Snow day dinners strike me as the ultimate ideal comfort food. You can curl up next to a fire and eat comfortably until the weather passes. I sometimes want to have snow days, a difficult thing for a guy living in warm weather almost year-round. I’ve often wondered what I would cook when the weather gets cold enough to keep from getting to the supermarket, let alone wanting to go outside and battle the elements to get food and supplies.
I’ve found 11 brilliant examples of meals I’d like to cook when it’s all snowed in. With simple ingredients you are likely to have in the pantry, there’s no need to worry about a flurry of snow, getting the car started, or needing to plow the driveway.
Taco night just got even easier. Instead of having to fight with my kids for shells, spoons, and sauces, I can just put the ingredients of this easy Taco Casserole into a big baking dish, spread out some cheese, and let the oven do the rest.
I’ll eat tacos anytime, any place, but a casserole strikes me as the perfect way to feed everyone when there’s snow up to your door.
This Chicken Alfredo Lasagna is on my learning list. To be honest, my traditional lasagna game is terrible, so much so that I’ve abandoned ever cooking it at home. However, being able to incorporate a dish that I’ve had some success with, Chicken Alfredo, into yummy creamy pasta layers filled with chicken and cheese, should make me a little more confident at getting it right.
And if I give it a shot during a quiet snow day, my family members can’t escape into the snowy wilderness. They’re more likely to tell me that my cooking tastes great (whether it’s true or not)!
A delicious, traditional spanakopita takes a lot of effort to get right, although the results can be amazing. My preference is to make it a bit less risky with our Spanakopita Casserole, loading up the casserole dish with all of those sensational Greek flavors but without the time-consuming preparation.
If you love this Greek favorite but want to speed up the process and take out the tricky elements, a spanakopita casserole is a tremendous winter warmer that the whole family can enjoy.
I know it’s a cliché, but warming up by the fire with this hearty stew – chock full of 3 different types of meat, veggies, and beans – couldn’t feel more like winter (even here in Australia, where snow is non-existent on the coast). If it’s good enough to keep ranchers warm on the trail, getting into this “kitchen sink” stew aka Cowboy Stew sounds like my idea of the perfect snow day dinner pot.
A bowl of old-school chicken and dumplings is good for your immune system and for your soul. Creating a yummy pot from this tasty, Chicken and Dumplings recipe, a traditional classic, can be a family affair.
There aren’t many traditional comfort foods better than chicken and dumplings. It’s just perfect to get you warmed up and ready for relaxation, hopefully with a good book and a glass of Chardonnay.
The only problem I have with this Slow Cooker Beef Ragu is that if you start it early enough in the day, the delicious smell invades every nook and cranny of your house until you can’t help but take a taste (or two).
It’s so simple and easy, utilizing ingredients you are assured to have in the kitchen or freezer, that you’ll be excited to fire up the cooker at the first sign of a squall.
A winter warmer likely to have been passed down through generations, Chicken Gloria combines creamy chicken and mushrooms with a lovely kicking sherry sauce in a delicious casserole form (noodles soak up all the goodness).
This is the type of recipe I grew up with, my nan at the stovetop, armed with a wooden spoon and salt, making sure that she had a glass to help speed the cooking along and make the meal more lively.
While many Chinese-inspired dishes emphasize a balance of flavor that’s brought together quickly, this Slow Cooker Ginger Beef Stew luxuriates in taking its time.
A hearty, flavorful stew like this is the best way to warm up on a cold day. I like to think ginger is good for the immune system, too, so this is a kind of healthy-hearty stoup. This is a great stew for when you want something outside of the ordinary.
I always try to make sure I’ve got a few pork chops in the freezer for a rainy…er, snowy day.
I like this Layered Apple Pork Bake because it offers a traditional pork accompaniment, rich apple, done in a way that gives you a simple but tasty dinner. Sometimes, on a snowy day, it’s best to throw a few essentials together and enjoy a traditional dish.
I like this combination of a Ground Beef Stroganoff Casserole base done with ground beef – there’s always plenty in my freezer just waiting for a chance to shine – and when prepared properly is richer and more velvety than strips of steak.
I also like that you can add layers of soft and melty cheese to the dish, it looks so good that you want to just watch it for a while instead of diving in!
The addition of some crunchy Ritz crackers on top of a Million Dollar Chicken Casserole really does make it seem like a million bucks. There’s cream and cottage cheese in this dish, which makes it beautifully indulgent comfort food for when the weather is hideous you just want to hunker down for a while.
To be honest, I’d eat this in the middle of summer, as its tastiness is unmatched!
Conclusion
When you’re snowed in, your dinners don’t have to be cold beans and canned spaghetti. Using what you’ve got already in the fridge or pantry can result in a range of yummy dishes that may make you think twice before going back out after a blizzard!
