The simple joys of life….
A cold juice box on a warm summer day.
Picking fat juicy mulberries and squishing them in your fingers.
Throwing rocks in the pond and giggling when ……
… they make splashes.
What simple pleasures are you enjoying?
Savor the moments this weekend.
Take time to watch the ripples in the water.
Giggle over something silly.
Find joy.
The tomatoes in the garden are still trying to set on and ripen. We’ve had just enough to enjoy fresh, including this favorite dish of mine, spaghetti and fresh tomatoes.
It is my side dish of choice when ever we do anything on the grill!
Spaghetti with Fresh Tomatoes
Peel 8 medium tomatoes. Chop, seed and drain.
Combine 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 clove of garlic (crushed), 1 tablespoon of fresh parsley chopped, 1 tsp. basil, 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 of a green pepper (chopped) and 16 black olives, sliced.
Add tomatoes and set aside at room temperature.
Cook 8 oz. of spaghetti according to directions. Drain and place in serving bowl. Add tomato mixture and toss. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
I’ve used whatever kind of pasta that I had on hand and it worked just fine! I like to cook a big bag of pasta (16 oz.) and divide it into two bowls. One bowl (for the kids) will get just Parmesan cheese and melted butter. The other bowl (for the adults) will get the tomato mixture!
It’s a fresh and delicious taste of summer!
The perfect summer day…
We’ve had a few this year. Days of mild temperatures, low humidity and light breezes.
Days when the birds sing, the butterflies flitter and the flowers wave in the breeze.
Days that call you out of the house, away from the computer, the dishes, the laundry, and the cleaning.
Days that make you close you eyes and breath deep and laugh out loud, thankful that you’re alive!
Laughing Song
When the green woods laugh with the voice of joy,
And the dimpling steam runs laughing by;
When the air does laugh with our merry wit,
And the green hill laughs with the noise of it;
When the meadows laugh with lively green,
And the grasshopper laughs in the merry scene;
When Mary and Susan and Emily
With their sweet round mouths sing “Ha Ha He!”
When the painted birds laugh in the shade
When our table with cherries and nuts is spread:
Come live, and be merry and join with me,
To sing the sweet chorus of “Ha Ha He!”
~William Blake
It’s time to turn the calendar page to August; the month of back-to-school sales, heat, humidity, and red ripe tomatoes!
I have the first of my crop lined on my counter waiting to be eaten. As the season progresses I’ll be picking and canning every other day or so.
There will tomatoes covering my counters, overflowing to the table, and piled in boxes.
Then I will pull out my stock pots and canners and replace the tomatoes with jars and jars of homemade spaghetti sauce, ketchup, and salsa.
But all that will come later, this is just the beginning. These first tomatoes are meant to be eaten fresh and enjoyed by palates who are tired of those tasteless ones from the store.
These first few will star in BLT’s and perk up lettuce salads. They will be cut up with peppers and onions into fresh salsa, chopped up and added to spaghetti, and eaten fresh right off the vine while the juice drips down our chins.
Yes, we’ll savor these first of the season tomatoes, forgetting for a moment all the work that they will soon bring!
With a hot and steamy forecast and a house full of company, I needed some quick and tasty meal ideas that wouldn’t add any extra heat to the house.
My solution? My beloved crock pot.
(Seriously, I love my crock pots, especially in the summer months!)
Tonight’s menu includes an old family favorite, crock pot pizza. It’s an easy, no fuss layered noodle dish that is a favorite with both kids and adults.
Crock Pot Pizza
1 (12 oz.) package noodles (rotini or elbow macaroni works well) cooked and drained.
24 oz. of pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce
1 pound of ground meat (hamburger or sausage), browned and drained
2 cup mozzarella cheese
2 cup cheddar cheese
1 package pepperoni
Spray crock pot liner lightly with cooking spray. Then start layering beginning with one third of the noodles, then one third of the sauce, followed by a third of the meat, both cheeses and pepperoni.
Repeat the layers 2 more times.
Cook on high 30 minutes, then reduce heat to low and cook for another 1 hour or until the cheese is melted.
I made mine ahead in the early morning when it was still cool and put it in the refrigerator (I have a removable crock pot liner) until I need it in the late afternoon.
Then I will just put it on to heat and later I will serve it to my table full of hungry children. A no fuss, no muss pizza favorite without the heat of an oven. Yum!
