My Recent Obsession

I'm obsessed. I spend hours reading magazines and searching the internet for recipes. I plan out meals before I go to the grocery store, usually about 5 a week. We have a whole shelf full of cookbooks. We got at least 4 as wedding presents and bought at least 4 more with gift certificates. Nicholas is really good at smelling spices and pairing them together. Most of the time we end up with an amazing concoction. I, however, am not an artist. I need a recipe to start with. I don't always follow it to the letter, (Sometimes I forget ingredients at the store or just don't want to buy them.) but I need a baseline.
In the Fall, I enjoyed looking for recipes for the apples, squash, and pumpkins we hand picked from the farm. That's when I started reading blogs about recipes. Oh my! I could spend all day reading blogs...at least one day. After that I am sure my husband would drag me out of the house (despite the snow and 19 degree temperature reading) to get me away from the computer.
I am also obsessed with finding healthy recipes. Eating Well is my most favoritest website. I have made a least 20 of their recipes, and have only come across a couple that I don't like. They use fresh ingredients; they are (mostly) flavorful, and they are healthy. Go there and some spice to your life.
I also recently read the book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. For a year, her family only eats what they can grow themselves or buy locally. It was a great lesson in "seasons" of different types of food. Thanks to "supermarkets," we can buy anything we want anytime of the year. I used to notice when the prices of fruits and veggies would change during the year, but it is only recently that I completely understand why that happens. There are certain fruits, like bananas and apples, that have always been a staple in my diet. Living in New England, I think there is a greater gap in the prices of Fall apples and March apples since there are so many apple orchards. Of course, there were lots of recipes in the book, my weakness. If you read the book, you will have a better understanding of the "total cost" of your food (shipping costs, added preservatives, gas emissions) and will think twice about buying non-fair trade coffee.