Mary over at a Merry Life and Karen at Why Weight? just answered a foodie meme question posed by Mish at Eating Journey. I am following suit, partly because I am procrastinating going for my run today (:-)).
The question is: Name five foods you used to love, now love, and still can’t stand.
Foods I Used to Love:
- Macaroni & Cheese: I don’t care if it’s gourmet with aged cheddar and truffles, or it’s Kraft out of the box (I’m not kidding). I love ANY combo of pasta and cheese. Or I did. But it doesn’t love me back. Or isn’t so good for me. So I will still eat it, but instead of craving it like a heat-seeking missile, I will now only eat it once in a very, very blue moon. So. I still love it, but from afar.
- Hotdogs. Again, I’m not kidding. Please don’t disown me. But I adore hotdogs, and have ever since I’ve been little. I’ve pretty much taken them out of my repertoire. I know they’re made of rat toenails and snot and dye, but I couldn’t help it. I love(d) hotdogs.
- Kentucky Fried Chicken: I haven’t had this in over a year, and I am not going to allow myself to taste it to see if I still love it. Probably ever. It’s one of those things.
- Snack Chips. Cheetos (my favorite), Pringles, etc. I’m done with those now. Done.
- Cheap Packaged Cookies. Oreos, Chips Ahoy, Pecan Sandies. If I’m going to do cookies now, I want the really really good stuff.
Food I Now Love: (and presumably didn’t before)
- Cauliflower. I am now obseessssssssed with cauliflower! I love it pureed (a la mashed potatoes), in soup, roasted, curried, ANY way (but not raw. I am not yet a raw cauliflower fan).
- Nonfat, unflavored Greek yogurt. Fage! Oh yum! It tastes like whipped cream to me now. Really thick, perfect whipped cream.
- Blueberries. Yum! I eat about a quart of these a week. I used to be rather “meh” about blueberries but now… cannot get enough. WITH the Greek yogurt, and also by the handful. I used to only like blueberries cooked (ha, like in MUFFINS) but now love them just plain.
- Portobello mushrooms. Yes, they are the vegetarian’s meat. I am not a vegetarian, but I am just as (if not more) satisfied with a Portobello burger than a meat burger. I do not think I can ever travel the tempeh-seitan route, but Portobellos? YES.
- Dark chocolate with sea salt. Dark chocolate is good for you, right? RIGHT? LOL. I never said this list was supposed to be, like, all health food. The reason I love it now and not before, is that it had not been invented before. Ha!
- HONORABLE MENTION: Brussels Sprouts. I used to avoid these like the plague, and I do not say I LOVE them now, but I LIKE them. Especially with bacon. 🙂
Foods I Still Can’t Stand:
- Beets. I try. I try about once a year. Slimy. Icky. No. And don’t even mention the pee.
- Bananas. No. Never. Gross. Gag. ACK. Not in bread, not in cake or muffins, not with ice cream, not raw, not ANY FORM. NO.
- Oatmeal. Again, I try. Often. But there’s something so… lumpy and ugh about it. Only edible with large amounts of cream, butter, brown sugar and walnuts, which I pretty much think mitigates any health value.
- Sardines. Shudder. I’ll eat a raw tuna belly with gusto, but those little.. tiny… bony.. oily? NOOOOOOOOOOOO!
- Licorice. Especially black licorice. No thank you!
So… what’s on YOUR lists?
foodfoodbodybody 
March 1, 2010 at 2:40 pm
I’m glad I’m not alone on not LOVING oatmeal really. I felt like such a bad healthy living blogger. I used to like it, but you are right…. it’s just so lumpy and blah. Only tastes good when you eat all the stuff that isn’t really healthy.
March 1, 2010 at 4:13 pm
Hotdogs used to be life. One summer when I was 18 I hung out over my friends house and that’s all we ate.
Now? hotdogs. they make me sick! literally. Ugh.
March 1, 2010 at 5:02 pm
I don’t like black licorice either!
March 1, 2010 at 9:47 pm
Pretty sure this post could have been written by me! Our likes/loves and hates are almost identical!
I love my baby spinach – can’t get enough of it!
And don’t get me started on hot dogs – love them!
