Clothespins Painted to Look Like Pencils

I made a ton of these pencil clothespins for Meals on Wheels. They were so easy to make.

Supply List:

clothespins

yellow paint

pink paint

paint brush

black Sharpie pen

Directions:

Paint the back side of the clothespin yellow.

Once the back of the clothespin is dry - turn it over and paint the top of the clothespin pink.

Then paint the body of the pencil  yellow - leaving a space at the bottom for the pencil point.

Once the yellow and pink paint is dry - take the Sharpie and make a line between the eraser an pencil and draw a squiggle line and pencil point.

This was a fun craft. If I wasn't making a ton of these I would have added a number 2 to the pencils.

These can be used for chip clips, photos, school papers etc. 

Zucchini Cakes

I did not like zucchini growing up - but now I love it! I have been practicing making zucchini recipes all summer! This recipe is figure friendly because they are baked instead of fried.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup shredded zucchini

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1/4 cup panko bread crumbs

1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped

1 teaspoon fresh garlic, finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly coat the parchment paper with a non-stick cooking spray.

I shredded my zucchini in a mini food processor. Place the zucchini in the middle of a large paper towel. Fold up the corners and squeeze out any extra moisture. Make sure that the zucchini is really dry.

Place the zucchini and the remaining ingredients in a medium sized bowl and mix until everything is  combined.

Place large tablespoons on the prepared baking sheet. using a cookie scoop.  Lightly press the scoops with a small spatula to flatten.

Bake 18 to 20 minutes - until the edges are golden. This recipe make nine zucchini cakes.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce!

Summer Goals

I have been working on some summer goals!  Unfortunately I haven't been home a lot this summer and when I come home - I have vacation laundry and grocery shopping. Then we make plans to go away for a few more days.

Goals:

Make homemade Peach Cobbler

Perfect my Zucchini Fritter recipe (7/20)

Attend an Angel game (done 7/16)

Host a Barbecue

Host a Brunch

Make Shark Week cookies (7/21 - see instagram)

Make Basketball cookies

Make a dinner picnic to enjoy at Salt Creek on the hill above the beach

Make a huge jar of homemade Granola

Every week that we are home - I want to make a large Fruit Salad

Make Sweet Potato Fries

Now I think I need a nap.

Strawberries and Cream Ice Cream

I made some Strawberries and Cream ice cream in honor of Wimbledon.

Ingredients:

1 cup heavy whipping cream - cold

2 tablespoon granulated sugar

14 ounces sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups fresh strawberries - diced

Directions:

Chill metal mixing bowl and whisk from your stand mixer in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Combine sugar and cold whipping cream in the mixing bowl and mix on medium-high until soft peaks form.

Shut the mixer off and gently fold in the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and chopped fresh strawberries.

Pour the mixture into a glass or metal loaf pan. Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap.

Place in the freezer for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Enjoy while watching Wimbledon. I hope that Rodger wins!

Red, White and Blue Pretzels

I made red, white and blue pretzel snacks for the fireworks shows tonight. The salty and sweet combination is a perfect treat after a barbecue.

Ingredients:

bag of pretzel rods

bag of white chocolate tabs

bag of red chocolate tabs

bag of blue chocolate tabs

white sprinkles 

pretzel bags

red and blue ribbon

parchment paper

Directions:

Lay the pretzel rods out on parchment paper. Remove the broken pieces.

Melt the whole bag of white chocolate tabs and put the melted chocolate into a tall glass.

Twist and turn the pretzel rod around the glass and lay it on the parchment paper to set.

Melt about 3/4 of the bag of blue chocolate. Dip the top end into the blue melted chocolate. Add the white sprinkles while the blue chocolate is still wet. Wait for the blue chocolate to set.

Melt a small handful of the red tabs and but the melted tabs into a zipper top bag. Twist the red melted chocolate onto one end and snip a small hole with scissors. Make some stripes.

Once every pretzel is completely dry they can be packaged into some pretzel bags and tied with ribbon.

Have a safe and wonderful 4th of July! Happy birthday America!

Fresh Homemade Lemonade

My sweet tennis friend Ann gave me a bag of huge lemons from her tree. So I made some homemade lemonade. I squeezed about eight huge lemons and made about a cup and a half of lemon juice. Sometimes lemons can be a little sweet or tart so the recipe can be adjusted accordingly.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 - 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

4 cups of water

1 cup of simple syrup ( 1 cup of water boiled with 1 cup of sugar and cooled)

2 lemons sliced

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients in a large pitcher. Place the pitcher in the refrigerator for a few hours.

Take the pitcher out of the fridge and give the lemonade a good stir. and taste test.

If the lemonade is not sweet enough - add about 1/4 cup sugar.

Other options are to add some strawberries or raspberries. Fresh mint would also be a wonderful garnish.

Unfortunately I didn't go to the produce store to add the berries until the lemonade was almost gone!