So…I had a problem when I was photographing this Chicken Tortilla Soup. No it was not the tortilla chips (although thanks for the vote of confidence). This. Soup. Is. So. Good. It’s like…”put-it-in-the-crockpot-and-go-back-every-five-minutes-to-test-and-see-if-it’s-still-good” good. It’s…”take a small slurp between every shot you take of the recipe” good. It’s “this-soup-may-never-make-it-to-the-dinner-table” good! Thankfully, this is a big batch recipe, so that didn’t happen. …

I think I’m a little obsessed with this picture. Right now Oodles of Zoodles is in the hands of my very trusted and capable brand manager/graphic designer. She showed me a proof recently and when I got it I opened it eagerly, whizzing through the pages (it’s an ebook so I was looking from my phone) to get to THIS recipe …

You see meatballs…I see a “Violet Beauregard” moment. (Thank you Lisa on Facebook for correcting my blatant error – I originally attributed this moment to Veruca Salt. Not sure how I got the name mixed up…) If you ever saw Willy Wonka you know Violet as a little girl who won a tour of the famed factory, only to meet her demise …

  Ok so let me set the scene of this meal for you. It’s Wednesday – Hump Day – mid-summer. It’s warm, but not offensively so. There’s a slight breeze that feels really nice against your skin and it’s evening so there’s just enough shade for you to think to yourself, “It would be nice to have dinner outside tonight.” …

I’m going to make a bold pronouncement: Bacon Ranch Chicken Salad is a perfect summertime meal. Seriously! It comes together quickly, doesn’t have a bunch of ingredients and it’s sooooo yummy. And serve it like in the picture above and it’s even low-carb and possibly keto? (I’m not sure as I don’t subscribe to a keto diet. Feel free to correct me …

  Warning: These rarely come out pretty but they are always good! I love mozzarella sticks. Do you? The kind you get from the take-out place cause all sorts of problems for WLSers, though. There’s the fat (they are generally quick-fried). There’s the carbs (they are generally dipped in batter). But as we like to say here at Bariatric Foodie…play …