Sunny Summer Strawberry Lemonade

June 17, 2018 Amanda Plott

Summer time means lemonade. And lemonade for me means MUST BE FRESH. Fresh lemonade is some of the best lemonade, because obviously... it's made fresh and not all garbaged up with a bunch of junk that no one needs.

Now... it used to be when I was younger that my grandmother and my mom were in the habit of making a little something called 'sun tea'. Which is basically just like it sounds. A tea, that's made in the sun. The bad thing about it is that I can't drink tea anymore due to migraine issues. SNARF. So what's the next best thing to make in the sun? Lemonade!…

Garden Vegetable Soup

June 15, 2018 Amanda Plott

Last week it was 'ocean' week here in my house, and this week we're going with the theme of plants! In doing so, I decided to throw a LOT more veggies and vegetarian dishes into the mix this week. We always have a couple of vegetarian dishes every week, for health reasons, cutting the cost of food, and also because it just makes me feel better all around.

I could easily be a vegetarian. In fact, my daughter was basically a vegetarian of her own accord up until she was about 5 years old. Meat just wasn't something she was a fan of. And I can't say that I was far off from that myself with I was a little girl too.

Ready for a true side story about myself? My parents used to have to tell me that meat came from a meat tree when I was little to get me to eat it!…

Skinny Spinach Dip (AKA Seaweed Dip)

June 3, 2018 Amanda Plott

This summer I decided that my daughter and I were going to up our summer game by having a different 'themed' week for all 10 weeks. We've got arts, crafts, and even some recipes planned to make in accordance with each theme. Our first week is going to be 'ocean' themed! We'll be going to a water park, the aquarium, and learning a lot bout the ocean.

Of course, it doesn't stop there. I really wanted to involve the kitchen in our weeks of fun too. Being as we aren't really seafood lovers here in this house, it's been more than a little tricky to find 'ocean inspired' recipes to create that are kid friendly and not seafood. This Skinny Spinach dip was my first idea!…

How to Cut a Watermelon (For a crowd!)

May 31, 2018 Amanda Plott

Hey! YOU. Yes, you! You've probably been cutting watermelon wrong for your whole life and didn't even know it.

So, you may not know it. But... I'm a room mom. That's right! I said it. I spend my fair share of time up at my daughter's school. Whether it's helping her teacher out, helping the school out, or planning and preparing things that go on behind the scenes. There's a wonderful group of us that have all become a lot closer this year and hopefully even more in the next to come!

Every year we have the dreaded end-of-the-year party. It's a pretty big deal. I mean... it's hot in Texas about this time of year. And the one fruit we like to serve up is watermelon. It's fresh, cold, and hydrating. Plus... almost every kid likes it. Win. Win…

BBQ Pork Tenderloin Sliders (Instant Pot) & Quick Pickled Red Onions

May 30, 2018 Amanda Plott

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #AllNaturalPork #CollectiveBias

It's the last week of school here for my little one and I am SO ready for summer, just like I know the rest of you are. I am ready to sleep in a bit in the mornings and take things slow for a little while. This end-of-the-year rush is no joke. My kid is exhausted. I'm exhausted. We're all exhausted. And that's why I'm sticking to quick and easy dinners right now.

These BBQ Pork Tenderloin Sliders are made in just at 30 minutes with the help of my electric pressure cooker and the quick pickled red onions on top are even easier! See? There is hope after all during this end of the year crunch time!…

Low-Carb Spinach & Mushroom Egg Bites (Keto-Friendly!)

May 26, 2018 Amanda Plott

I've been playing around with egg bites for a while now, and I've come up with a few fun flavors to change it up from week to week. Yes, homemade egg bites are generally in my personal regular rotation for one of my usual breakfast options. They are ridiculously easy to make, taste great, and are perfect for meal prepping. Did I mention they're also low-carb, gluten-free, and keto-friendly? Yep! All that too.

This time around, I decided to go with a spinach and mushroom style egg bite. To be honest, I wasn't too sure how well they would turn out since both spinach and mushrooms tend to have a pretty high amount of water in them. But, it ended up working out super well!…