Skinny Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll

November 1, 2015 Amanda Plott

The very first time that I had a pumpkin cream cheese roll, it was sometime in high school when my mom and I had purchased one from a local lady that made them from scratch around the holidays to sell for a little bonus side money.

It was one of the best things that I had ever eaten.

After that, I decided to try my hand at making one the following year. While it turned out well and was quickly gobbled up by my family (especially my little brother.) The task seemed daunting to me; mostly because I was so new to cooking and baking back then...

Scary Good Stuffed Meatballs & Garlicky Sauce (Crock Pot)

October 24, 2015 Amanda Plott

One of my more favorite recipes here is one that is about two years old now. It's a tried and true recipe that I've kept in my back pocket and used numerous times over the years. With Halloween getting closer and closer, I decided to take that recipe out, dust it off, and give it a good scary once over.

A while back now, I had heard of these wonderful cheese stuffed meatballs and just knew that it was something that I had to give a try. So, I thought what better time than now? To make these meatballs even more scary good, I used both ground meat and hot sausage to give that nice little bit of heat. I also wanted to keep the vampires at bay, so I was sure to make the sauce garlicky...

Skinny Cheeseburger Soup

October 22, 2015 Amanda Plott

I must admit that I have been in total soup mode lately. I think it's something that happens to me every fall once it finally starts to cool off here in Texas. Of course, it doesn't help that there's been a head cold running around the house for a couple of weeks now too.

Thankfully, we're going to even be getting down into the 70's during the days this week along with some chances for rain, whoohoo! Just in time too. There's a fall festival at my daughter's school this weekend and I'm ready to get into the spirit of Halloween all the more. Pun totally intended.

One of our traditional family favorites no matter the time of year is definitely cheeseburgers. Generally, if we can't think of anything else to grill/cook we end up with burgers and hotdogs. Today I'm taking this delicious staple and transforming it into a better-for-you hearty soup!...

Skinny Chocolate Ginger Bat Cookies

October 16, 2015 Amanda Plott

I've made these particular cookies for a few years now. It all started when we first moved to Austin and my mom made us all take the trek down to the famous Congress Street bridge around Halloween to watch the millions of bats fly out from under it once it was dark. It's a pretty cool thing to watch, especially when leading up to my favorite holiday, Halloween!

When we go to see the bats, and we usually do every year, I always like to take some wine and a snack. We always take the guided bat boat tours which can last a good hour or two while we wait for it to get dark enough for the bats to surface.

I had seen ginger-bread skeletons before, so one year I got smart and thought it would be super cute to make these cookies over in a healthy way while also packing them up for a 'bat night' treat...

Skinny Pumpkin Pasta Skillet

October 10, 2015 Amanda Plott

Pumpkin, pumpkin, everywhere! It's that time of year when pumpkin spice and everything nice has once again taken the world by storm, and I love it. I wish the weather was this nice and pumpkins were admired year-round.

Seriously. I'd be one happy girl if it were fall all the time.

This recipe is entirely pumpkin and fall inspired. It's full of creamy pumpkin goodness which is an amazing alternative to some of the more creamy heavy cheese loaded sauces that you come across all too often. This dish is hearty without being overly rich or heavy...

Skinny Boo Bites (Sponsored)

October 8, 2015 Amanda Plott

This post was brought to you by Collective Bias, Inc. and it's advertiser. I received compensation to write this post … but, all opinions expressed are my own. #CelebrateLosMuertos #CollectiveBias

A while back now I had made these yummy little cookies for my daughter's birthday, and called them 'Fairy Bites'. They were more so a snack on the trip that we were taking to her fairy themed birthday destination. With Halloween and Dia de los Muertos coming up soon, I wanted to take those cookies and make them again with a few special changes!

Halloween is actually my favorite holiday. I think it has to do with the cooler weather and the fact that people get to prance around in costumes and pretend to be someone or something else for a while. Here in Texas, Dia de los Muertos or 'The Day of the Dead' is a pretty big holiday too. In fact, my mom is in love with sugar skulls. They seem to be becoming quite trendy, not just here either. There's even a neat little shop in down town Austin here that actually sells full sized sugar skull inspired skeletons year round. They are amazingly intricate while being bright and colorful too...