They’re calling for a lot of snow. Me, I don’t like the snow. But, I do like comfort food when it’s cold and there’s that fluffy white stuff on the ground. I like comfort food that can be made and re-heated over and over again. I also like comfort food at parties, because with comfort food, you can make a whole lot of it, and feed a lot of people.
The first thing I want you to do is look in your cabinets. If you don’t have a lot of cream of potato soup, go get some. You’ll need 4 cans of soup and 2 bags of “steam in the bag” broccoli. Whatever kind of sausage you use in this soup, get at least two packages and ½ a package of bacon. You will also need a small bag of shredded cheddar cheese, and two small tubs of sour cream (or one large tub, separated). While your significant other is preparing the soup according to the directions on the can and steaming the broccoli, slice the bacon into small pieces, no more than an inch wide. Fry the bacon and sausage together, and add to the soup. Add the broccoli, and one tub of sour cream (or ½ of the large tub). Melt ½ of a bag of cheddar cheese, and add 1 teaspoon each of oregano and pepper. When serving, place a dollop of sour cream on top. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Double or triple this recipe for parties, and serve with a side of sausage balls (recipe below).
With the storm coming tomorrow, there’s a chance that the kids will be out of school early. That’s not the dream situation for any parent of school aged children, but you can make the most of it by having them help get prepared for Superbowl Sunday. For this recipe, you will need 2 packages of original ground sausage (no flavors, please!). Have your significant other fry up the sausage while you and the kids prepare the batter. For the batter, you will need 4 cups complete pancake mix with just enough water to make a thick, biscuit-like batter. Mix that up, have the kids flour their hands, and add 1 ½ bags of shredded cheddar cheese. If more cheese is needed, add slowly while the kids are mixing. Once the sausage is done, strain and run cool water to stop the cooking process and cool the meat off. You don’t want the mess of hot sausage going into a cheesy batter! Slowly add the sausage, and fold in with a wooden spatula until it is mixed through. If the batter has become watery, add a little bit more dry mix. Shape into small balls, place on an oiled cookie sheet (also fun to let the kids do) and bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. You can refrigerate these until the big day, and to re-heat, put them in a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes.
A favorite “cold day” dish is chili, but with my husband’s sensitive stomach, I rarely make chili. Instead, I make Chicken and Yellow Rice casserole. This one is simple, and delicious. To make it, you will need one package of yellow rice, 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, extra virgin olive oil, oregano, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, mozzarella cheese, and 1 can cream of chicken soup. Have your significant other cube the chicken while you prepare the yellow rice according to package directions with the spices named above added. I’ve made this one so many times, I don’t know the exact measurements of the spices, but I use two dashes each pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. I also use one dash of salt, and three dashes of oregano (or Italian seasoning, if you don’t have oregano). While the rice is cooking, drizzle some olive oil into a frying pan, and prepare the chicken. While the chicken is cookin, I normally use the same spice mixture listed above to spice it up a little. When both chicken and rice are done, mix the two together with one can cream of chicken soup. Spread the mixture into a deep dish baking pan and top with cheese. Again, I don’t measure, but I normally use a bag of cheese. Bake at 350 until the cheese bubbles.
I wish you luck, safety, and warmth as the winter storm looms in our future. Don’t go out unless you absolutely have to, and if you do have to go out, use extreme caution while driving. Try to make sure you have all your necessities before this storm hits, please. Most importantly, stock up on FOOD! I will be posting recipes throughout the weekend, as long as power does not go out.
Comments