I'm inspired

OK, I am inspired by all of you bloggers. Inspired and determined to record
my own culinary adventures. I am of a peculiar brand of food enthusiast,
though. Not the kind who tries the same recipe over and over again, honing
it to perfection. Rather, I never make the same thing twice. I have a huge
binder full of recipes that I have cut out or printed out and have never
tried. Planning a meal sends me into a state of anxiety not because I have
no options, but because I have too many options, every one of them new to
me.

Frankly, I think it drives my husband crazy. He's the kind of guy who orders
the same thing at his favorite restaurants every time we go there. Steak and
fries at Steak Frites. A fried chicken sandwich at U.J.'s Diner. Ham steak
and eggs at Austin Street. Whenever I ask him what we should make for
dinner, he answers "taco salad" (Fritos covered in beans, ground meat,
lettuce, cheese, etc). After 7 years of marriage, it's kind of a joke (the
kind of joke that can send me into a screaming fit; see above anxiety). I
think it's because I view every mealtime as an opportunity to eat something
great and can be depressed for hours when a meal is mediocre. But I'm not a
food snob. A cheesesteak from B.B.'s or a slice of greasy pizzeria
pizza can leave me quite content. Last night's pleasant repast was toasted
rosemary bread with fig-and-olive tapenade and an orange.

I can't do meals like that often, though, since my husband, Todd, is a big
guy (tea- or tapas-type meals are not real meals). He's picky, too: no
squash of any kind, mushrooms, corn off the cob, tofu, eggplant, kumquats,
fruit with meat, things in his rice, casseroles. . . you get the idea. He's
in business school part time, though, so on Wednesday and Thursday nights,
when he has class, it's all about me (and only about me, which can be
challenging, too, cooking for one).

Tonight I'll make somen noodles with snow peas and peanut sauce. I have yet
to find the perfect peanut sauce; tonight I'll try one I found in a book
called Little Meals. Haven't decided whether to add some shrimp. I know
chicken's the usual meat for that dish, but I'm kind of anti-chicken right
now. I just can't stand the sight of those bloated breasts in the
supermarket. Maybe there is something to be said for organic.