Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad

May 11, 2017 Amanda Plott

It never fails. Whenever it starts to get warmer out, I start to think of pasta salad. I guess that's because it's the perfect sort of weather for picnics and backyard BBQs. Today is no different. The weather here in Austin Texas has been absolutely beautiful for the past couple of weeks. It's nice and cool in the mornings and evenings and the middle of the day is pleasantly warm.

When I got some fresh local corn, mayonnaise, queso fresco, and cilantro this past week, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it; Mexican Street Corn. Not just that though, I wanted to turn it into a pasta salad that could be hearty enough for a meal and light enough still to also be used as a side dish...

Skinny Unicorn Popsicles

May 3, 2017 Amanda Plott

With all of the unicorn hullabaloo, I decided to whip up another fun protein packed and wholesome take on a unicorn inspired dish. It's true. These Skinny Unicorn Popsicles are not only cute and inspired by the mythical magical creature of legend, they are also better-for-you in so many ways!

I'm no stranger to the magic of unicorns. I made a rather magical Skinny Unicorn Ice Cream Cake a while back and it's easy to see why it became a fast favorite. However, this time around I wanted to take it a step further and use all natural food coloring. Yep! Not only are these popsicles dairy-free, they are also free of artificial colors...

Baked Hush Puppies

April 28, 2017 Amanda Plott

I think the first (and some of the only) hush puppies I had through my life were at a popular fish fast food joint. You know the one. The one were you have to order 'extra crispy-crunchies'. They were always one of my favorites when I was younger, but you know... times have changed and so have my eating habits. Vastly. In fact, I honestly couldn't tell you the last time I ate at that place last.

Anyway! Earlier this year I was in charge of a 'fish fry' for the two first grade classes (and their families) at my daughter's school. The ironic part here is that I don't own a fryer (never have) and I don't eat fish (never will.) At the fish fry we had plenty of hush puppies to go around. Uuuuuhnnngggh... such a guilty pleasure. That got me thinking way back then... I should make some baked hush puppies!...

Lemon Poppy Seed Granola

March 26, 2017 Amanda Plott

I'm so happy it's spring time finally. I seriously love all the bright flavors of citrus and the beautiful berries that I'm seeing at the store; like these jumbo blueberries that I got this past week. I mean... just look at those suckers! They are the size of two or three whole almonds. Yowza! Some of my favorite spring flavors have to be lemon and blueberry, so naturally I wanted to pair my giant blueberries here with something bright and lemony!

It's been a while since I baked up some granola, so I thought it was high time to make a fun 'Spring' granola that's loaded up with the good stuff. Poppy seeds along with some chia seeds, almonds, and oats. The honey I used for this was a 50/50 blend of honey and stevia; giving me less calories and the same flavor. It's just good all the way around...

Skinny Banana Pudding Poke Cake

March 20, 2017 Amanda Plott

What can I say? I needed some more dessert in my life, y'all! It's been a really hard week. I went into Spring break with my little one thinking that it was going to be smooth sailing. That I was going to get to sleep in, relax, and catch up on life. Hah! Boy, was I ever wrong.

My elderly cat (who is 13 years old now) had to get a few teeth (almost all of them) extracted. Nearly as an emergency too. He's a big boy - 18 lbs. at his heaviest as a mainecoon. Unfortunately one of their only bad qualities is their teeth. Despite my best efforts these past few years to get them cleaned regularly, it just wasn't enough and 5 of his teeth had to be pulled. Given his age and other health concerns it's been a week full of medication and even a trip to the emergency vet yesterday. Mid-recipe too!

Yep. Right after pulling this cake out of the oven I was hot-tailing it to the emergency vet. Bleh. While my poor old man is on the mend, I still am in desperate need for some dessert. Dessert, my mommy, and maybe some wine. I can't adult today...

Quick Pickled Radishes & Carrots

March 7, 2017 Amanda Plott

I'm a little bit of a pickle fiend, y'all. I always have a jar (or several) of pickled vegetables of almost any variety in my fridge at all times. This past week I got my hands on some local radishes and well, I'm honestly not the most familiar with radishes. I know they are a little 'peppery' unless cooked, so part of me really wanted to try them roasted.

But, the pickle loving part of my decided to go another route since I had some verde chicken street tacos on the dinner plan. Street tacos always need something on them with a little tang and pop to brighten them up. Some people use a lot of lime juice for this, and others use pickled jalapeños or radishes...