Avocado Chickpea Feta Salad

July 13, 2017 Amanda Plott

Who doesn't love a good cool avocado dish on a hot HOT summer day? Okay, you caught me. I'm not going to lie. I love avocados year round, but there's just something about them during the summer that just brings even more joy and rapture to my soul.

This 'salad' is being called a salad because it sort of reminds me of what a vegetarian style 'chicken salad'. It's loaded up with plenty of avocado and summer flavors that bring a perfectly fresh and refreshing bite, and I've been looking for a good reason to use chickpeas again since they're one of my personal favorites...

Mermaid Noodle Salad

July 5, 2017 Amanda Plott

So, I've decided that this week on the blog is going to be all about... drumroll please... Mermaids! Ta-da! That's right. It's going to be a week full of mermaid inspired dishes; eats and treats alike. This Mermaid Noodle Salad is an old family favorite that originated in one of my daughter's cook books, but has been tweaked and adjusted so much that it's a whole new recipe by now.

After carefully transcribing all of my notes on it in the cookbook, I finally settled on the perfect end result. One thing that I love most about this noodle salad is that you can serve it hot or cold. Being as it's the middle of summer here in Texas though... I'm naturally opting for a cold noodle dish myself. However, if you still feel like being a mermaid in the winter months, feel free to enjoy it warm! Just serve it right away instead of giving it an hour+ of chill time...

Roasted Beet & Pistachio Salad with Citrus Poppyseed Vinaigrette

June 10, 2017 Amanda Plott

Can we just take a moment to enjoy and revel in the natural beauty of this salad? Just take on all the glorious colors that are straight from nature's bounty! Reds, yellows, greens, oh my! This salad is truly one of the most bright and vibrant things you could put on a plate. Naturally. Over the past couple of weeks, I've been collecting a montage of beets from my local produce box and for the first time ever... I got my hands on some golden beets!

Don't worry though, I also have a plethora of traditional red beets too for those traditionalists out there. I love beets. All the beets. Red. Yellow. It doesn't matter. One of my favorite ways to enjoy them is roasted; cooked in the oven in their own yummy juices and then tossed into a salad. For me, there's no better pairing than beets and feta...

Naked Summer Burger Bowls

June 5, 2017 Amanda Plott

This post was sponsored by Eat Smart as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.

Y'all! It's been so busy around here ever since my daughter got out for summer. I mean... yikes! The day after my little one got out of school, we took a quick overnight trip a couple of hours away to see my mom and hang out at the drive in movie theater there near her place. It was so much fun and a great way to kick off summer vacation! Today though? It's back to reality and the real world.

I don't know about you, but when I think of summer, I think of burgers and grilling! However, a lot of us are also working on maintaining (or achieving) our best summer bodies. And what does that mean? It's naked burger time! I haven't done a naked burger in a long time, so I thought it would be super fun to infuse one with all the flavors of summer and make it into one fun power bowl...

Roasted Butternut Squash & Chickpea Salad with Pesto

March 9, 2017 Amanda Plott

It's this wonderful time of year where I'm starting to see more and more fresh 'spring' vegetables coming into the produce department; which always excites me. Especially when there's still plenty of winter squash to be had. I love to take seasonal produce and mix them together as the seasons start to turn from one to another. It always gives you something interesting and exciting.

This Roasted Butternut Squash & Chickpea Salad is the perfect blend of winter and spring coming together for a wonderful bite. The butternut squash is what's coming in here from winter, while the pesto and fresh baby spinach and pop of lemon are a sure sign of spring approaching...

Grilled Market Salad & Zesty Dressing (Chick-Fil-A Copy Cat)

February 18, 2017 Amanda Plott

So, I was telling my mom about one of my all time favorite salads at a pretty well known fast-food chain the other day when she was looking for some quick lunch options. Anytime the family wants to 'be bad' and have chicken nuggets at this place, I always tend to opt for their Grilled Market Salad. It's a really large hearty salad that's extremely filling and easily could be turned into two meals rather than just one.

That discussion got me to thinking about the salad, how good it is, and how simple it is too. Surely there had to be a way to make it myself! The hardest part would be the zesty apple cider vinaigrette. Thankfully, I found a good starting place and made a few more tweaks to that to get exactly what I was looking for after reading the ingredients on the actual dressing packet...