Healthy Brown Bag Popcorn (Garlic Parmesan)

April 14, 2014 Amanda Plott

It was a little gloomy here Sunday and us girls (grandma, mom, daughter, and myself) were all a little tired out from the weekend. We decided to spend our afternoon being lazy with watching a movie and eating some popcorn.

So, I went in my kitchen and whipped out a brown paper lunch bag and my popcorn kernels and started to get to it. My mom is always curious about my popcorn. Seriously? You can just do it yourself? Without a box or some sort of expensive popcorn machine? Seriously. Yes. You can...

Blueberry & Banana Melon Bowl

April 8, 2014 Amanda Plott

Sometimes you just need some fruit in your life.

After a weekend of cake filled preschooler birthday I felt like I needed a more 'grain free' breakfast this morning to let my body settled and readjust itself. I wanted something light but filling enough to hold me through my morning.

My first thought was yogurt and fruit, but it wasn't quite appealing enough. A hah! What about a self containing breakfast? An edible bowl!...

Chile-Lime Avocados

March 26, 2014 Amanda Plott

Alright, so maybe I am slightly obsessed with avocados.

I'm always trying to find new and interesting ways to eat them! Though in all honesty, I could just as easily sit down with an avocado and a spoon and be quite the happy girl. Which is awfully funny considering up until about 5 years ago, I was anything but an avocado fan!

Can I please have all those avocados, guacamole, and naps back that I refused in my younger years? Sort of like roll-over minutes?...

Skinny Raspberry Vinaigrette

March 18, 2014 Amanda Plott

I have been in love with a specific salad for about a week and a half now. After going through a full bottle of Annie's Natural & Organic Raspberry Vinaigrette I pondered to myself how I could go about making something similar to it.

I've made a lot of salad dressings in the past... but vinaigrettes always seem to throw me for a loop. I always try and use the less oil approach by substituting half of the oil called for in a recipe for water. It doesn't tend to work out very well with homemade dressings since it sort of waters everything down. Including the flavor. Ick!...

Hot & Spicy Cheesy Kale Chips

February 28, 2014 Amanda Plott

A few weeks ago my mom and I took a trip to my new neighborhood Whole Foods Market. While we were there scoping things out, we came across some very special kale chips. Crispy, crunchy, nasty-hot, cheesy kale chips. The only problem was... $8? Yikes!

I immediately told my mom once again about my Crispy Kale Chips, and suggested that I try my hand at a spicy cheese version. After all, they would be a fraction of the cost of the little $8 container that we were munching on.

What? I had to see what they tasted like for comparison sake!...

Roast Beef & Asparagus Roll-ups

February 24, 2014 Amanda Plott

I love asparagus. I seriously cannot wait for asparagus to come into season every year! Unfortunately, I am the only one under my roof that does enjoy it... as a result, most of my asparagus recipes will be intended for one or two servings.

The idea behind this recipe actually started with my mom a year or two ago. She had mentioned to me about how she had been wrapping roast beef around sautéed asparagus as a healthy sort of snack...