This week in the Southeast, our typical fast-paced lifestyle came to a screeching halt. “Snowmageddon,” as it is being called provided us with 7 days of forced family time. With little else to do, planning our meals became the focus of our days. The first step was defrosting the freezer and taking a detailed inventory of the options at hand. Then, reading through old recipes with the fire blazing in the fireplace which was like visiting with old friends. With plenty of the basic staples on hand (flour, water, milk, and eggs,) we had ample time to start from scratch. We played gin rummy while letting the homemade pasta dough rest between the stages of rolling and cutting.
We sat and chatted as we hand-rolled gnocchi taking our time making the tasty little dumplings. Wonderful smells filled the house as we made fresh bread and pizza. Once the roads were clear enough for a trip to Costco, we embarked on our third sausage making “festa,” making 51 pounds of spicy Italian sausage for the freezer. While cooking from scratch can be time consuming, the benefits are numerous. I know exactly what we are eating; no chemicals or preservatives. And, the food really did taste better - maybe because we worked harder to create the perfect meal or because we made it together as a family.