Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Roasted Tomato Margarita Pizza

Roasted tomatoes taste like candy.
They are my favorite pizza topping. Especially on grilled pizza.
I LOVE to make homemade pizza. It's my go-to meal when we have people over.
 The pizza places that we live by are just OK, so I make pizza 3-4 times a month.
I like to make a margarita pizza with roasted tomatoes and tons of garlic and fresh basil.
The tomatoes are like jewels on the pizza and they are so sweet and delicious.

Recipe: Roasted Tomatoes by me
Ingredients
1 quart grape tomatoes
olive oil
salt
pepper
oregano

1.  Wash and cut all the tomatoes in half and squeeze out the gel.
2.  Place tomatoes on a pan covered in aluminum foil and spray oil.
3.  Coat tomatoes in olive oil.
4.  Sprinkle salt, pepper and oregano over the tomatoes.
5.  Place pan in the oven on the top rack and turn the broiler on high. 
6.  Set your timer for 5 minutes and check the tomatoes and toss every 5 minutes. Tomatoes are done when they start turning black on the edges.  This usually takes me 15-20 minutes, but all broilers are different, keep a close watch!

Once the tomatoes are cool, use them to top pizza or even pasta or salads.  I know what you are thinking, I want to make that pizza!  Pizza week is coming this fall, be patient!!

Monday, August 30, 2010

Tomatoes and Cottage Cheese

I always know when the end of summer is near.  I get huge cravings for tomatoes.  It's probably because when I was growing up, we had a big garden with tomato plants.  August is always when we would be up to our ears in tomatoes.  It was amazing and delicious.
For lunch my mom used to make us tomatoes with cottage cheese.
I found out a few years ago that most people eat cottage cheese with fruit.  I have to say that I really prefer it with tomatoes, some salt and LOTS of black pepper.
I love eating fresh tomatoes and cottage cheese is a perfect mate.
Tastes like the end of summer!!

Tomato Week

It's my favorite time of year, tomato time!! Every year at this time I eat a crazy amount of tomatoes and I decided to share my favorite ways to eat them with a Tomato Week.  Enjoy!

Friday, August 27, 2010

orange corn holders

These orange corn holders from Crate and Barrel make eating corn so much fun!!
Happy Orange Friday!  Enjoy the sweet corn while it lasts!!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Owls and Airplanes Applique

Peanut Butter needed some cool custom shirts to wear to "school". He is going to a PlayDays program once a week for 3 hours this year.
It was pretty easy to pick what designs to put on his shirts.
His first word was owl.
 And he LOVES spending evenings on the patio pointing at airplanes.  

Tutorial:
I made quick little sketches, the owl is inspired from one of his books and the plane I drew from looking at planes in the google image search.
I made pattern pieces from the original drawing.
The plane has some very tiny pieces. I decided they were too tiny!
Cut all the pieces out of the fabric.
Cut the double sided interfacing to match the pieces. 
(The rough side gets ironed to the fabric.)
Iron the interfacing on and then peel the paper off.
Iron all the pieces onto the shirt and zig zag stitch around all the pieces.

Add embellishments:
 
  I used buttons for the Owl's eyes and hand stitched with some floss for his feet. 
 
The windshield and nose of the airplane are drawn on with some sparkly fabric paint.

I also made these tie shirts for a friend...
 ...from Emily's great tie shirt tutorial over at saltwater kids!
I made Peanut Butter one to wear to my cousin's wedding earlier this summer.

I joined up in the linky party over at:

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

I Spy Fun

About a month ago i joined the Spoonflower I Spy Swap over at Crafterhours
I chose the Warhol looking sneakers and the owls. (Owl was Peanut Butter's first word.)
I was scared to make the first cut, and terrified I would make a mistake.
All 112 squares and cut, stacked and ready to go in the mail!

Now I just have to figure out what to do with the 112 different squares I get back.  I am leaning towards a quilt, but there are just so many possibilities!

Monday, August 23, 2010

Grilled Guacamole

The Kitchn had this recipe up for grilled guacamole.  My husband shared the recipe with me, so I knew it had to be made.  I think I made it the next day.  
It was really easy to make and so flexible.  The first time I made it I just used tomatoes, garlic and lime juice. This last time I made it I also added onion and jalapeno.   
It is served warm and it is oh so good warm.
It has a nice smoky grill flavor and was great on spicy grilled chicken in a pita.
Peanut Butter was eating it by the handful!!

