Buffalo Chicken+Mac N Cheese=Comfort

The start of a new school year, a new challenging setting for work, and settling into married life has me craving relaxation and comfort every evening when we make it home. My workouts have gone on a short hiatus since the honeymoon (Don't tell!) and I'm not in too big of a hurry to kick it back into gear. We're just TOO busy and need some time to unwind at night. There's no better way to do that than with fall comfort foods.

We hosted a couples shower at our house saturday night after a crazy week of overtime. Totally spent, I slept in Sunday morning later than I have in ages. Sean somehow managed to go golfing that morning while I snoozed. That afternoon, Lindsay and baby Avery (who recently celebrated the big ONE!)

...came to play for a bit. After Sean and Avery swang in the hammock for a minute, I took her to run with the puppies in the yard. 45 minutes later, Sean still hadn't moved from that hammock. And when Lindsay and Avery left to go home, he STILL had not moved.

I checked to make sure he was still breathing.
He was.


Passed out, sound asleep, cocooned up like a caterpillar between two trees in the backyard, slightly swaying in the autumn breeze. I took a few pictures and woke him up with my uncontrolled laughing, then climbed inside for a little peaceful afternoon nap myself.


That weekend for the shower, I made buffalo chicken crescents and needed to use the leftover buffalo chicken. What better comforting combination than buffalo chicken and macaroni and cheese, I thought!

No real recipe here. Just inspiration for a deadly combination. You know I never follow them anyways. In addition to the comfort food kick I'm on, I'm also loving simple, easy "throw-together" meals with any short-cuts I can think of. This was perfect.


I used cavatappi, or corkscrew, pasta which I think makes the best macaroni and cheese. I added butter, milk, and leftover cheeses from different meals for a combination of velveeta, mozzarella, and cheddar, then a little sour cream and salt and pepper. Make whatever macaroni and cheese is your favorite!

The buffalo chicken I had was fully cooked and just needed to be nooked in the oven or microwave. I like the oven so it's crispy.

I used oven-safe ramekins to layer macaroni and cheese, chicken, then a little of the melted cheese from the bottom of the pot.


We topped with red pepper flakes and Sean used a few shakes of extra hot sauce on top. It was oh so bad. SINfully delicious.

If you would rather go full out and like an exact recipe to follow, here's one from YumSugar.

Enjoy!

~Katie and Sean

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