Healthified Home-Corned Beef

February 16, 2015 Amanda Plott

I've always been a bit intrigued with St. Patrick's day. Perhaps it's because I've got some Irish roots. It could also have something to do with some over zealous teachers when I was in elementary school making a big hub-ub about the holiday. I remember that we had a little Leprechaun visit our room, and all though none of us children saw him he managed to leave glitter and rainbows in his wake. As far as I remember he did some rather naughty things too. Turned desks upside down and even turned our milk green. Those mischievous and sneaky little Leprechauns!

When I started making corned beef a few years back, I began doing so with the pre-brined corned beef briskets that you can buy at the store. But, this year I wanted to try and do something a little different. I began to do some research into the matter and found that - YES, you can corn your own beef and that it is really easy to do!...

Healthified Crock Pot Cheeseburger Sliders

February 2, 2015 Amanda Plott

This weekend was more than a little exhausting and for numerous reasons too. So ,I was more than elated that I happened to have this recipe planned ahead for. Somewhere between the weather, family dropping in, and an injury for my four year old... I was in need of something rather hands free to cook up for dinner for more than my usual table setting.

These burgers are super easy to do and rather guilt free (especially if you used the Annie's cheese sauce packs in stead of the alternative.) Now, I'd never made a cheeseburger in a crock pot before, so I was more than little skeptical of what the outcome would be but as it turns out, it was pretty stellar!

Even as I was preparing the meat to go into the crock pot, my mom was asking me 'what is this for' and 'what is that for'... 'are these sloppy joes'. Nope! Well, not exactly. Though the the texture does end up being rather similar to that of a sloppy joe; being as the meat is held together with cheesy goodness rather than a tomato sauce...

Cheeseburger Stuffed Zucchini Boats

May 24, 2014 Amanda Plott

I can has cheezburger? Without feeling guilty?! Yes, indeed! We all can.

These stuffed zucchini boats are a perfectly clever way to have a bun-less burger that I find to be a lot more filling and easy to eat than wrapping a patty in a mere lettuce leaf. You get all the satisfaction and flavors of a traditional cheeseburger packaged neatly into a zucchini squash.

Trust me when I say - you won't miss the bun at all!...

Steak on a Stick

April 16, 2014 Amanda Plott

A month or two back I was whisked away off to a magical land of mystery and whimsey, otherwise known as the Sherwood Forrest Faire. While there I was enticed to try meat-on-a-stick for lunch. I was somewhat skeptical at first but after the first bit I was enchanted. It was amazing! As a side, the meat-on-a-stick could come with a baked potato loaded with butter, sour cream, pesto and parmesan. Also... To. Die For.

The meat on a stick was a thicker piece of what appeared to be flank steak, grilled with some mystical yellow seasoning that I could only fathom was turmeric. So, I went on a hunt as soon as I got home...

Roast Beef & Asparagus Roll-ups

February 24, 2014 Amanda Plott

I love asparagus. I seriously cannot wait for asparagus to come into season every year! Unfortunately, I am the only one under my roof that does enjoy it... as a result, most of my asparagus recipes will be intended for one or two servings.

The idea behind this recipe actually started with my mom a year or two ago. She had mentioned to me about how she had been wrapping roast beef around sautéed asparagus as a healthy sort of snack...

Skinny Shepherd's Pie

February 13, 2014 Amanda Plott

I'm irish and... rather proud of it. Even so, the first time I ever had Shepherd's Pie was when I cooked it for myself. It was a rather easy recipe to prepare and of course goes along famously with St. Patrick's Day.

Now, I've never been to Ireland, so I can't really say whether this is a traditional style variation or not. Though from what I can tell, every recipe seems to be different - just with the basic idea that meat and vegetables make up the bottom layer while potatoes of some sort are spread over the top...