Skinny Mexican Style Caprese Salad

July 21, 2015 Amanda Plott

I've been in love with caprese salads for a long time now. I think that my love of them actually started some years ago when I worked as a waitress in a newly opening restaurant when I was visiting home for the summer one year from college. It was a horrific experience, but only because I am not good at the whole waitressing thing. That job takes a very skilled and specific type of person to do properly. And I am not skilled or specific to customer servicing!

It did give me an entirely new perspective though on restaurants and I have always had another level or respect for those that wait tables.

Anyway, the restaurant had a caprese salad and I felt like eating vegetarian that day; plus, I mean... I got half off meals and they had great food there so I was pretty set on trying almost everything on the menu. It was love at first bite...

Melon, Mozzarella, Tomato & Prosciutto Snack

July 17, 2015 Amanda Plott

So, I've found lately that eating a couple of lighter snacks in the afternoon instead of an actual lunch has been fitting into my crazy schedule a bit better. Especially when at least one of the snacks includes cheese, I mean... come on. Who doesn't look forward to a little indulgence with cheese? I know I do!

This past week I ordered up a local fresh mozzarella from my grocery service, which I have to say... tastes about a hundred times better from the fresh mozzarella that you get from the grocery store. I was absolutely shocked with the difference between the local fresh mozzarella and what I've become used to. So if you can get your hands on some local mozzarella, I implore you to do so.

You won't regret it!...

Skinny Greek Yogurt Egg Salad

July 9, 2015 Amanda Plott

Wholesome snacking and healthy eating in general has been important to me and my family for all of my adult life. One of my favorite better-for-you swap out staples is greek yogurt. I find that I can substitute greek yogurt for not only sour cream, but also generally for any recipe that calls for mayonnaise as well.

It makes a pretty great substitute when baking as well.

Egg salad one of my most favorite 'guilty pleasure' snacks. So today I decided to lighten it up and make it my own by incorporating greek yogurt. I'm sort of a traditionalist when it comes to egg salad, being that I basically like for it to taste like a well combined deviled egg, another 'guilty pleasure' of mine...

Healthified Turkey Cuban Sandwich

November 10, 2014 Amanda Plott

I'm always on the lookout around Thanksgiving for recipes that I can use up my leftover turkey, and a lighter cuban sandwich is a perfect way to do just that! Don't know what a cuban sandwich is? Well, it's a wonderfully tasty little sandwich that is generally made with roasted pork, ham, swiss cheese, pickles and mustard on some rather hardy cuban bread. Supposedly the sandwich originated in one of my most favorite places in the world - Key West, Florida!

Since, once again this year, I will not be making my traditional Thanksgiving meal, I've been doing my part it making turkey ahead of time; as if I need to get my quota for eating turkey in before the year is up. Then again, I tend to cook with turkey all year long since it's one of my favorite lean meats...

Lily's Lunch Box (Week 5) - Tex-Mex

August 25, 2014 Amanda Plott

There's two things I can always count on getting my little one to eat. Beans and rice! In fact, she takes her beans and rice plain. No salt. No 'spice'... just a sprinkle of cheese and she's done. She has been that way with beans and rice for her entire life.

Though it's not my way of eating them, I'm more than happy to oblige her with this small request. Thankfully, corn and mandarine oranges are two more things that are on the top of her 'will always eat' list. What does that give you? A fun tex-mex lunch idea!...

Homemade Whole Wheat 'Easy Mac'

August 18, 2014 Amanda Plott

My little love was under the weather a for a few days this week, so we didn't exactly have the need for a 'lunch box' today, but... this is what I served her at home for lunch. After all, what's more of a comfort food than macaroni and cheese?

Well, not much! I pretty much put everything into this lunch that would be considered her favorite things. And they all tend to be things that most kids enjoy eating. It was a little bit of a happy accident that it happened to be just what she needed on her sick days! Grapes. Mac-n-cheese. Hot dog. And peas and carrots...