Zucchini Pizza Rounds #FoodieExtravaganza

Zucchini is everywhere!  I didn't grow any this year, but my friends did, and they are giving it away! I love it when this happens, who doesn't love a free vegetable?


I love working with zucchini because it is like working with a blank slate. It's a great diet food, as it is only 33 calories for an entire medium zucchini.  Along with 6g of carbs and 2.5g of protein, this is a good vegetable to incorporate at the dinner table. If you family won't eat it straight up, then chop it up fine and add it to muffins, egg scrambles, banana bread, brownies or meatloaf.  You can eat zucchini raw or cooked, skinned or unskinned. And did you know it was loaded with Vitamin C and Manganese?

This recipe is so easy that it really isn't a recipe at all, but more of just something you as…

Friday Faves #7

Happy happy Friday!!

I had a full week of work, and getting ready for the rush of workshops that I will do once school starts for teachers in the next two weeks.  I saw an amazing presenter last week, Mike Rutherford, and now I am raring to go!



1.  I love Brene Brown and I am always wowed by her insights.  Here's a quote of hers that I have pondered on all week:  "Everyone wants to know why customer service has gone to hell in a handbasket. I want to know why customer behavior has gone to hell in a handbasket." So what is it? I have been appalled at what some businesses believe is customer service. If you get bad service, do you take it to social media?  I had an incident on Friday and I posted my feelings on Facebook. A side of me is glad I did, another is not.  What do you…

Bouquets from my Cutting Garden 2018 (and a seed give away!)

It's that time of the year when I have to do the dreadful act of cutting back my cutting garden in order to have blooms in the fall.  All my flowers are annuals, so I deadhead (remove the dead flowers), cut about 25-50% of the stems off, fertilize, and water.  It's hard to see some perfectly good flowers coming off with the cuttings, but I know from experience that in about two weeks they will look amazing!


This year I tried some different flowers. I want to try different mixes until I find the combination I like best.  I have cosmos, zinnias, sunflowers, morning glory, yarrow, globe flower, daisy, purple cone flower and black eyed susans. The morning glory took off big time but didn't bloom. I have to figure that one out.  Everything else is getting buried by the morning glor…

Friday Faves #6

Hey there!  This week felt a little less like summer and more like work!  I work as a full time educational consultant for the University of Missouri and we are inching back to school. This week I had a wonderful training with the wonderful Mike Rutherford and learned so much. It does get me excited about school starting again!  It's is still summer, though, so let's talk about some things that I loved this week.



1.  I am a huge fan of farmers' markets.  We have several really good ones in our area, and this weekend we took advantage of the Kirkwood (MO) one.  Saturday was the annual Peach Festival!  I love fresh peaches so much!  We tried peaches from many areas, but found we loved our own Calhoun County peaches best.



2. I am a paper planner girl. I actually have to do both: …

Hawaiian BBQ Hot Dog Kebabs #FantasticalFoodFight

I love this time of the month when the Fantastical Food Fight bloggers compete with a theme to get the most clicks!  We have such fun and the winner gets bragging rights!  If you are a food blogger, or a blogger who posts recipes, you might want to join us for this fun event. This month the theme is Kebabs!  Who doesn't love food on a stick?



The inspiration for this kebab comes from our short trip to Chicago the second week of June.  We took in a White Sox/Cardinals game and got a classic Chicago dog, because, you know, when in Rome do as the Romans do...



I love hot dogs and so does my family.  We could eat them every week, but don't you sometimes want to change it up?  My daughter's recent trip to Hawaii was another inspiration for this hot dog.  Delicious hot dogs, cut into on…

Cold Brew Coffee and Cold Foam #PinterestChallenge

Welcome to the July Pinterest Challenge Blog Hop, hosted by My Pinterventures. The purpose of this Pinterest Challenge is to motivate all the participants of this hop (and you too) to not just pin, but to make it happen! This month, I chose to create Cold Brew Coffee and Cold Foam!





I have been making more than my share of trips to the local Starbucks for my favorite iced coffee with cold foam. Oh my, this is one of my favorite treats right now. However, it was hitting my purse really hard, at $5.35 a cup.  I had pinned this post for making cold foam from the site My Recipes and decided I needed to give it a try.  Instead of the hand held foamers she uses, though, I decided to try my favorite Pampered Chef Whipped Cream Maker and it worked like a dream!!  The foam doesn't last as long …

Friday Faves #5

Welcome to my Friday Faves, fifth edition!  I am really enjoying putting together my weekly post on the fun things that come my way.  I love sharing them with you and hoping that you are enjoying them too.



