Recipes

This One Pot Sriracha Shrimp and Snow Peas Stir Fry is a quick and easy dinner recipe that doesn’t make a lot of dishes to clean up! With mushrooms, Chinese eggplant and a spicy Sriracha sauce, you’re sure to love this one pot recipe.

Stir fry is  my favorite. It was also my college meal of choice. It’s super easy to make, can be made using just one pan, is an easy way to eat more vegetables … oh, and it’s delicious!

If you’re a fan of stir fry too, you’ll love this One Pot Sriracha Shrimp and Snow Pea Stir Fry. I added mushrooms and Chinese eggplant to mix things up, but you can pretty much add any vegetables that are in your produce drawer. Yay for not letting those rot in there! (I know you tend to do that, as do I).

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These 14 Recipes with Cauliflower are lightened up versions of comfort food classics. Replace carbs with cauliflower to create foods like pizza, tater tots, grilled cheese and more! You won’t miss the flour. 

Have you discovered the magic of cauliflower yet? This delicious white vegetable can be used to make all sorts of delicious creations. Recipes with cauliflower are super easy to make and can taste just like your favorite carby treats.

Recipes with cauliflower are some of my all-time favorite recipes. Even if you hate the vegetable, chances are you’ll love it prepared in these ways. You can make pizza crust, bread, Alfredo sauce and more from the magical ingredient that is cauliflower.

Try these cauliflower recipes when you’re craving carbs but don’t want to feel bad about splurging. These healthy recipes will make you love cauliflower as much as I do!

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This classic recipe for French Onion Soup with Gruyere Toast is the perfect side dish to any meal or main dish for a cold night. 

It’s my sister’s birthday!!!! And she’s pretty much Smile Sandwich’s #1 fan so I just have to give her a shout out. She’ll probably read this when she’s home from her romantic California weekend trip her boyfriend planned for her, and although that’s nice, I think a blog shout out is even nicer. 😉 Well, at least I tried. And I got her the best gift ever. I’ll tell you after I give it to her.

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These Lightened Up Spinach Lasagna Rolls with Meat Sauce are the perfect individually portioned combination of lasagna noodles, cheese, spinach, and meat sauce. 

 

Do you want to know the worst thing about having a crush on a guy whose favorite food is lasagna?

You have to make lasagna.

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These Slow Cooker Chinese Chicken Quinoa Bowls are the perfect easy lunch recipe to pack for work. The chicken itself is so easy to make and delicious no matter how you serve it. 

My sister told me I need to make more bowls. So bowls I did make. And she was quite right … quinoa bowls are a work of genius. They’re healthy, easy to make, easy to prepare in advance, and perfect for packing for lunch.

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No, I’m not calling you stupid. I’m calling how easy these slow cooker chicken tacos are to make … STUPID! It’s a 3-ingredient slow cooker recipe that you’ll want to keep forever and ever. 

 

In the spirit of my least favorite holiday, I’ve been thinking a lot about being single. And in an effort to be more positive, I’ve been thinking about what’s great about being single. So here’s a mini list … just in case you need some reminding too.

10 Reasons Why Being Single Kicks Ass

1. You can get away with not shaving your legs for …. well, we don’t need to get specific. 😉

2. More time to spend with your girlfriends. And watching Netflix. And reading. And doing everything else you like to do.

3. You don’t have anyone to worry about. Whats He doing, where’s He going, who’s He talking to? Really doesn’t matter when there’s no “He.” (Or She)

4. You’re freeeee … to do what you want. All the time. Nobody to answer to, ever.

5. Three words: Bed. To. Yourself.

6. You don’t have to use “girls night” as an excuse to get away from him. Girls night is every night.

7. You can date. Because how else are you going to pay for dinners?

8. You can learn to be independent. Shovel that snow. Hang those curtains. Clean out that clogged drain. Rawr.

9. More time to hit the gym. Plus more motivation if you’re not in the “well he’s stuck with me regardless” mindset.

10. Last, but definitely not least … Nobody will ever put a “Stop pooping. I miss you.” sign underneath the bathroom door.

Can I get an amen?

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Need a super duper easy appetizer recipe that will impress your friends? Look no further. These 2-Ingredient Homemade Baked Mozzarella Sticks are a skinny version of the American fried food favorite. 

Whenever I think about mozzarella sticks, I think about my rebellious middle school days.

When you grow up in a small farm town, you have to create your own ways to entertain yourself. And when you’re in middle school and boy crazy like I was, that typically involves following your “crush” around where he and his friends went. I digress.

There was a small drive-in a couple blocks from the middle school, and all the “cool kids” would walk there to order mozzarella sticks. Well, the only problem was that my mom knew that I mainly wanted to go there for the boys and not the fried cheese (man how things have changed), so she didn’t let me go!

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These Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Black Bean Brownies are a guilt-free way to satisfy your chocolate craving! The fudgy brownies are super easy to make and taste similar to the real deal – yet they’re made with no flour!

What do you think about dining out at a restaurant alone?

Most my friends were busy this weekend, which meant I took the opportunity for “me” time. I got my hair done, spent enough money shopping to make me cringe at my credit card statement, made these Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Black Bean Brownies, and finished rewatching all 7 episodes of Sex and the City.

A combination of watching SATC and wanting to avoid company got me thinking about dining alone. I think New York City might be the only city where it’s 100% socially acceptable for a young, single woman to go to a restaurant and enjoy a nice meal plus wine … completely alone.

Is it just me, or are other Chicagoans afraid of going to nice restaurants alone for fear of people thinking you simply don’t have any friends/boyfriend/acquaintances/Tinder dates to come with you? Perhaps I’ll do a social experiment and dine alone next weekend.

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