What are you craving right now?

The older I get the more I am understanding how important it is to lean into what my body wants. Not from a place of should or as a coping mechanism but more as a natural flow of her seasons. And how magical is it that it also lines up with the flow of the seasons of nature? Shorter days. Colder weather. I find myself wanting to rest more, to slow down, and when it comes to food, anything that will warm my body up. Soup, warm hearty salads over cold crisp ones, low & slow cooked braises, creamy, stick to your ribs sauces, and all the warm spices. Give me all of it.

Do you feel it too?

Did you know there’s actually science to why? Our bodies will conserve heat for our internal organs so we naturally crave more calories for energy. And speaking of heat, our body produces it when we eat so it only makes sense we’d want more calorie dense foods. And lastly because there’s less sunlight and therefore serotonin, our bodies which naturally makes us hungrier. Interesting right?

Science aside, I’ve said this before that tuning into the seasons in all areas of life just feels like this deep exhale. More ease, more peace. And it feels so good. That’s what’s happened for me anyways. And maybe that’s how it’s actually supposed to be? And maybe that feels hard but what if it started with one thing….like cooking for example?

And right now in the world, it’s a simple thing like cooking food that helps us to feel good might just keep us going to be able to hold all the hard stuff too. That’s the whole human experience, isn’t it? Holding it all.

So. I’ll be here leaning into all the warm comforts of Fall cooking and never taking it for granted. What does that look like for you?

What’s Cooking This Week: Macaroni & Cheese

Macaroni & Cheese will be on repeat for the coming months. And because I don’t make the same recipe twice very often (because where’s the fun in that?) I’m sharing some creative ways you can mix it up with different ingredients and flavours.

The foundation of Mac & Cheese is always the sauce which really is just a version white sauce I talked about HERE.

The texture changes if you bake it so try it both ways and see what you like better. Notes for the crispy baked version are at the bottom of the recipe as well as a few suggestions to riff on the basic recipe - because that’s what we do here.

Macaroni & Cheese

• 1/2 lb large seashell pasta or elbow macaroni (or really any pasta that has lots of nooks & crannies to soak up the sauce)

• 4 tbsp unsalted butter

• 4 tbsp all purpose flour

• 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock

• 1 cup whole milk

• 1 garlic clove, crushed

• 1 bay leaf

• 1/4 tsp fresh grated nutmeg

• 1/2 cup good aged cheddar cheese

• 1/4 cup gouda, grueyere or your favourite type of cheese

Cook the pasta in salted water. If you plan to bake the pasta, cook it to where it’s still slightly crunchy as it will cook more in the oven. Drain and set aside, drizzling with a bit of olive oil to keep them from sticking.

In a large sauce pot, melt the butter in over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until combined. Cook on low for 3-5 minutes until it resembles a thick paste. Slowly add about 1/2 cup broth and whisk until smooth. You don’t want any lumps. Add the remaining broth, milk, garlic, bay leaf and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer sauce for 15-20 minutes or until it’s nice and thick. Add the cheese and stir until melted and smooth.

To serve, toss pasta in the sauce. If it’s too thick, thin out with a little stock or water. You want the sauce to just nicely coat the pasta, not stick to it heavily.

If you want to bake this - I roast half a chopped cauliflower @400* until its browned then add a couple handfuls of panko breadcrumbs, salt & pepper and some fresh parsley. Sprinkle the topping over the pasta and bake at 375* until the topping is nice and brown and the sauce is bubbly, about 15 minutes. Here I would definitely add a little extra milk or broth to the sauce because the pasta will soak it up - usually about 1/4 cup. And because the pasta will continue to cook in the oven, I always undercook it in the water by a minute or two.

Some inspiration to mix it up: add chopped & cooked broccoli, cauliflower or peas to add some texture if you’d like.

Add in some squash or pumpkin puree for extra fall flavours

Mix up the cheese (I love smoked gouda), add a parmesan rind to the sauce while cooking (remove before mixing with the pasta), toss in a whole clove of garlic for a mild garlic flavour, add some chili flakes or fresh herbs, caramelized onions or roasted garlic.

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