The leaves are changing, department stores are somehow already playing Christmas music, and, at least for those of us here in the Northeast, we have officially reached the part of the year where the weather decides to stop playing nice. I, personally, love this time of year, but also spend most of it hopping between sources of warmth, so I've always had something of a love-hate relationship with snow. Whether you love snow or hate it though, it's not far off, and while you're surrounded by those white, fluffy piles this year, why not make the most of it?
If saying the phrase "cooking with snow" makes as much sense as "that chemistry exam was too easy," or "boy I love statistics class" to you, I very much understand. Cooking with something that melts if you bring it indoors or hold it for too long might seem a bit ridiculous, but hopefully I can convert you, and leave you with plenty of fun and delicious ideas to try this year when you're staring out the window trying to remember what grass looks like.
"Snow"-Cones
This one is so obvious, it's literally spelled out for you in the name. Don't let the winter cold stop you from expressing your summer vibes with a dope homemade sno-cone. With the big push to buy local nowadays, you can even pull a Whole Foods and make a ton selling "locally sourced" snow-cones. Ok, maybe not, but you can still get a delicious snowy treat. (Especially if you get tropical with this recipe for boozy pineapple syrup that is just the bomb.com)
Homemade Maple Candy
Get in touch with your Canadian roots, and satisfy your sweet tooth for the next month with this personal favorite. I have a not-so-mild addiction to maple syrup, so to me this stuff is basically crack. Plus, the upside of doing it at home is that the only limit to your maple-y goodness binge is the size of your mouth, and how big a stick you can find. This is also one of the easiest recipes ever, like for real — check it out.
Baking
Yeah this one really, really confused me at first too, but I swear this works. I tried making these Snow Cakes from Genius Kitchen, and not only were they not the soggy balls of dough I expected, they were delicious beyond words. Add a hefty schmear of maple icing, and you've got yourself the tastiest DIY snow day treat imaginable. The little kid in me also loved feeling like a wizard as I changed snow into real food, and isn't feeling like a snow wizard what we all really want?
...Melt It
Yep, this is pretty self-explanatory. Get yourself a pot of snow (make sure it's white, and otherwise debris free first), and bring it inside. Wait about 20 minutes (tops), and you've got yourself a pot of pasta water, no muss, no fuss. If you're really paranoid about the cleanliness of your snow, water purification tablets are dirt cheap, and this is a great, eco-friendly alternative to running your sink for 5 minutes straight filling up your enormous pasta pot, because #lifehacks.
I don't know about you all, but when I was little and we had a snow day, I used to love eating the new snow way too much. There's something just so tempting about shoveling in those fluffy, white, watery handfuls. Now you can satisfy that inner six-year old, have a ton of fun passing the time on an otherwise dreary winter day, and be the hero of your friends by filling their snow days with one of these treats, 100% Mother Nature approved.