives in it.
But here's the thing. I LOVE to cook. Right now, when a normal person would be enjoying breakfast, I'm simmering a pot of garlicky delicious black beans. Cooking for myself allows me to know exactly what is and isn't in my food. I love that I can flavor dishes just how I like them. I love that I can control the amount of fat or number of calories I take in.
But I get the feeling that most people are not like me. How about you? Where does your food come from? Do you cook? Take out? Eat from a box? Why?
xoxo,
Suzanne
About Me
- Suzanne Casamento
- Author of Fingerprints, Choosing Tally, and All the Moments in Between. Tweet me @suzannecasamento
I love to make things from scratch.
ReplyDeleteIt's less expensive, it doesn't have artificial anything and fresh always tastes better. I just learned how to make those big fat soft pretzels that they charge $5 for at the mall. My kids love them and the house smells so good when they're baking.
N and I really enjoy cooking, and we happily share the task. He's great at breakfasts, pizza, pies, and stirfry...whereas I do great grilling, roasts, sauces, soups, and "impromptu from nothing" dinners.
ReplyDeleteFor me it is about taking back control of what I am (or in some cases, am not) putting into my body. It's also about educating our daughter about food culture. I was so pleased the other day when on the way to her daycare we spotted a wild turkey crossing the road, to which K said "We eat turkey right?" :D It's good to know where your food comes from.
Take out is still a treat from time to time...but it is just that -- a treat.
I cook but unfortunately I very rarely find pleasure in it. I don't cook from a box and take out less than once a week. Maybe I would enjoy it more if I had more time to pick out the perfect ingredients or create something new and delicious. But alas, I'm the crazy woman at the supermarket with 3 kids in tow, things falling out of her carriage and leaving a trail of Cheerios. Dinner is a balancing act of kids running around, baby crying and throwing things together in a pot, all the while screaming "don't touch that, it's hot!"
ReplyDeleteI'm with Lisa D. I cook most meals (except hubby does the grilling), but don't like it. I think I'm a fair to good cook, but not great. My husband is a much better cook than me, he cooks about once a week. The meal is always more complicated and flavorful!
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome that you offer the frozen homemade meals!!
I bake more than I cook, but when I do cook, I generally like what I make. Last night, however, was an exception. Let's just say leftover oven fries, no matter how messed up they might look, should not be reimagined as mashed potatoes or even potato salad. The dogs did eat and quite enjoy them, however.
ReplyDeleteI love to cook but rarely get the opportunity to cook like I used to.
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm a cook ALLL the way! I love your cooking blog. :D
ReplyDeleteI much prefer to bake though I rarely do anymore as I have "helpers" aka hinderers. I'm a mediocre to adequate cook under the circumstances. I get no pleasure from it and sometimes cheat out of a box or can. I can identify with Lisa D. I feel I should call ahead to the grocery store so they can issue a warning to any shoppers who want to be gone before we arrive.
ReplyDeleteLove, love to cook but find it hard to cook for one.....lots of freezing and last min salads.
ReplyDeleteA mixture of cooking and taking out, but rarely from the box! I'm just an average cook and sometimes we have to add up some spices in our lifes ;).
ReplyDeleteI used to love to cook elaborate meals and bake incredible desserts--but now I have kids running on different schedules, one with food allergies, and a husband who hates garlic (Argh!!)--meals are simple. I cook every day out of necessity, experiment a lot with fresh food, and try to keep the cooking time down.
ReplyDeleteGreat cooking blog! So fantastic you've created a business from what you love to do--I wish I could try out some of your recipes as is, but need to tweak them a bit for my food allergic girl. Thank you!
My daughter and I live together. She's supposed to be responsible for the cooking and me, the cleaning but we wind up with a combination of good, healthy cooked meals vs order in vs frozen meals in a bag vs unhealthy cooked meals.
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