Former Green Bay Packer LeRoy Butler, the inventor of the Lambeau Leap, likes to cook.

So much so, this Wisconsin father of seven regularly prepares meals for family, friends and clients, and he’s written six cookbooks with another due out this fall.

“I love doing the domestic stuff,” said Butler, who wore No. 36 as a safety with the championship Super Bowl XXXI team. Today he’s a motivational speaker, author, sports commentator, podcaster and Packers Hall of Famer.

Amazingly, Butler has also amassed one serious collection of pots and pans over the many years he’s been cooking. The running total is 1,834, give or take a skillet or two, according to Butler’s children, who are actually keeping count.

The stockpile of stockpots is stashed throughout his Racine-area kitchen and has spread beyond state lines into his relatives’ kitchens. The last hefty pan he acquired weighed at least 10 pounds, he attested.

When it comes to cookware, he’s not brand loyal nor committed to any particular material. Stainless steel, cast iron, ceramic, anodized aluminum and copper. It doesn’t matter; they all attract him. When he and his wife, Genesis, married, he estimated over half of their wedding presents were pots and pans. Butler keeps buying more because he’s afraid he will run out.

His fantasy? Well, let’s just say it’s unique. Unlike some men who dream of scoring a big promotion at work, running a marathon or sinking a hole in one,

Butler’s wish is to have his own brand of pots and pans.

“LeRoy dreams of having his own signature pots. That’s breaking news,” he joked.

Wisconsin’s wide world of cheese

Growing up in Florida, Butler learned to cook with his mom, Eunice.

Little did he know, however, that when the Green Bay Packers drafted him in 1990 he would soon cross over into the cheese zone. Until then, his cooking world had been a two-cheese dimension consisting of cheddar and mozzarella.

“I didn’t know that there was that many types of cheeses before I moved here,” he explained. “I was just blown away.”

Since then, his cheese repertoire has expanded, especially after making the Dairy State his permanent home in 2006. One yummy example is LeRoy’s Famous 5-Cheese Creamy Mac & Cheese, which calls for nearly four pounds of five different types of cheeses, including Gouda and Colby Jack.

To show how far he’s progressed as a bona fide cheesehead, Butler admitted he thought Gouda was a type of lizard in his pre-Packers days.

Now, he’s fully schooled the Wisconsin way.

Another change he’s made while cooking in a northern state was dialing back the spices and