Food....mmmm.

Okay, so I'm not much of a cook. My mom is a great cook, my dad can grill, and somewhere along the line I learned to bake. Mostly I just love to eat. :) But I've never really applied myself to cooking. I really have to think about it - combinations for meals do not come to me naturally. Sometimes I'm really baffled by how people know just what will go together, how to combine it, what spices, etc...

Now, Jason (my fiancee) is a pretty good cook, and he knows how to look in the fridge and cabinet and make something out of what is in there. Me... well, when I cook, it does usually turn out decent, but it takes TONS of thought like I mentioned before, and at least one trip to the market, which is usually expensive.

So today, I ended up with a rare day off. Since Jason worked all day, I decided that I would make dinner for both of us tonight.

Success!

I used some ingredients we already had, picked up the rest, and walked out of the grocery store with everything I needed and extra kitchen staples for under $20.

Then, it's time for dinner... I cook, and it doesn't take me hours! 30 minutes start to finish. The menu? Sausage, roasted veggies (peppers, onions, tomatoes), and gluten free Cheesy Penne (aka fancy shmancy mac and cheese). Jason loves it, says it's so good he wants to take leftovers to work tomorrow. Jason never takes his lunch to work! For me this is success!

The best part? I made one of the foods I've been craving lately, but haven't been able to have due to my gluten free diet: mac and cheese. But this... oh this is amazing mac and cheese. It was so easy, so gooey, and I just switched the pasta from regular penne to brown rice penne that I picked up at Trader Joes!

Make it gluten-free or full of gluten, your choice! The recipe is below. :) Sorry, no pictures. We ate it too quickly. :)

CHEESY PENNE (Mac and Cheese)

Adapted from Claire Robinson's Recipe (Food Network)

4 cups penne pasta (I used Brown Rice Pasta since I'm gluten intolerant)

1/2 cup milk

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

3/4 cup heavy cream

4 oz. grated cheese (I used a mix of smoked cheeses: mozzarella, gouda, cheddar - thank you Trader Joes for your pre-shreeded mix!)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

Bring a pot of water to a boil over high heat. Salt the water, add pasta, and cook to al dente. Drain. Return pasta to the saucepan.

Whisk milk with dijon in a small bowl and add to the pot with the cooked pasta, along with cream and shredded cheese. Stir over medium-low heat until the cheese melts and the mixture is nice and thick. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!