Channeling the Pioneer Woman

After a late-winter hiatus, I'm back again with renewed interest.  All that midwest snow was making me too lazy to really cook anything decent.  I decided to check out a large stack of cookbooks from our local library and one of them was The Pioneer Woman Cooks.  I hadn't done much reading of Ree Drummond's blog in the past but her recipes always look delicious and like something memorable for guests and family.  I wound up purchasing my own copy of the book to begin cooking my way through it over the months ahead.  I'll be writing the day I first cooked a recipe on its page as a way to remember.

Tonight I tried out Ree's recipe for Macaroni & Cheese.  I had most of the ingredients in the house and picked the rest up on a quick trip to Kroger.  A good recipe to me not only tastes good but is also made with ingredients that I can remember where to find in the grocery store before I even walk in.  Too stressful otherwise!  Husband and I walked around Target today also to look at dutch ovens and cast iron skillets.  I've always dreamed of owning both and might have a good reason to invest in the near future ;o)

The macaroni turned out beautifully and was generally easy to make.  For variations, I used cavatappi instead of macaroni, hand-shreaded extra sharp cheddar, and added crumbled bacon, fresh diced tomatoes, and an extra dash of seasoned salt.  Looking forward to leftovers tomorrow night -- I'll be eating with my cropped yoga pants on in anticipation of the hard workout required to balance out the meal!