Mermaid Treasure Cupcakes

July 7, 2017 Amanda Plott

The next step into this week of Mermaid amazingness is in honor of my fabulous mother's birthday! Truly, she's more of a mermaid than I am. She spends about 75% of her summer in the water. And... about 50% of the rest of the year in and about the water as well. We're talking rivers, lakes, pools, etc. If there's a body of water, she'll find it and she'll be in it with a cocktail or two in her hand.

Every year for one another's birthday we each take the time and effort to make or go and buy one another our favorite cravable cupcakes or cake. This year I opted for a local Austin food truck that makes my most favorite strawberry cupcakes in the entire world. For my mom though? She's getting an oldie but a goodie. It's a surprise cupcake that we've made together in the past and fell in love at first bite...

Healthy 7 Layer Fourth of July Dip

July 2, 2017 Amanda Plott

It's the fourth of July weekend! While I'm spending it rather lazily at home as I recuperate from a few weeks of busy, busy, busy - I'm still finding the time to have fun and be festive! With an impromptu visit from my brother, I decided to toss together a quick 'snacky' meal that we could all graze on throughout the day at our leisure.

Naturally, my first inclination was a 7 layer dip. I think that's because it's one of those things that has something it in that everyone likes! It's one perfect montage or mashup of everything I love. Plus, it's perfectly light and cool for a hot summer day. And of course, since it's around the 4th of July, you just know I had to arrange this dip into the shape of the American flag to be all the more cute and festive!...

Lean Mean Green Power Sandwich

June 27, 2017 Amanda Plott

After a bit of a whirl wind trip to Dallas and back to Austin. And currently with a house full of two very energetic 7 year olds, momma needs some greens. How else am I going to keep up with my daughter and my nephew? With the influx of summer heat and all the madness and chaos around me right now, I figured there was no better time than now for this cool crisp veggie loaded green sandwich!

Of course, this isn't the most 'kid friendly' sandwich; unless you lucked out and have the least picky eater on the planet. So this is for the mommas, the papas, and any other parental/guardian unit that's in need of a way to power through the rest of the day. The kiddos around here opted for turkey and cheese. But, me? I'm strong, happy, and ready to go with this bad boy right here...

Honey Beer Cupcakes with Fresh Blueberry Buttercream

June 18, 2017 Amanda Plott

My dad's birthday always falls around Father's day, which usually means... double the celebrations! Some of his most favorite beers are from the local Austin brewery, Infamous Brewing Company. I've had the honor of meeting the owner (Josh) and hanging out at the brewery a few times. They've won a LOT of medals for their selection of regular and seasonal beers. Their Pumpkin Massacre is a family favorite when it comes around in the fall.

Their brewery was literally right down the street from my parents when they lived over near the lake. Now it's a bit of a trek for either of us, so unfortunately we don't get to go there much anymore. The good news is that they sell Infamous beer in almost any store here around Austin and most of Texas too. If you can't find Infamous near you though, you could always use another beer of your preference for these cupcakes...

Healthified Crockpot Low Country Chicken Boil

June 13, 2017 Amanda Plott

My local box of produce over the past couple of weeks has gifted me with a bounty of red potatoes that I can't bare to let go to waste! My mother asked me a couple weeks back about this recipe that I had put together a couple of years back now. With my brother not being a seafood eater and my dad being mildly allergic to shellfish, she wanted to put together a Low Country Boil that omitted the shrimp or crawfish. Being as I'm not a seafood fan either, I had tried my hand at a seafood-free low country boil, like I said though, this was a couple of summers ago.

So with an idea in mind and plenty of red potatoes to go around, I got to work on my Low Country Chicken Boil once again. Here among the southern states, summer time is when everyone starts to have crawfish boils! It's always sounded amazing to me; sausage, potatoes, corn - who wouldn't like it? Well, me! If you haven't noticed yet, I'm not a seafood eater. I wish that I could be, but it just isn't a possibility. Sadly...

Roasted Beet & Pistachio Salad with Citrus Poppyseed Vinaigrette

June 10, 2017 Amanda Plott

Can we just take a moment to enjoy and revel in the natural beauty of this salad? Just take on all the glorious colors that are straight from nature's bounty! Reds, yellows, greens, oh my! This salad is truly one of the most bright and vibrant things you could put on a plate. Naturally. Over the past couple of weeks, I've been collecting a montage of beets from my local produce box and for the first time ever... I got my hands on some golden beets!

Don't worry though, I also have a plethora of traditional red beets too for those traditionalists out there. I love beets. All the beets. Red. Yellow. It doesn't matter. One of my favorite ways to enjoy them is roasted; cooked in the oven in their own yummy juices and then tossed into a salad. For me, there's no better pairing than beets and feta...