Crockpot Carrot Soup with Basil Herb Oil

June 7, 2017 Amanda Plott

I'm barely a week into summer break over here and I already seem to have lost track of what day it is. Is it still the weekend? Almost the weekend again? Where am I? What am I doing? One of the only things that's managing to keep me somewhat grounded, is cooking. For the past few weeks, I've been getting loads and loads of carrots in my local box of produce. I've been trying to use them up as quickly as I could, but... the bag of them only continued to expand.

I've got to be honest, raw carrots are definitely not one of my favorite vegetables. So, thinking of a way to use up over 2 pounds of carrots was a rather daunting task for me. Especially considering that I wanted to be sure to use them all up before any went bad. Waste not, want not...

Summer Breakfast Scramble

June 1, 2017 Amanda Plott

Today is bittersweet! It's the last day of my daughter being in the first grade. Eek! Where does the time go? Somewhere in between rushing her around to school this morning and dealing with a bit of a family emergency, I had to find time to get some food in my system. Since we're on the verge of summer, I thought it would be a great time to make myself a fun summer inspired breakfast scramble!

I'm calling this a Summer Breakfast Scramble, mostly because I'm making use of some summer greens, light feta cheese, and some tomatoes to boot. I've been on a bit of a breakfast kick lately, can you tell? It's just been eggs on top of eggs on top of eggs around here for the whole week. You can't blame me! The farm fresh eggs got me like 'whoa'...

Herbed Ricotta Cheese Omelette

May 29, 2017 Amanda Plott

Over the last couple of weeks, I've become quite addicted to farm fresh local eggs. Once I tried them, I fell instantly in love. It was amazing to me to see how differently the eggs looked and also tasted. My journey among farmer's markets lately has been an experience that's proving to teach me a lot more than I had thought it would. I've always felt the desire to support local businesses, and farms especially.

There's a lot of chatter out there about how eating local can effect not only the economy, but also (and most importantly) your health. Yes, eating local can be more spendy. It's definitely not cheap when you compare the prices to grocery stores. I've found though, that I have a lot less waste now. I'm much more careful about how I use and cook my food. Portions are everything. This Herbed Ricotta Cheese Omelette is a prime example...

Crustless Zucchini & Corn Summer Quiche

May 25, 2017 Amanda Plott

Today was the last Saturday for school here and I can tell that summer us on our heels with all the beautiful corn and summer squash coming in. I got some of the biggest zucchini in my local produce box this last week and pondered for a good long while over what I wanted to do with it. With my dad bringing me in some fresh local eggs, my mind instantly went to a quiche. Not just any quiche though. A summer quiche!

Quiche was always a staple in our house when I was growing up. Usually towards the end of the week my dad would put together a quiche using up all the leftover veggies, meats, and cheeses in the house. So, that's basically what happened here but in a completely perfect seasonal way. I love that it's quick and easy to toss together while being a light and festive too!...

Avocado Caprese Omelettata

May 15, 2017 Amanda Plott

Have you heard me talk about the omlettata before? Surely you have. I've fallen in love with them. They are a perfectly easy and quick way to eat a healthy breakfast. I should know. I'm right smack dab in the middle of the 'busy season' around here. And by that I mean... the end of school, dance recital, and birthdays/anniversaries galore. (Happy Anniversary to my parents and also my parents-in-law!)

There's a lot of YAY going on, but also a lot of meltdowns (and I don't just mean with my 7 year old! Hah!) Anyway! I've been lacking a bit in the breakfast department and I had some local eggs in the fridge that had to be used up soon, so... I thought a new omlettata would be the way to go...

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...