I ♥ NY

Hi, my name is Kristie and I’m… a shopaholic. So for my 21^st birthday this weekend, I didn’t go to the cliché Las Vegas. Nope! Instead, I gifted myself round trip tickets to New York City! Why shouldn't I? Treat yo self, it's your birthday!

Actually, that’s not quite the entire story.

Weather.com reported that it’d be a nice and sunny 60˚. So, I packed my skirts and dresses and went on my merry way.But lo and behold, when I flew in to Cambridge on Friday to visit some friends, it was SNOWING. 60˚ my ass! What LIES!

But there was no turning back. So what if I was going to be that idiot walking around in a skirt in the middle of a freak storm? They already think we Texans are from another world…

My friends and I decided to go shopping for a bit in Boston before heading out for our Halloween festivities. 

I was Minnie Mouse! (Although the inner cook in me wishes I was Sexy Paula Deen, and not just for Halloween.)

I said I was heading to NYC, right? I also said there was a snowstorm. To continue the story, I planned to meet up with my friends in New Jersey on Saturday, so that’s exactly what I did. Or more accurately, that’s what I attempted to do. Except the metro lines from Boston to New Jersey were out. And there were trees all over the road. News reports said such an unexpected snowstorm hadn’t happened since the 1800’s! So what was supposed to be a half-hour-commute stretched to almost two hours.

I eventually got there safely though… in my skirt. Apparently, people from New Jersey find it important to photographically document girls wearing skirts in the snow. And laugh. GUYS, I’M NOT SNOOKI!

To reiterate, I said New York, right? Well, my friend and I made it to NYC Sunday morning! FINALLY! I shopped until my feet practically begged me to stop. I mean, what’s a shopaholic supposed to do with a Bloomingdale’s within a quarter mile? It’s like putting Morgan Freeman in front of a narrative script; he’s going to read it!

All of this inclement weather had me coughing something fierce. To my surprise, I got sick. So on my way home, I wanted two things: to crawl in bed and never leave, and to consume copious amounts of chicken soup. There’s just something about chicken soup that makes everything better. Well maybe not everything, but almost.

So if you ever get caught in a freak snowstorm during Halloween and get sick because you didn’t pack the right clothes, there’s a recipe for that!

Get yo sick ass to the store and pick up these items:
1 cup of carrots
1 cup of celery
3 cups of chicken
Chicken bullion cubes
1 white onion
1 bag of pasta
1 cup of mushrooms

Directions:
1. Boil the pasta and chicken in two separate pots. Dice the onion and slice the carrots, mushrooms, and celery. Once the chicken is almost done cooking, remove it from the water and dice it.
2. Under medium heat, sautée the onions. Once it loses some color and starts to brown, add the mushrooms, some sea salt, and black peppers.
3. Add the chicken broth to the mushrooms and onions after two minutes. Afterwards, add the celery and carrots. Wait for half an hour or until the celery and carrots are soft. 
4. Mix in a cube or two of the chicken bullion and flavor the broth to your liking. Add the diced chicken, and possibly water if you need to.
5. When you're ready to eat, add the noodles. 

What is your go to food/ritual when you're sick?