One Avocado, Four Toasts

The avocado toast addiction is real. So real, in fact, that I made a video showing you how to prepare four (!!!) different kinds using only one avocado. Watch how I did it in the video below.

Note: this was for a school project and my very first attempt at any type of cooking video, so bear with my subpar production skills. 🙂

7 Of My Favorite Healthy Food Instagrammers

It’s no secret that I love Instagram. Like, I could sit for hours and go through my feed, then the stories, then the discover page, until I end up stalking some random person all the way back to their pics from October 2015. It’s an addiction, I’ll tell ya. But since I’ve decided to get into food/health/wellness blogging, I’ve drawn inspiration from many creative people on Instagram.

Instagram is a great place for creating community, especially surrounding food. These are some of my favorite people that have created a positive community around healthy eating and living. It’s hard to narrow my list down to just seven, but I think that these ladies have created incredible communities and started some really important conversations about leading a healthy lifestyle. In no particular order, here are my favorite healthy food Instagrammers. Feel free to check out their profiles, but keep in mind that many of them have blogs that they maintain regularly as well.

Healthier Than Takeout Beef + Broccoli

One thing I’m really good (bad?) at is hoarding food in my freezer and cabinets. This may be due to the fact that I don’t have a car so I don’t ever know the next time I’ll make it to the grocery store, or just because I think I need a lot more “kitchen staples” than I probably do. Whatever the reason, my hoarding habit came in handy when I was craving takeout but wanted to use ingredients I already had. I had the beef and broccoli in the freezer, and quinoa is one of the things I try to keep on hand at all times. This dinner came together in about 30 minutes and made a little bit more than four servings, which means I have dinner for the rest of the week. Double score. Are you sold yet? Try it yourself.

Gluten + Dairy Free: Week 3 (ish?)

I believe it’s week four of going completely gluten- and dairy-free. With the craziness of finals and also working a bit more than usual, I didn’t get around to detailing everything I ate last week. If you want to see what I’ve eaten in the past, check out Week 1 and Week 2. Most things stayed the same. Lots of veggies, fruit, and meat.

Way more people than I thought have been following me on this journey. I’m so grateful for all the support from friends and family through this all. Many people have been asking me how I’m feeling and how it’s going. So here are my honest, unfiltered thoughts.

Everything I Ate In NYC

This post has been a long time coming. I went to New York City last month for the FIRST TIME EVER. A few years ago, when I was interested in magazine writing, I had this dream of moving out to New York and working for a super cool publication like Bon Appétit or Food Network Magazine. My professional goals have shifted since then, but my fascination with New York City has remained constant.

My friend Emily and I went to NYC for “the best food festival-conference hybrid you’ll ever experience”. Brainfood was put on by Spoon University, an organization I’ve been involved with since my freshman year at Iowa. Spoon University is essentially an online magazine written by college students, for college students. Emily and I are, respectively, the editorial and marketing directors of the University of Iowa chapter. Brainfood was an all-day event consisting of speakers (think: Alton Brown + Hannah Hart), networking with professionals in the food industry, and tons of free samples.

Gluten + Dairy Free: Week 2

Alright fam, it’s week two of not eating gluten or dairy. Last week was difficult but definitely manageable. I started to feel a little bit better and noticed my acne clearing up. This week? Not as smooth-sailing. Between Thanksgiving with my family and a Friendsgiving with some pals, I’ve definitely seen a difference in how I’m feeling. Read on to see everything that I’ve eaten this week.

Gluten + Dairy Free: Week 1

For those of you that follow along with me on Instagram, you know that I’m making a huge change to my diet for the next six weeks. (For those of you that don’t follow along with me on Instagram, you should. Find it here.)

I’ve been pretty vocal about my digestive issues on the blog, but just to recap, here’s what’s up. About a year ago, I went to the doctor about some persistent stomach pains after eating. After a simple blood test, they discovered that my body was low on amylase (the enzyme that breaks down carbohydrates), so they suggested that I cut back on carbohydrates. Fast forward a year later, and a few things have changed.

For one, over the last six months I’ve been trying to incorporate more whole grains like oats and quinoa. I’ve also added higher carb foods like bananas and potatoes. I mostly just shifted from intentionally eating low-carb everything to eating real foods with as few preservatives/junk/added sugar as possible. I also have loosened up on taking extra precautions while eating out because come on, this girl’s gotta live a little. My stomach pain hasn’t gone away, but I have found that avoiding certain foods makes it better.

Another thing I’ve struggled with since coming to college is cystic acne. In high school, I rarely ever broke out. I would get a few whiteheads here and there, but never a full blown colony of painful, under-the-skin zits. I’ve tried cleanser after cleanser and apply prescription cream religiously every morning and night, but nothing seems to cure my problem. It HAS to be coming from the inside.

After some research, I’ve learned that two of the biggest food intolerances are gluten and dairy, and they often go unrecognized. So I’ve decided to challenge myself and completely cut out gluten and dairy for the next six weeks to see if any of my symptoms subside. After six weeks, I plan to reevaluate and see what’s working and slowly add certain foods back in. I recognize that I am not a doctor and am unfit to make a diagnosis about my digestive issues. 

I will be using my blog to hold me accountable for this change and hope you’ll follow along. I’ll be posting weekly about what I eat, how I feel, and if I’m noticing any changes. If you have any expertise to offer, please do so in the comments at the end of this post.

Everything I Ate In Nashville

As some of you may know from my social media posts, I spent this past weekend in Nashville with my dad. There really was no point to the trip, we both just wanted to visit and explore a new place. Neither of us had been to Nashville previously, so we decided this would be the perfect place to satisfy our wanderlust. I was put in charge of choosing the places to eat, and I’m pretty sure I was born for this job. (If you’re reading this and have any connections/way to make traveling and eating a career, let me know.)

When we got off the airplane, we had absolutely no plan. As my dad reiterated a thousand times, this was completely out of his comfort zone. I was totally cool with it, as long as we hit all the places I wanted to eat. It ended up being a super fun trip (even though we never had a definite plan, ever). Every place we visited and ate was amazing, so I decided to share the experience with you all. Here’s the list of places we hit and my thoughts on them.

How I Afford To Eat So Well On A College Budget

A question I often get from people is “how can you afford to eat so well on a college budget?” Honestly, this past summer was the first time where I actually had to pay for my own groceries and it was an eye-opening experience for me. Throughout these last few months, I’ve found ways to eat well but also save money. Everyone chooses to spend money on the things they value, and I value good food. Here’s how I make the most of every dollar and afford to eat so well on a college budget.

Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Peppers

Buffalo wings are one of my favorite foods. I’m actually pretty sure I could drink buffalo sauce out of the bottle if I was presented with the opportunity. But let’s be real, hitting up Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner probably isn’t the best decision for my wallet and my tummy. So I’ve decided to compromise with these buffalo chicken stuffed peppers. They’re spicy, cheesy, and taste just as good as buffalo wings. Plus they’re a nice way to get my buffalo fix in without sacrificing everything I’ve worked hard for. It’s a win-win, right?

The sweetness of the peppers adds a nice contrast to the spiciness of the buffalo sauce. For this recipe, you can use whatever sweet peppers you’d like, but I prefer red, orange, or yellow because they tend to be sweeter than green. This recipe also calls for 2 cups of shredded chicken. I find it easiest to pick up a rotisserie chicken and just shred that yourself, but you can totally cook your own chicken as well. You can also substitute 1 lb of cooked ground chicken, but I prefer the texture of shredded better. Whatever floats your boat.