Sister Sister

I don't have any biological sisters and truthfully, if I had two daughters I think I'd be lost in how to handle them and the unique relationship that ensues. But Ashley was already part of the Anderson family by the time I joined and soon we'll add Sara when she marries our brother-in-law David in June - and I'm starting to think that sisters seem like a pretty great addition to what is my family!

A couple of weekends ago (yes, I'm very behind) we had a girls weekend here in Dallas for Sara. Girls came in from Lubbock, Austin, Houston, Oklahoma and St. Louis! We did girly things like make gourmet grilled cheeses, get manicures and pedicures, shop, watch girly movies, etc. but more importantly we made lots of wonderful memories.

Ashley, Sara and I all come from families where we have younger brothers and though we didn't choose each other as sisters (in-law) any more than you can choose your biological siblings, I think we are a pretty great match! It's crazy to think that our commitments to each of these Anderson brothers is also a commitment to be in one anothers lives as well - these girls will be my sisters for life... and I think that's a pretty awesome deal!

Love you girls!

Natasha

Snow Pics (More)

I found some more pictures of the snow on my camera tonight. I got HOT the other day running errands and it wasn't even a month ago that our house looked like this...

Snow on the roof.

Pasta-thon 2: Pasta with Italian Sausage, Spinach and Peppers

The half-marathon is 4 days and a drive to Arkansas away, but the pasta keeps cooking. This recipe is from a magazine... either Martha Stewart, Rachel Ray's or Southern Living... don't have the original page anymore to give proper credit - my apologies. I usually half this one because typically the pasta's with wilted spinach aren't as good reheated as they are round one.

INGREDIENTS
- 20 oz. package sausage (we like the pecan jalapeno kind because we're spicy)
- 2 yellow bell peppers cut into bite size strips
- 1 small sweet onion cut into strips (sometimes I omit this, other times I use a quarter of a yellow onion)
- 14 to 16 oz. pasta (I use spaghetti or angel hair)
- 1 tsp. crushed red pepper
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/2 c. chicken broth
- 6 c. baby spinach
- Sprinkling feta or Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS
- Cook sausage in skillet until edges brown (note: I used pre-cooked sausage but do this to get the sausage hot and because I like the texture better).
- Add onions and yellow peppers and cook until tender.
- Meanwhile cook pasta with salt and red peppers added to the cooking water.
- Once pasta is cooked, drain pasta water (reserving a cup) and return to pan.
- Toss with sausage mixture. Stir in chicken broth and enough pasta water to thin (I rarely use the whole cup).
- Add spinach and toss until begins to wilt.
- Sprinkle with feta or Parmesan to serve.

Pretty pasta to serve, but cools quickly so you gotta serve fast!