Gary Mudd's cooking epiphany began late last year when he bought a set of Christmas cookie cutters much like the ones his mother used when he was a boy.

He had recently downsized, leaving behind a half-acre's worth of gardening chores, a swimming pool and a large home that demanded much attention. He coveted KitchenAid's bronze-toned appliances for his new kitchen, but asked himself, "How can you want those when you don't even cook?"

Combine the cookie cutters with the desire for a bronzed kitchen, then add the serendipity of finding the perfect holiday cookie recipe in Cook's Illustrated magazine. Mudd had found a new hobby.

"My mother said 'If you can read, you can cook' and she's right," he said.

"I've bought more butter in the last year than I had in my entire life," Mudd said. "But when something tastes good, and you don't take in all those artificial ingredients, sweeteners, sodium — you don't eat as much."

Mudd doesn't want the bronze appliances any longer, but he does hanker to have just the right tools and pans for his kitchen projects. "Most men can relate to the concept of having the right tools," he said. "Yard work, carpentry or cooking, it's essential to have what you need."

When he needed new pots and pans, Mudd did his research. He used Cook Illustrated's reviews and read about cookware on the web. "I was at TJ Maxx one day and found an All-Clad pot. I visited six stores that day and replaced all my pans at a much lower cost than I had anticipated."

If the accountant in Mudd did a cost-benefit analysis of his cooking hobby, the expense side of the ledger would list the price of equipment, the time-value of his learning curve and the cost of quality ingredients. On balance, he doesn't spend as much eating out. But the intangibles, such as time with his son, show the benefits outweigh the costs.

"That last year of high school was so busy for Alex. Plus, he spends his time in two homes, so I saw him less," Mudd said. "When I cooked a family meal he really liked — homemade meatballs and spaghetti sauce, chocolate cheesecake — I got his attention. Dinner wasn't just about eating, either. We spent time talking, being together as a family.

"He's coming home from Cornell College for the first time in a few weeks. His dorm there has kitchens. Alex asked me to teach him to make my lasagna, so we'll cook together when he's here."