I, Foodie

At lunch with a friend recently, the discussion centered (for a while) around the term "foodie." One of us thought it was a proprietary term, and the other thought not. What we did agree upon is that we are foodies, even though the "official" definition of "foodie" has not caught up with us and how we talk about food. Take out the "gourmet" part and the "epicure" part, eliminating thereby the snobbery of choice and sensuality of eating, and you have us--gals who cook, eat, and shop for food, who talk about it fairly often, who get together to share it whenever we can, and have opinions about everything. Well, I'm the more opinionated one; my friend is a little more circumspect.

Just to settle the "proprietary" issue I did a little research (i.e., I googled "foodie"). What a surprise to find that one Paul Levy both claims to have originated the label and posted a recent article asking "What is a foodie?" I myself tend to side with those of his readers who think the label useful, non-elite, and decidedly non-pejorative. Indeed, the moment I heard the word, I knew that it described me--at this stage of my life, at least.

As a foodie, I am rather late to the kitchen, finding the foodie in me only after semi-retirement allowed time for food preparation that did not depend solely on a microwave. As a new-to-cooking foodie, I am living in a whole new world of possibilities that I am looking forward to sharing with you. If you've seen parts of this world before, no doubt you can help me enjoy it even more.