Why is homemade ranch dressing so inspiring?

About a month ago, I was in a huge cooking slump.  I was so tired of the same old, same old...I had zero mental energy to really search for new recipes; I didn't even know where to start.  

Then my birthday came and I received two beautiful cookbooks from a friend.  Very little energy is used to flip through pages and I simply soaked up different ideas and inspiration.  Not only that, I learned how to cook delicious vegetarian and vegan meals!  This is completely out of my element!  But it's just what I needed to find my love of cooking once again.

What I find super fascinating about these lifestyles is that, while it does take extra time to prepare, the dishes are just bursting with flavor.  There are many different ingredients to each recipe I've replicated which, at times, feels a bit tedious.  But...each ingredient is a vital piece to the flavor puzzle and when I sit down to eat, it's so worth it.

What I love:

• I feel inspired again!

• My food-related Pinterest boards are filling up!

• I'm saving quite a bit of money with cutting out much of my meat eating!

• I feel fabulous!

• AND - I'm noticing a lot less food waste.  This is super important to me.

What is challenging:

• It is a lot of work!  It's not as easy to whip up a vegetarian/vegan meal as it is for me to whip up a goulash.  That's just because I'm not as used to it, so this will fade with time.

• My husband's a bit resistant because it's out of his comfort zone.  But I feel it is impolite to complain when dinner is being made for you, so whoever is cooking is the one in charge in my house!  (And the cook doesn't take care of the dishes, either.)

• Planning!  I don't like to waste, so it does take extra creativity and some research to use leftover unfamiliar ingredients and turn them into other usable things!  Thank goodness for Pinterest, because that lead me to the Silken Tofu Ranch Dressing I created the other day with leftover tofu in my fridge.  

One of the easiest things EVER to make! You just put all the ingredients in your blender and BOOM!

Delicious dressing ~ pleasing to the eyes and the belly :)

So, if you're in a rut - get a cookbook that's completely out of your comfort zone and give it a shot.  Whether you ask your friends to recommend one for you, you head to your local library, you start following the boards of people who eat very differently from you on Pinterest - shaking up your eating routines can really be eye-opening and a LOT of fun!  I know I find such enjoyment and fulfillment tinkering around in my kitchen lately.

It's like my love of crafts leaked into the kitchen and I ain't even mad about it! :)