Snow Days = Cozy Eats

It's been a crazy week. To top it off, I woke up on Thursday morning to an inch of snow.

Considering the blizzards going on in other parts of the country, that might not seem like a big deal to you. However, I live in Texas, and have my entire life. Any time I've ever seen snow (other than a few ski trips in high school and college), it's been incredibly brief, usually mixed with rain or sleet, and it never "sticks" long enough to truly enjoy it.  All of that has changed! It snowed for 24 hours yesterday -- we got a FOOT of snow. A record-breaking 12.6 inches to be exact. The best part is that we weren't supposed to get anywhere near that much, but the conditions were just right for a beautiful winter wonderland. This is what it ended up looking like:

I still can't believe it.

The best part about this whole thing is that because Texas is not set up to deal with this kind of weather event, I was snowed in. No work (at least in the office) for the past two days! Instead, I opened the curtains and found a seat with my laptop facing the window, and worked in my sweatpants, no makeup, and a ponytail. Glorious. And I get Monday off! And it's Valentine's weekend. AND I get to go to Ikea AND pick up my (pre-ordered for the big weekend) gluten free red velvet cupcakes from Sprinkles tomorrow! Needless to say, I'm a happy girl.

Finally. I've been a little grumpy (okay maybe a lot grumpy) for a few weeks now. Brutal. Lots of stress with school (almost done!), work (busy season...ugh), and personal stuff. But I'm better now. But that's beside the point.

I am very quirky. In fact, I'm starting to wonder if The Hubby thinks I'm neurotic. One of my quirks: I am obsessed with weather. OB-SESSED. To the point where I think in my previous life I might have been a storm chaser. I sit in my office with all the lights off except for a dim lamp when there's a storm going on outside. I plan my meals based on weather. I have four weather apps on my iPhone. And I have a crush on the local weather guy. Okay, not a crush, but I think he's pretty awesome and I follow him on Twitter. Much to my delight, this week started out cold and rainy with more of the same in the forecast, so all of my dinners this week have been super cozy. (Plus I was actually at home for dinner every night this week  - a first in months - bonus!)

Monday, I put a pot roast in the crock pot so it would be ready when I got home. I had to change up my family recipe a little based on what I had in the pantry, so it turned out a little drier than usual, but it sure was pretty.

Tuesday, I cooked one of my favorite (and definitely one of the easiest) meals - pasta and a vodka sauce with sausage. Before you get all impressed, here are my ingredients:

That's right. Easy. Super easy. As in my unborn children will eat this often and like it because it takes all of 20 minutes to put together, and that includes boiling the water. And it's CHEAP, with ingredients that are all readily available at most grocery stores. I got all of my ingredients at Super Target - even the pasta.

This stuff is all natural, really tasty....and it says gluten free right on the jar!

Cook and drain the pasta, brown and drain the sausage (and put it back in the pan), deglaze the pan with the sauce, season to taste, then put over the pasta of your choice. I like to add shredded parmesan cheese and some goat cheese crumbles for creaminess. So yummy. So cozy.

On Wednesdays, The Hubby has class, so I'm usually on my own for dinner. Which means that quite often I have some form of macaroni and cheese. A lot of it. This time, I made Annie's Gluten Free Rice Macaroni and Cheese. I'm a cheese fanatic, so I added shredded cheddar and...Cheez Whiz. Yes, you read that right. I'm a grown woman who loves Cheez Whiz.

It was cheezy, gooey, warm, cozy (theme?) deliciousness. I ate the whole batch. While watching last week's Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice. Bliss.

I don't think there's anything better than macaroni and cheese. I don't care what anyone says.

Anyway, even though I had a lot to catch up on, I feel like I'm rambling...so I'm going to get back to my school stuff. On a Friday night. Jealous?

On another note, I read something a few minutes ago that said that currently there is snow on the ground in 49 states - all but Hawaii. 49 states!

Kelly