When I was a little girl, my tastes were strictly defined. I only ate butter pecan ice cream, but would sometimes make an exception for strawberry and maaaaaybe chocolate. I only drank apple juice. I only ate cut up hot dogs for lunch.

Not only did I have very set favorites, but there were a lot of foods I would never touch or look at.

However, now that I’m older, I’ve expanded a little. I’ve given some of these foods a second (or… hundredth) chance, and now I almost like some of these previously Untouchable foods! The list of reformed foods includes:

• Celery: I forced myself to like celery. I like the crunch a lot, but the flavor was always so weird to me. Now, I’ve mostly gotten used to it, and I think I like it. (Or I tell myself I do, anyway?) The first time I ate celery, it was weighed down in a really unhealthy amount of ranch dressing. I take it a bit easier with the ranch now.
  
• Mac & cheese: The most controversial item, because I still detest cheese. I think what I really like is creamy baked pasta casseroles, so I really enjoy baked mac. With a nice breadcrumb topping? And maybe some veggies mixed in? Don’t go overboard with the cheese or I will hate it. The first time I ate mac & cheese, I wiped all the cheese off the macaroni. It was good, though. The first time I ate it with the cheese, I was half-starved at a graduation party and I ate a quarter of the tray. Oops.
  
• Onions: I was really scared of onions. I still can’t eat raw onions because the flavor is too strong (although I’ll put a pinch in when I make guacamole). The first time I ate onions was with my ex-uncle, who I was scared of because he had a mean-looking neutral face, and he sauteed onions for dinner. I was too scared not to eat them, and luckily they were really delicious.
  
• Mayonnaise: Okay, mayo is freaky-looking and weird-smelling. I just didn’t want anything to do with it, I didn’t want to eat chicken salad, potato salad, macaroni salad, anything with mayo was like no thank you! The first time I had mayonnaise was in a potato salad, I believe. And I liked it! I also found that I liked my turkey sandwiches with mayo even better than without and I regularly make chicken salad now. Say whaaaaat. Also I’m an even bigger fan of spicy mayo, yum.
  
• Mustard: I don’t really love the flavor of mustard, it’s a really sharp spiciness that I feel mostly in my sinuses and less in my mouth. The first time I had mustard was at DC’s famous Ben’s Chili Bowl, where I had a half-smoke. I don’t like chili (I know, I know, Ben’s Chili Bowl) but I was surprised but how I didn’t dislike the mustard. Now, I’m more than happy to put mustard on hot dogs, burgers, and sandwiches.
  
• Chili and jalapeno: I am still quite a bit pansy when it comes to spiciness, but I am actively trying to increase my spice tolerance! Spicy foods boost your health, after all. I can’t pinpoint the first time I ate chili peppers or chili oil on purpose (although it happened plenty of time without my agreeing to it!) but I do remember a few moments of eating something with a kick and thinking “Hmm…… this actually isn’t so bad. I am not in pain.”
  

I currently have all of these in my fridge/pantry right now. Oh, how the times have changed!

What are some foods that you used to avoid but now eat?
I still avoid some foods… what are some that I definitely shouldn’t?

(Sorry I’m a little late, but I promise this is for Saturday, BEDA-wise.)