Winter is the time of year to throw on a cozy oversized sweater, grab a bowl of homemade soup, and enjoy the comforts of home. We all love the aroma of fresh-baked bread from the oven or mom’s famous mac and cheese. Winter weather is the perfect excuse to embrace all that is gooey, cheesy and warm.

Winter days can feel long and dreary, and sometimes the best remedy is a flaky slice of chicken pot pie or a steaming mug of hot chocolate. The best winter meals are not only those that warm our bodies but that also soothe our minds, and we call those, comfort foods.

Isn’t it crazy to think about how food can calm our minds? How does that even work? Let’s think about this for a minute.

The definition of comfort food according to Wikipedia is “food that provides a nostalgic or sentimental value to someone, and may be characterized by its high caloric nature associated with childhood or home cooking. The nostalgia may be specific to an individual, or it may apply to a specific culture.”

Comfort foods are called comfort foods because they’re, well, comforting. Eating these foods provides emotional and physical comfort. Comfort foods stimulate the brain’s reward system and make you feel good. So in other words, we use food to help make us happy.

What is your go-to food when you are feeling down and gloomy? Do you lean more toward hearty meals like steak and potatoes, or do you grab for sweets and snacks?

I am going to share one of my favorite comfort food recipes with you. Keep in mind that I am not a person who loves to cook; anything that takes a lot of prep time, is not going to happen in my household.

With that said, I use my Instant Pot a lot. I love that I can dump everything in the pot, turn it on and let it do its thing. Comfort food in 25 minutes or less is how I roll.

Italian Chicken and Pasta

Ingredients: Boneless chicken breasts or diced chicken breasts, cream of chicken soup, cream cheese, zesty dry Italian seasoning, chicken broth and pasta (I use rotini noodles).

I cook the noodles separately because I have not mastered noodles in the Instant Pot yet. Put your chicken, a large can of cream of chicken soup, and a can of chicken broth in the pot. Use one package of dry dressing and cover the chicken.

Take your cream cheese and cut it into a few large pieces (this helps it melt easier while cooking). Dump in another package of seasoning and close the lid. Set your Instant Pot to 25 minutes. Once it is done cooking, take your cooked noodles and mix it all together!

This meal is so filling and so delicious. Add some homemade bread and you have yourself a happy heart and a happy belly!

Need some inspiration for your next meal? We have lots of books on cooking, baking and even how to use the Instant Pot at the library. Check one out today!  Visit www.linclib.org.