Friday, August 20, 2010

Orange Watering Can

The IKEA PS VÃ…LLÖ makes watering plants so much fun! I got this a few years ago when they had it in orange.  They are constantly changing out the colors.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Window Art

We have a door in our living room to go out to the patio.  When we moved in, there was a very hideous, curry scented, bolted on curtain that I promptly removed.  I put of a piece of white craft paper on the window for a few months to decide what I wanted up there when I came up with this idea using...
...contact paper!!
And it turned out great!!
Now I have art on my window!
It was a pretty simple stencil.
From outside at night.   
It works great for privacy, it is easy to clean, and removable!!

Make your own!
1.  Make a stencil or just draw straight or curvy lines.
2.  Cut out the pattern.
3.  Apply to the window.  Clean window first!  Peel a small portion and start sticking it to the glass.  Use a gift card or credit card to smooth it onto the glass and peel the back away.  Work slowly so there is no bubbles.
4.  To clean window I use water and a microfiber cloth.  

**During back to school time you can get sticky paper that they sell for book protectors and they come in many colors.  Imagine all the fun things you could do with colors!!  You may see them pop up back here in the near future!

Monday, August 16, 2010

Coconut Cake

Hubby's birthday is at the beginning of the month and I always make his favorite cake.
I also love to fill the cake with the correct amount of candles plus one for luck, so happy counting :)
It is a Coconut Cake with vanilla buttercream icing and covered in coconut.
This is the best cake from scratch I have ever made.  I love how moist it is.
And the outside is fun, like a giant puff ball.
He blew out all the candles, looks like his wish will come true :)

printable recipe
Coconut Cake- cake recipe from Paula Deen, icing by me
Ingredients
Cake:
2 sticks butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
3 cups sifted self-rising flour
1 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract



Icing and filling:
2 sticks butter
8 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
3-6 Tablespoons milk or coconut milk
1 small bag shredded coconut

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 3 (9-inch) cake pans. I used 2 cake pans.  Using an electric mixer, cream butter until fluffy. Add sugar and continue to cream well for 6 to 8 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour and coconut milk alternately to creamed mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Add vanilla and continue to beat until just mixed. Divide batter equally among prepared pans. Level batter in each pan by holding pan 3 or 4-inches above counter, then dropping it flat onto counter. Do this several times to release air bubbles and assure you of a more level cake. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until done. Cool in pans 5 to 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto cooling racks.


Cream butter and slowly add the powdered sugar.  Add milk until you reach the desired consistency. Stir in vanilla.  Spread icing on the bottom layer of the cake.  Place the other cake on top and spread icing on top and down the sides.  Cover the whole cake in coconut.

Friday, August 13, 2010

orange shoes


Happy Orange Friday!  This is the end of Lemon Week and my feet are feeling great, thanks to my shoes! These are my favorite shoes.  They are crocs and they are so comfortable.  But they are a discontinued style.  I hate when my favorite things get discontinued!

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Lemon Lavender Cookies

My husband shared this recipe at sweet beet and green bean with me and I knew I would have to make them for him.  He drinks a lot of tea. I mean a lot.  He wore out our electric kettle a few weeks ago and I had to run out and buy him a new one.  :)
Anyway... back to the cookies.  It is a vegan recipe which I think is great.  I am not vegan, and I didn't want to buy special ingredients to make cookies when I had butter and milk in the house, so I decided to make them the non-vegan way.  I found this lemon sugar cookie recipe and combined the 2 recipes together!
The perfect summer cookie!
printable recipe
Lemon Lavender Cookies- recipe combined from sweet beet and green bean and MyRecipes.com

Ingredients

1  c  (1/2 lb.) butter, at room temperature
2  c sugar
2  large eggs
1  t grated lemon peel i used the whole lemon
2  T  lemon juice
1  T milk
1  t vanilla
5  c  all-purpose flour
4  t  baking powder
1/2  t  salt
1/4 c sugar and 1-3 t finely chopped lavender
 In a bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed, beat butter and sugar until smooth and light. Beat in eggs, lemon peel, lemon juice, milk, and vanilla until well blended, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.
In another bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir or beat into butter mixture until blended. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 2 hours, or up to 3 days.
Unwrap dough and roll the dough into 1 inch balls.  
Roll the balls in sugar and lavender.

Press using your hands or a glass.  
Sprinkle a little extra sugar/lavender on top.  
Bake on greased pan or cooking parchment-lined baking sheets.
Bake cookies in a 350° oven until edges are golden, 10 to 14 minutes; if baking more than one pan at a time, switch pan positions halfway through baking. With a wide spatula, transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely.
I made 55 cookie balls with this recipe.  I only bake what I need and....
Freeze the rest of the balls before they get the sugar and lavender treatment.

I love having these ready to bake in the freezer.  
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