Poll: Changes in cooking habits since CL

[Terrytx]

Has anyone else found that they have broardened their horizons since they have been using CL recipes?

We used to be a basic meat and potatoes family until I discovered CL several years ago. Now we eat a lot less beef and more other stuff. Also our vegetable consumption has sky-rocketed. We eat and enjoy things I never even imagined cooking in the past. We also have vegetarian meals often, which wouldn't have happened at all in the past.

What about you?

[Jewel]

If you had told me two years ago that every meal I made would have some sort of vegetable in it I would have laughed in your face. I also have upped the veggie consumption. I also have become much more adventurous with spices, and with peppers. I read more labels than I ever did before, and I'm also more creative.

I think the biggest difference for me is that I no longer fear food. Because I was over 100 lbs heavier than I am now for so many years, it got to the point where food scared the living poop out of me. I now use real buter and cheese in limited quantities without heart palpitations, and I can even use a touch of heavy cream or half & half without taking a Prozac to calm down. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/tongue.gif The fear and guilt I associated with food for so long isn't as prevalent! Sure, it's still there at times, and I will always have to watch myself, but at least no food is 'off limits' now. I owe that 'new awakening' to CL and an open mind.

[Shirley Panek]

Jewel -

Congratulations on your weight loss. What an achievement!

Terrytx, I, too, find myself a much more adventurous cook. (Especially since joining this board) I cook most of our meals from Cooking Light. I've also gotten much better at figuring out what to do with those ingredients in my fridge. I don't spend as much time staring at my (full) refrigerator thinking I don't have anything to make for dinner. I'm getting better at substitutions.

I also find that I prefer my cooking to going out or "settling" for pre-packaged food, especially frozen pizza (yuck!).


[This message has been edited by Shirley Panek (edited 03-31-2001).]

[pmmahan]

I eat more beans, tomatoes, and have broadened my tastes for vegetables. (I like artichokes, now, for example). I also eat more whole grains!

[Sara Emily]

GOOD QUESTION, Terrytx! Like Jewel, I find more BALANCE in my cooking and eating. I had gone a bit overboard with eliminating fats, not so much for weight reasons as for health fears. It is alot more FUN cooking and eating when you're not FIGHTING foods, but working with them to achieve the best flavor and texture, while also working to obtain optimum enjoyment and health!

And .... it's even MORE fun since I found this board and the great, helpful, curious, supportive, motivating people on it!!!

[rosen]

As a subscriber for years, I mostly read the mag, tried a few recipes, & then stacked them on the bookshelf. DH & I have changed our eating habits over the years because of health & weight concerns more than thru the influence of CL. We have gotten so that we rarely eat out because we find our cooking so much better. We have lost our taste for overly salty & overly sweet things. But since discovering this BB I have tried more CL recipes in the last 4 months than in the last 4 years! I love you guys & all your opinions! I have downloaded so much paper that we are planting trees this Spring out of guilt! None of my friends or family are interested in cooking healthy & find the conversation boring. So thanks for being out there & sharing! Now I'm glad I never recycled all my old CLs...going thru them is now a real (cooking) adventure!

[makedah]

I'd purchased CL off and on since 1998, but didn't get serious about light cooking until a few months ago. (I've been trying to lose weight since June.) I am also glad I didn't toss those old issues!

CL has helped me to save money. I now consider the money I spend on new ingredients/condiments to be a re-appropriation of my former vending machine and fast-food fund! I eat out less because I know I can prepare something healthier and tastier at home.

I'm a better shopper. I now almost always ingredients on hand for a meal, whereas in the past I either had bare cupboards or a house full of impulse buys.

I eat healthier. Like some of you have already said, I buy and ACTUALLY COOK fresh veggies now.

I also waste less and am no longer afraid of leftovers and my freezer!

I have a new hobby! I always liked to cook, but I was scared to try new things and didn't feel that I could put forth the effort every night. But now I enjoy cooking several times a week and I'm not afraid of failing. I look forward to expanding my repitoire. In fact, my goal is to try 100 new recipes (CL and otherwise) this year.

[Lynn B]

I totally agree with ALL of the above!

My favorite place to eat (by FAR!) is at home, and so much of the reason why is CL and this BB!

Thanks all! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

Lynn

[Cindy Rafferty]

I have to admit...I still really enjoy going out to a good restaurant and getting waited on, in the company of my husband, and some friends! We are fortunate to have a local restaurant run wine dinners every six weeks, it gives me something to look forward to.

I too have changed my cooking habits in the past year. I always liked baking, but now do it from scratch the cooking light way, unless it's a cake for the kids. There are just so many great cookie, scone, and quick-bread recipes to try. I've also just started to do yeast bread, and have become good at pizza dough. I just follow the directions that CL provides, and find that if I make a mistake the first time, it usually is o.k. on the second try.

I tried the Cannelloni recipe last week that was posted a few months ago, it came out great! And I make the Cream of Broccoli soup (or Carrot) that Lorilei posted back in Sept. over and over, also the Spaghini Stick to Your Ribs Soup.

Our dinner group cooks out of the current issue every month, this way we get to try many different CL recipes all at once....Wonderful!

I'm no longer addicted to Chinese Take-Out or supersized Mc'D's. I do allow myself one fast-food meal a week, but then ask for a regular sized meal(a single burger and small fry, not on the menu, you need to ask for it). If I
eat out more often, I'm aware of the portions. This, plus a slave-driver aqua-fitness instructor, has helped me to loose eight pounds since Jan. 1.

It's great to be able to share ideas and thoughts with you all....stay well and healthy!



[This message has been edited by Cindy Rafferty (edited 03-31-2001).]

[KValley]

CL has profoundly affected the way I view food and is directly responsible for the fact that I love to cook and I think I'm pretty darn good- or at least I have an awful lot of fun trying.

I did not have a good model in the kitchen growing up and really never learned my way around. Meals were something to be endured, not anticipated. After spending a year in France several years ago, I returned to the US aching to capture the quality of life and joy of eating that is so European- where meals are about creativity, love, sharing, freshness, simplicity, and enjoying the preparation and consumption of food with each of your senses. I felt so intimidated, however, until I discovered CL in '97.

From reading CL I have experimented with new foods, discovered techniques, entertained with confidence, and coaxed my DH to venture into the kitchen with CL cookbooks in hand to learn that ANYBODY can do this. I have found a new outlet for creativity, a certain path to continued good health, and on summer nights when we sit on the patio eating a wonderful dinner, listening to Billie Holiday, and enjoying Vouvray I know I've managed to bring that European joie de vivre I so longed for to my own home.

I can't wait to teach my own (not-yet existing) children the pleasures of cooking. Thanks, CL! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif



[This message has been edited by KValley (edited 04-01-2001).]

[emilycat]

KValley,

That was so wonderfully written! And I agree with you entirely; we should all have a bit of Europe's paradigm in our kitchens and our lives http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Susan]

I concur with KValley (so well-written!) and Emily! Creativity is indeed a key! This bboard and CL have unchained me from following a recipe exactly as written (or at all!).

~~Susan~~

[KValley]

Thanks, ladies! Sorry for gushing http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/redface.gif, just had some strong feelings on this topic....

[Veronica]

CL has absolutely broadened my horizons and the horizons of those around me who have adopted CL. My SIL and mother are now addicts just like me. Whenever we get together, we marvel at how "gourmet" we've become. We LOVE to cook and share recipes, and all three of us have really become more adventurous since CL came into our lives. Just as someone else mentioned, my husband and I are hardly interested in eating out anymore. Our at-home meals are just too good!