one of those people

I hope you’re not one of “those” people.

You know the type I’m talking about.

So judging, so condescending, so eager to scoff at my very important life choices.

It’s just so hard to get along with “those” kind of people. I feel like they just don’t understand me. They just don’t understand my excitement for farmers markets on Saturday mornings. They don’t enjoy eating salads as much as I do. They roll their eyes at me when I tweet excessively about how I bought all my plants for my vegetable garden.

Have you figured out who “those” people are yet?

Vegetable haters.

I just don’t get it. How in the world could anyone hate the one food group I could really and truly live off of for the rest of my life? The colors, the flavors, the textures — nothing can compare. I really don’t think I’ve ever come across a vegetable I didn’t like. Well, except for that one time for the first twenty two years of my life that I thought I hated brussels sprouts. I like to call that period of my life “The Dark Days”. Never again will I succumb to such negative thoughts.

This is the part where you make fun of me for gushing and professing my love for vegetables. And this is the part where I stick out my tongue at you, you… you vegetable hater!!

The Husband is a self proclaimed vegetable hater. Seeing as I am a self proclaimed vegetable lover, this just could not do. The Husband’s vegetable taste buds allow two vegetables into his mouth: corn and potatoes. And corn doesn’t even count because it’s a grain.

Much to his dismay, this has changed drastically since we got married last July. Although I always sigh heavily whenever he asks me what a zucchini is every time he eats it, he eats it nonetheless. It also helps when he asks me “do I like this?” — yes Husband.. yes you do like it. Of course I’m going to answer that way. Do I look stupid to you? dontanswerthat.

His ability to tolerate vegetables did not happen overnight — and there’s something about mushrooms that gives him a serious case of the heebie jeebies. I had a strategy — a plan — for getting the Husband to like vegetables. And you can follow suit with my plan to do the same. Because I’m more than sure that it is the duty of wives every where to get their husbands to love vegetables.

Cover the vegetables in a cheese sauce so he doesn’t know what hit him.

It also helps that your cheese sauce is vegan and doesn’t have an ounce of cheese in it. But that is a trickier topic for a much deeper post. We’re talking baby steps here people — change doesn’t happen overnight.

Creamy Pasta Primavera (serves 3-4)

• 4-6 ounces brown rice elbow pasta, dry
• 1 batch cream sauce
• 3/4 cups frozen peas
• 1/2 red onion, sliced in thin wedges
• 6 cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 zucchini, sliced thickly and halved
• 1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. granulated garlic
• 1/2 tsp. basil
• 1/4 tsp. oregano
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Begin by bringing water to a boil in a medium sized saucepan for the elbow pasta. While waiting for the water to boil, cut up your vegetables and place in a large stir fry pan (with the exception of the sundried tomatoes) with 1 tbsp. olive oil. Heat on medium high heat, stirring frequently for ~5 minutes. Add spices, lower heat, and cover. Continue heating until vegetables are tender. When the water comes to a boil, add your pasta and cook per the directions on the package. While the pasta is cooking, whip up your batch of cream sauce. Once the pasta is tender, drain the pasta, add your vegetables and cream sauce — stir to coat and add sun dried tomatoes on top.

I believe the Husband’s words were “mmmmmmmmmmmmm”. But in between that, I believe I heard a “you are the best cook in the world”.

Okay — maybe he just said “you are a really good cook”. But I must inflate these statements to make myself feel good about myself. Perception is everything, right?

If anything, I can at least be comforted in the fact that you won’t be one of “those” people after you make this for dinner… tonight.

You need to work fast — your kind is easily persuaded against this food group.

I’m really just thinking about your well being here — you can thank me later, vegetable hater.

ps — i’m a poet and i didn’t know it.

Tagged as: cooking, cream sauce, dinner, gluten free, pasta, recipe, special diet, vegetable hater, vegetables