The Platefull

Inspiring home cooks to be creative with accessible, nutritious recipes.

Best Whole30 Spice Mixes

~ The Platefull Blog

My biggest concern starting my Whole30 journey was that I wouldn’t make it to the end because the food would be bland and boring.  I really just cannot. eat. boring. food.  I knew I had to find ways to make my food flavorful if I had any chance of completing the Whole30 and making lasting changes to the way we eat. Having spice mixes on hand can really help me pull together a quick and delicious, flavorful meal on nights when I don’t have a solid plan in place!  Here are my favorite Whole30 compliant spice mixes!

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Pasta Sensory Bin

~ Kids, The Platefull Blog


Noah loves to help me cook.  He loves using a variety of cooking utensils and always wants to measure and pour.  I used to let him measure and pour dry oatmeal into muffin tins, but it makes a huge mess!  Out of that came the idea to use different shapes of dry pasta instead.  Much easier to clean up!

This bin is really simple and I’m betting you already have everything for it in your kitchen!  Here’s what I used for this bin:READ MORE

Whole30 Must Haves for Convenience Cooking

~ Lifestyle, The Platefull Blog

When I decided to attempt another Whole30 (after a previous failed attempt), I knew that finding compliant convenience items would be the key to success this time around.  The first time I tried a Whole30, I felt like I needed to make every sauce imaginable and all of my own spice mixes.  I put way too much pressure on myself and I knew that this time around, taking on the challenge of changing my diet was enough.  I needed to give myself a break.  For this Whole30 journey, I did not prioritize things like making homemade dressings or mayo as something that I was willing to spend time on.  (I know, I know, people say these are so quick and easy, but to me, it was extra time and extra dishes to wash!).  I also knew that there would be days that meal prep just wouldn’t go as planned, so I knew that having “emergency meals” on hand would be really important.  I’ve shopped MANY different stores and sites and have narrowed down my list of favorite Whole30 convenience items!  I hope this list helps you during your journey through the Whole30 or even just healthier eating!  Over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be sharing some of my favorite ways to use these ingredients!  At the bottom of this post, I’ll share my top 5 favorite items!

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Surviving a Whole30 with Kids

~ Lifestyle, The Platefull Blog

As you’ve probably seen me post on social media lately, I’m hungry.  Ha.  Just kidding.  I’ve spent the month of January tackling my second attempt at the Whole 30!  I tried to do it abut a year ago and only made it five days.  This time I am determined to make it the entire 30 days.  My primary goal in doing the Whole30 was to find easy, flavorful recipes that our whole family would love.  It’s been quite an adjustment for Noah, who is a Goldfish, cookie, and fruit snack addict.  (He and I definitely share a love of homemade chocolate chip cookies)!  ? However, I’m really pleased with the progress we’ve made and its kept me motivated to continue the hunt for more easy, healthy, delicious recipes!  (I mean, he ate half a bag of steamed broccoli the other night – that’s a parenting win if I ever did see one)!  I didn’t want to restrict Noah to a Whole30 diet (just something I wasn’t personally comfortable with), so I would say that the most difficult part of my Whole30 was preparing non-compliant foods for him!  Here are my tips for surviving a Whole30 with kids!READ MORE

Throw a Halloween Party

~ Kids, Lifestyle, The Platefull Blog

Every year I throw a Halloween party where we invite our friends and their kiddos to join us for food and pumpkin carving. Over the years, this party has grown, but it’s so much fun! I’ve gone from owning almost no Halloween decorations to owning quite a lot! I recently decorated the house in preparation for our party, so I thought I’d share a peek and my tips for a great party!

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For the mantle, I wanted an elegant display with a little bit of “spook” to it.  I went with a black and white theme to keep it clean and simple. It all started with the black and white leaves. I found those at Michael’s and the rest of the design evolved from there! To add something special to the vase and candles that I already had, I just cut pieces of black lace and used double sided tape to secure them.

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For the dining room table, I used trees from Target’s dollar bin as my centerpiece. I added a black lace spider web table runner under the wooden box that is my centerpiece mainstay. To bring some of the same elements into my tablescape, I draped pieces of black lace over the plates. I then cut 2 pieces off of a spider web banner and used those with a little ghost in order to make the two end place settings a little different.

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In terms of the actual party, here are a few tips to make it go off without a hitch!

First, plan and prep ahead! My party isn’t for two more weeks, but I’ve already got the decorations up. By using decorations that are elegant and simple, I don’t mind having them up for a while to enjoy before Halloween! I’ve got the menu planned out as well. It’s the same every year and I can make it ahead! Here’s the menu that I typically serve. Everything gets made the day before and all I have to do on the day of the party is reheat the soup in crockpots!

Pumpkin Fluff with Vanilla Wafers
Chili
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Cornbread
Meat, cheese, cracker tray (with everything cut up small enough for toddlers)
Fruit (again, cut up ahead of time to be small enough for toddlers)
Cupcakes

Second, plan entertainment for the kids so that the adults can enjoy each other (or at least try)! This year, I found some masks at Michael’s that the kids can color. I plan to set out the masks with washable crayons and construction paper with Halloween stickers.

Third, offer pumpkin carving!  What would a party with kids be without a good mess?!  If the weather is nice, we’ll do this outside on kid tables.  If not, I’ve got plastic tablecloths that I can put down on the floor.  Our party is always BYOP – Bring Your Own Pumpkin!  I provide stickers for the kids to decorate their pumpkins with (hello Target dollar bin) as well as carving tools.  In the past, the kids have loved putting stickers all over their pumpkins and it keeps them busy!