For the love of food

Have you ever eaten something so unbelievably delicious that you had to force the fork from your hand to stop (or have someone else do so for you)? Something so wonderful that you wanted to finish it all in seconds, but instead exhausted all mental stamina to savor it slowly, bite by bite? Yup, it was one of those nights.

Conspicuously hiding behind the simple title of "Cavatappi with Tomatoes and Sausage"- a recipe in the pasta section of the new Cooking At Home cookbook by Williams Sonoma- was a tremendously flavorful, simple, and deeply comforting dinner that quite literally demanded I write about it. Just picture it: perfect, curled tubes of semolina pasta cooked al-dente and smothered in a sauce of roasted roma tomatoes, fresh flat leaf parsley, hot fennel Italian sausage, and a touch (oh all right. a half cup) of heavy cream, which before meeting the pasta was given 20 minutes for flavor melding. A few turns of cracked peppercorns, a pinch of sea salt and a sprinkle of Pecorino Romano and I had what was, hands down, the most delicious pasta dish I had eaten in years. I could cry at the thought of the three (yes!) serving sizes of leftovers in my fridge.

Why, you ask, am I taking up my space and your time writing about my dinner? How, you ask, did a pasta dish pull me out of a deep blogging hiatus at 9:30 on a Thursday night? It hit me as I was eating and audibly mmm'ing and yum'ing and scrolling through the day's tweets. So many people are talking about new years resolutions, being "good" by eating less, worrying about weight, searching for new running and gym buddies... Don't get me wrong, these are all wonderful things, and all resolutions I fully support. But eating my culinary masterpiece tonight was a not so subtle reminder that 2011 may be filled with lofty goals (fitness or otherwise), but it also should be a year for simply enjoying what I love. Sometimes, that means running, or writing, or reading books about South Africa, or keeping in touch with friends. But often it means cooking and eating wonderful food and not feeling guilty for doing so.

Eat up, friends, and enjoy all the delicious things 2011 has to offer. Hit those fitness goals, but take time to relax and remember that new years resolutions and wonderful food don't have to be enemies if kept in moderation. Happy New Year!