My husband and I were in Chicago this week for a conference for our work.  He is a college professor in the Education Leadership department at his University, and I am an adjunct professor for a small local college. It is fun to go to conferences where we both can benefit.

Here are some things I gathered to share with you this week. I am eager for the weekend, are you? We have no concrete plans, and that is a great feeling!

1.  Brain on Fire (the movie) is on Netflix and it is incredible. I read the book and got hooked on the story. The movie is a clear indicator that even though we liv…

Deviled Eggs with Olives and Cheese Filling #ImprovCookingChallenge

When I first saw the cooking challenge for July on our group page, I was entirely turned off. Not by the ingredients, which I love, but those ingredients together.  Nope.  My husband gently reminded me that I loved olives and cheese on our charcuterie boards, so then I was mollified and started to go to work on how I wanted to approach it.


One of our all time favorite restaurants has an appetizer of deviled eggs that we love. We had it last night and as I was devouring the egg, I had a revelation to combine this month's Cooking Challenge with deviled eggs. I have to tell you, this was a genius thought! ☺️




I hate it when the shell won't peel off the egg.  I love to eat deviled eggs, but I hate to make them! I have learned that this way works for me:  Place eggs in pot with cold wate…

Crockpot Sour Cream Pound Cake

In the summer I love to make quick desserts using all the fresh berries that are available at the Farmer's Markets and grocery stores. My favorite is strawberry shortcake but I also love making this sour cream pound cake.... in the crockpot!  Turning on the oven, though, is somewhat oppressive, especially in the "feels like 100 degrees" weather.  That's when this small appliance can make a big bang in the dessert area, especially in the summer!


A group of Baker Bloggers comes together once a month to share different themes.  This month we are all baking using small appliances.  Air fryers, toaster ovens, crockpots...all small appliances are welcomed!

This cake recipe is so super easy.  I make it in the crock pot, then cut up the slices and wrap in waxed paper. Slip the s…

Friday Faves #4

We had a crazy good time at the Lake of the Ozarks this weekend, celebrating my mom's 80th birthday. Her birthday isn't until July 13, but all of us could get together at this time, and we took advantage of that.



Our neighborhood has an annual Fourth of July parade and fireworks show on the Fourth. Neighbors have get togethers and all have a great time celebrating our nation's birthday.  This year the fireworks were across the street from my house, so we had a great view.  I made up a couple of pitchers of my Front Porch Sippers and shared them with neighbors who came by.  Refreshing and delicious!

I am ready to share with you my favorites for the week!

1.  I read two books on Atomic City this week. Both are for book clubs I am in.  The first one was The Atomic City Girls, a N…

Happy Fourth of July!

My family loves the Fourth of July.  It's our second favorite holiday!  We like to decorate our front porch with flags and pillows and wreaths that all celebrate the Red, White and Blue! It warms my heart that my neighbors love the Fourth as much as I do. Just to show you a little bit of what it is like here, I took a few pictures of some of the homes here in my neighborhood.


From around the neighborhood I present to you.... The Fourth of July at New Town!






I hope you enjoyed some of the homes in my neighborhood! We will celebrate with the neighborhood parade at 10 a.m., then a concert at 7 p.m. followed by fireworks around 9:30 p.m.  It is a full day of family and friends, the best celebration ever!

Marinated Burgers #TasteCreations

The Taste Creation bloggers, Nikki, Rosemary, Lauren, and myself, love our theme for the month, which is Grilling!  In time for your summer get togethers, here are some fresh takes on old favorites, like our Marinated Burgers!  I love a good burger hot from the grill, but how do you take it up a notch?



As you can see, my family has had a Burger Cook Off every summer for the past 10 years, with a few exceptions.  You can see our Island Burgers here and ourChicken Chorizo Burger with Avocado Mayo. We have had some exceptional burgers so to take it up another level was baffling us, until we learned about marinating the meat ahead of time.

What a simple concept but oh, what a difference it makes!  The meat retains its juiciness and is packed full of flavor.  Patience is the key, so make the bu…