February Adventures

This month has been a whirlwind of adventures.  We began the month saying goodbye to football and hello to travel.  Hubby spent much of the month traveling to Southern California for work (I'm a little jealous that he's been enjoying the great weather).  Then hubby and I went on our first ski trip together in Taos Ski Valley.  We both had a great time, and I have a feeling there will be more skiing to come.  We also spent a weekend in Austin meeting up with some good friends from New York.  It was a delicious trip as we restaurant hopped through Austin. 

The slopes in Taos Ski Valley

Hubby and I all bundled up

Boot shopping in Austin between meals

 All you can eat BBQ at the Salt Lick

As February comes to a close, our traveling is also taking a break... giving me enough time to finally write a post.  Between our weekends away, I barely had enough time to come up with anything to cook and somehow managed to keep from eating out everyday.  My one special meal from all of February was the Valentine's day dinner I made for a hubby a week after Valentine's day... better late then never.

I made the most delicious mac-n-cheese concoction either of us had ever had.  It came from none other than the Pioneer Woman herself.  This fancy mac and cheese is filled with layers of crumbled bacon, caramelized onions, roasted mushrooms, and 5 fancy cheeses.  Every bite was heavenly with the perfect combination of creamy cheese sauce, salty bacon, and sweet onions.  Even as leftovers, this dish did not disappoint.  It will definitely be a recipe I look back to for special occasions to come.

I only made half the recipe but it lasted for days

A little messy but every bite was heavenly

Football Food

Hubby's pop came to visit a couple of weeks ago.  He was here during the AFC/NFC championship, which meant football themed food for watching the games.  Hubby was thrilled to have a buddy to watch the sports with... and I was thrilled to have some dinner inspiration.  And now with the Super Bowl upon us, I remember back to the super yummy chili meal.

The chili was delicious with a kick of spice... and very easy once I got everything chopped up.  Central Market had stew meat on sale, which made my inspired dinner also budget friendly.  I had found the recipe in a blog recently and thought it would make the perfect accompaniment to a football game.  I cooked it in the slow cooker all day, and it was ready in time for dinner.  Topping it with sour cream, cheddar cheese, and chives helped subdue some of the spice.  Even though I left out some of the more spicy ingredients (cayenne pepper, jalapenos), the chili powder was enough to give it quite a kick.

Our chili spread with sour cream, freshly grated cheddar cheese and chives... oh and don't forget some cornbread just to sweeten things up a little bit.

Hubby and his pop were very happy with their game day dinner.

For the Super Bowl today, we are going to a friend's Super Bowl party.  It's great that hubby and I are meeting cool people in Fort Worth... and they also love to cook!  We are both looking forward to a great meal and good fun while watching the game and commercials.  I never let an opportunity to make something sweet pass me by, especially when there are people to share the calories with.  Hubby and I are bringing sweet and salty super bowl brownies to the party.  I have had the recipe for two years and have been dying to make them.  A sneaked a quick bite as they came out of the oven, and I'm doing my best to restrain myself from eating the whole tray... chocolate-y goodness!

Can't wait to devour these tonight... yum!