Things I thought I'd never eat...

In reading people's comments to my posts, many of which include food likes and dislikes, I thought about those foods that I love now that at one time I couldn't even imagine eating, and I thought that it might make a good post. Sometimes your food likes and dislikes come from previous experience, or childhood food experiences, sometimes it is just your personal taste. No matter what the reason, we can be encouraged (those of us with picky eaters in our household) that over time tastes can change, if we are adventurous and play with food!

Foods I thought I would never eat:

Skim Milk-Like a lot of 50's era kids I grew up drinking whole milk. As I got older and wanted to reduce fat I cut back to 2% milk, but even so, I could not drink skim milk. To me, it tasted like watered down milk (I also couldn't stand ice in milk for that same reason). But time marches on and in trying to reduce calories and fat in my family's diet, we have been drinking skim milk in coffee, cereal and with cookies or brownies (Defeating the purpose?!)

Rabbit- As a child I had a very traumatic experience when I saw a neighbor of my grandparents kill their pet bunny for a meal. It wasn't until about three years ago that Evil David made rabbit and I could eat it, and it was delicious. I guess time really does heal all wounds (great for me, not so much for the rabbits!)

Yogurt- Back in the 70s when only hippies ate yogurt, a friend of mine tricked me into taking a bite of plain yogurt. It tasted like thick buttermilk, and it spoiled me on yogurt until the 80s. Now I love yogurt- tzatziki, yogurt cheese, mediterranean yogurt, and the traditional fruit yogurt. One of my favorite healthy desserts, Swedish cream, is made with yogurt. But I still don't like buttermilk!

Sushi and sashimi- Honestly, I never thought I would eat raw fish, and it took real inspiration to get me to try it. I was invited to lunch by a competitive male colleague who suggested we go for sushi, assuming as a mom from a working class background just re-entering the workforce that I wouldn't be into sushi (he even made a point to let me know of the stir-fries available!). I was determined that I was not going to be intimidated when he ordered sushi, so I ordered sushi as well (I think primarily tuna roll and California roll). The lunch was not all that memorable, but I became addicted to sushi- I have tried just about every variety, and I make sashimi quite often for tapas and as a light summer dinner.

Fennel- I have never liked licorice, even the smell squashes my appetite. I was the kid who gave all the black jelly beans to my brother (who loved licorice!), so when I heard that fennel had a licorice-like taste, I wasn't very inspired to try it. However, after Evil David incorporated it in a dish at tapas night, I found that I liked it. I have several dishes that I use fennel in, including a delicious salad and fish en papillote. But I still throw away the black jellybeans!

Sardines- My stepdad used to love sardines and he ate the ones packed in mustard as a snack (okay, this was the man who drank buttermilk from a carton!), and I could hardly stand the smell of them. However, again, this when grilled sardines were one of the first tapas dishes Evil David made, I had to give them a try. With fresh lemon squeezed over and sea salt, they were delicious, and now we have these morsels regularly!

Swedish Cream with Fruit

1 quart plain lowfat yogurt

1 package instant vanilla pudding mix (I use sugar free, fat free to keep calories down and so my diabetic husband can enjoy this)

Fresh fruit (sliced strawberries, kiwi, peaches or a combination are all delicious)

Using a hand mixer or whisk, mix pudding mix into yogurt until well-blended and thickened. Chill. Serve topped with fruit or make a parfait layering fruit and cream. A delicious and healthy dessert!

So come clean...What are the foods you like now that you thought you would never eat?!