A Spotlight On Allrecipes Allstar: Bettina Applewhite

Bettina is one of the 60 million cooks in our Allrecipes community and an Allrecipes Allstar.

What is an Allstar? Food bloggers, registered dietitians, and more home cooks (just like you!) make up our enthusiastic squad of 100+ brand ambassadors. This crew of food lovers has submitted thousands of recipes, photos, and reviews over the years, plus shared their cooking expertise all over our website and social channels. In short, they make all of our cooking adventures more successful. Interested in becoming an Allrecipes Allstar? Learn more, and sign up here.

Q&A with Bettina

Allrecipes: Tell us about yourself! 

Bettina Applewhite: I am a Registered Dietitian-Nutritionist and school nutrition professional who loves to try new foods. I’ve been cooking and exploring culture through food for over 20 years. I also run a blog called Bites With Applewhite where I share my love of food, nutrition, and adventure.

AR: What is one of your favorite Allrecipes dishes to cook? 

BA: Salt and Pepper Shrimp. I made it for the Allrecipes Allstar community during a Facebook live!

AR: What is in your fridge?  

BA: Lots of fresh berries and an arsenal of hot sauces.

AR: What kitchen tools can you not live without?

BA: A sharp knife and my Le Creuset Dutch oven.

AR: Who or what is inspiring you right now?

BA: My students inspire me. Today’s students are so diverse, and their palates are more sophisticated than when I was their age. It’s important that the meals served in schools match their diverse palates. They are continuing to force me to push boundaries with school lunches.

AR: How have you grown as a cook?

BA: Over time, I’ve grown to try and cook more exotic dishes. I used to leave certain cuisines to the experts. Since the pandemic shutdown, I’ve been more adventurous and am cooking food from different regions.

AR: What’s one easy tip for the home cook?

BA: Try out the exciting or complicated recipe! If it doesn’t come out correctly, there’s always popcorn.

Cooking With Bettina

Bettina learned at a young age to taste as she cooks and season/adjust to develop the right balance of flavors. To this day, she still lives by that mantra! She believes that when it comes to quick meals that don’t skimp on flavor, “the key is to have great pantry staples, and it starts with seasonings”.

Bettina’s Soy-Braised Swai is the perfect example of this! It’s light, fragrant, and so easy to make. Swai can get a bad reputation, but this recipe is a great low-cost meal that is perfectly tender and has a nice balance of flavors. It serves as a perfect go-to recipe when you still want to mix things up but want something quick and easy on a hectic weekday.

For quick dishes during the summer months, Bettina’s grill is her best friend. These herb-studded lamb burgers are tender and juicy with a surprise inside: a pocket of creamy goat cheese. Adding ground cinnamon might be a leap of faith, but you won’t be disappointed. The seasoning combination results in a wowza! meal and is the perfect dish for that intimate backyard dinner with friends where everyone leaves with happy bellies.

Turning Lemons Into Lemonade

Bettina is the queen of staying positive in challenging situations, and always looking for the silver lining. It’s a skill that she had to learn through practice. So, it’s not surprising that during the pandemic, she and her team continued to feed the children in their community free meals despite schools being closed during virtual learning. "The challenges we face teach us something about ourselves and our situations. It's up to us to use those challenges as something positive to learn from and become a better version of ourselves," says Bettina. She takes this confidence and positivity wherever she goes and applies it to whatever she does.

Bettina is passionate about introducing new foods through cooking. She loves teaching both young and seasoned palates that nutrition can come in various flavors and cuisines. She tries to encourage the next generation to try new things. To help her do so, she maintains a strong belief that there are very few choices that can't be undone or corrected. "Before you say that you don't like this vegetable, try it first,” says Bettina, “Try it a different way, and you just may like it.”

Learn more about Bettina and what she's cooking in her kitchen!