March 2, 2010 at 1:25 am
so basically you used to have the palate of a 4yo? Very similar to how I used to eat too.
how about steel cut oatmeal? i like that stuff. But I also like oatmeal in general. I put BLUEBERRIES in it (frozen ones from Costco).
Fun blog post! I think I’ll respond more fully on my own blog.
March 2, 2010 at 2:18 am
LOL. YES I loved the kids’ menu!!!! Hahahahaha.
March 2, 2010 at 2:19 am
No on the steel cut oatmeal too. I mean, I can put up with it, but I am never gonna love it. If I want grainy lumpy cereal I like hot Kashi, which is super grainulicious.
March 3, 2010 at 8:14 pm
Hi Foodie,
I am new to your blog. I think your transformation is amazing! So impressive!
I love your food list, such a good idea! While I completely agree with you on the food’s that you love now I also love the food you dislike (sardines are only ok…). But I can’t stand some of the foods you used to like. I guess it all depends on how they are prepared, but I just about vomited when I first tried Kraft’s mac and cheese (when I was an exchange student in the US). haha I did not even know what the hell it was!
Love your site! I will be coming back for sure!
– Fellow Foodie
March 3, 2010 at 9:40 pm
Welcome fellow Foodie! Yes, I know, I was totally raised on junk food. It’s (unfortunately) in my blood and very hard to turn away from. I’d love to see your loved/love/hate list!
March 4, 2010 at 12:21 am
It was fun to read this. I remember exactly where we were when you told me 15 years ago that you did not like bananas. I truly thought you were kidding since I thought EVERYONE in the world liked bananas. Then you told me of all the other “B” foods that you did not like such as beets and brussel sprouts. Glad to see that brussel sprouts have morphed over to the now liked foods. They have always helped me lose weight. And, I have always loved blueberries. My mother did and so we always had them when they were in season and it was something special to look forward to. I kinda get why not everyone likes them in the same way. Also, I really like oatmeal, but it has to have brown sugar on it and now I also cut up bananas and toss on some blueberries. Yum! Different people, different likes and dislikes.
March 6, 2010 at 12:02 am
Interesting topic but I had to really think about it.
Love: The only food I truly love is popcorn. If I had to choose one food on which to live for the rest of my life it would be popcorn. But real popcorn, popped with oil and seasoned with salt. I cannot live without my Whirley Pop popcorn popper! I also love good black coffee, but only two cups in the morning and I guess it’s not really a food. While I adore good sourdough bread, I’m not living on it like I once did.
Love no more: all sweets, including chocolate. It may be a blessing or may be a curse but I lost all interest in sweets going on four years ago. I spend a lot of time reading labels and it is shocking to me how many things have sugar in them, even things that don’t really seem to need sugar, like Trader Joe’s frozen roasted potatoes! It’s gotten so bad that now I’ll actually buy something with a sugar as long as it is not in the top five ingredients. I say top five because I am also trying to cut down on prepared foods with a grocery store full of components. I used to adore TJ’s but no more, not since my salt-sensitive high blood pressure lead me to really scrutinize their ingredients. Some of the simplest products have a day’s worth of sodium!! Check out their tiny jar of pesto but prepare yourself for a shock. (You may well ask: why the heck do you spend so much time reading labels? Simple: I come from a long line of really bad cooks and I live alone. “Nough said. Another love not so much anymore is potatoes. Every once in awhile I enjoy baked or mashed potatoes but not like I used to.
Food I loved once and wish I could love again: most raw foods. I used to eat a 90% raw food diet and was never healthier. Basically I lived on fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. Now I barely tolerate fruits (though I do love a good apple). Every once in awhile a salad appeals (and that is actually one thing I do well); but most of the time I buy the ingredients for a salad, make one, maybe two and then two months later toss the rotted goods into the trash.
Unlike Foodie McBody, I like beets, oatmeal and sardines.
March 24, 2010 at 4:59 pm
One of each:
Loved: Chocolate chip cookies. Even now, it’s like thinking about your first love.
Love now: Hummus/Carrots. TJs has an yummy white bean hummus which is perfectly tangy and smooth, great on crisp carrots!
Hate: Celery. ALWAYS. Celery tastes like dirt and may just be the devil in vegetable form.