Mmmm. I very rarely choose to cook when I don't have to, but every so often, something comes over me. Today, as I was sitting on the couch, surfing and thinking about how to clean up the last few tweaks in my Big Rewrite, all of a sudden, a craving came over me: I had to have garlicky macaroni & cheese. And I had to make it now!

(So, hmm, thinking about that timing...well, even cooking can work for me when it functions as procrastination!)

So I buzzed into the kitchen, spent about twenty minutes cooking, then waited another half an hour as the gorgeous scents of baking garlic, strong, sharp cheddar and a bit of mustard trickled out of the kitchen and through the rest of the house, driving both me and Maya wild with anticipation. (Poor Maya's anticipation was thoroughly quashed when it turned out the macaroni & cheese was not for her, defying all odds! She was hugely disappointed.) Patrick held his nose and made snarky comments as he put his sandwich together. But then, I always do the same when it comes time for him to slice the vinegary, pickled beetroot he eats in his sandwiches every day.

And then, mmmm... luscious, garlicky heaven. Macaroni & cheese is definitely my all-time comfort food. I don't remember the last time I felt quite so purely contented at the end of a meal. (Oh, wait, yes I do - when my dad made macaroni for me back in January. Okay, I am predictable.)

What about you guys? What are your comfort foods? And are they foods you grew up eating, or foods you discovered as adults?

It's time for me to get back to the rewrite. But I've promised myself a reward when I finish: I'll get to read "Breathe", the new Emma Bull novella that's just been posted free online at Shadow Unit, the online writing project she, Elizabeth Bear, and Sarah Monette are all working on. I can't wait!