Crock Pot Blueberry & Banana Irish Oatmeal

July 16, 2014 Amanda Plott

A big heaping bowl of irish oatmeal for breakfast almost always hits the spot for me, but I haven't had any for quite a while now. I guess I have it in my mind that oatmeal isn't exactly a summer sort of breakfast, so I tend to brush it aside for these grueling few months of 100 degree weather.

However, oatmeal was a specific request on the part of my grandmother, and since it's getting down to her last few weeks here... I thought I would finally oblige!

I didn't want to make the same irish oatmeal that she had before when she was here last summer to visit. No, no. I wanted to try something a little different.

Blueberries and bananas anyone?...

Baking Bacon

July 12, 2014 Amanda Plott

Baking bacon is a handy trick that I picked up a few years ago and quickly fell in love with the idea.

So, why bake your bacon?

Baking your bacon will save you the usual mess in the kitchen (or your microwave.) Plus, it cooks evenly and crisps up nicely while a vast majority of the grease is discarded! Another bonus? You can make a rather large batch of baked bacon rather effortlessly as compared to pan frying. Baking your bacon also tends to keep it from curling up, leaving your bacon straight and perfect!...

Skinny Purple Monster Smoothie

July 8, 2014 Amanda Plott

I needed a bit of a lift today after the exceptionally long weekend of festivities. Not only was it the 4th of July, where I was busy BBQing and roasting in the Texas heat... but, it was also my mother's birthday. Happy Birthday Mom!

Now, I feel as if I should start off by saying that I am generally not a smoothie fan. I would much rather indulge in eating my calories rather than drinking them (unless they are in the form of wine, of course - hah!) Plus, the task of actually making a smoothie always seems incredibly daunting to me... That is until I got my new handy emersion blender for my birthday!...

Cutting Watermelon

July 6, 2014 Amanda Plott

If you have tiny hands in your house (like I do) or are just looking for an easier and less messy way of cutting your watermelon this summer - then this idea is for you!

I've done my fair share of watermelon butchering, and it's almost always been a rather unpleasant task that more often than not ends up with my kitchen in the midst of a sticky mess that lasts for days. Thankfully, about a year ago, I came across a method of cutting watermelon that skips the waste and saves so much time. Plus, it's great for little fingers to grab up...

Skinny PB&J Sandwich Cookies

June 27, 2014 Amanda Plott

Who doesn't love peanut butter and jelly? (Well, other than those unfortunate souls that have nut allergies.) It's such a classic combination... you just can't go wrong with it!

These cookies are soft, decadent, and actually very reminiscent of little peanut butter and jelly whoopie pies. When I originally began to make plans for this tasty treat, I thought I wanted more of a crunchy peanut butter cookie... but for one reason or another it didn't work out that way.

In hindsight, this was a rather happy accident. A firmer cookie wouldn't have worked out nearly as well, since taking a bite of a hard sandwich cookie would force all that lovely jelly to squish out and make for gooey fingers. This softer more cake-like cookie seems to absorb the jelly a bit so it doesn't make a giant and unwanted mess.

Roasted Honey & Cinnamon Peaches

June 20, 2014 Amanda Plott

Okay, so... I know I've done the whole... broiled grapefruit thing, which is pretty amazing. But, as I've found out, there are actually a lot of people out there that cannot enjoy grapefruit for one reason or another. Yes, even a few in my own family! Now, I looove peach season. I think that I may have mentioned that once or twice before. So naturally, I've been waiting rather eagerly for the prices of peaches to go down and huzzah! It finally happened this last weekend!

I rather enthusiastically plucked a few gorgeous ones up and immediately began planning. Though... I pretty much knew exactly what I wanted to try. Honey roasted peaches!...