Tomato, Avocado and Fresh Mozzarella Tartines

This is a super easy dinner where you don't have to give up any taste or satisfaction.  Also, good reason to get a great bottle of Rose.

Link Love

The Cook Who Knew Nothing
Easy and the perfect hostess gift

Yeah...imma eat that
Healthy cheesecake smoothie

At Home In Love
Check out this adorable way to keep your grocery list.

Oh Lovely Day
Great idea for a wedding or any party.

Cute Find

Everybody needs a good chuckle on a Monday and this card made me laugh because it is so ME!  I'm the crankiest girl around when deprived of food.  I need to take out a loan for how many of these I need to buy to give to my husband.

Bixby and Company

Do you have a tough guy in your life that you dread buying gifts?  Well this is your lucky day because these are chocolate bars with attitude.  Normally giving chocolate bars might seem a little girly but not when they are adorned with boxers and  golfers come in a cool wooden crate!

Inspiration

I am constantly on the search for things that inspire me.  I like to add little touches around the home that remind me of great vacations, fond memories, cool finds or articles that promise fun times to come.  Here are a few items I have around the home.  I would love to know what you keep around that inspires you?

1. These are memento's of vacations past.  A small Robert Sinsky piece from our Napa vacation,  a colorful bird from the latest Mexico getaway (my ring fits on his beak while I type) and a great piece from Graham and Company from our  Fourth of July relaxation trip.

2. I've been into flea markets this summer and here is my favorite bowl that inspires me to want to go every weekend.  

3. This is a totally cool postcard I picked up in Red Hook Brooklyn which shows the brewery's and wineries in the area.  This is the upcoming plan for one weekend in August.

Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding

This post is for those of you who just eat a cinnamon roll just for the gooey, delicious center.  This recipe lets you skip the calories of the outside layers and start savoring what you really love right away.  This is a great dessert for entertaining or an awesome addition to brunch.  It is just the right size that paired with a healthy dinner or brunch you'll get to enjoy your dessert and not feel TO guilty.

Link Love

Dashing Dish
Key Lime Protein Shake

Interiors-Designed
Excellent idea if you have old suitcases lying around.

Confessions of a Wisconsin Housewife
I'm not a huge fan of balloons...but this is an awesome display for a champagne bar.

Martha Stewart
Frozen lemon souffle

Quick and Easy Noodle Dish

Last week the temperature was in the 90's everyday and I found myself struggling with what to make for dinner.  When it is so hot out you don't feel like eating anything heavy or complicated.  AND there are only so many salads a gal can eat.  Then I had an idea...this is a recipe I use for my lunches at Hip Hostess as a side dish and I always get a lot of rave reviews.  Because you run cold water over the noodles once boiled to stop the cooking process it becomes a cold noodle dish.  I also like to put the sauce ingredients together about an hour before and store them in the fridge which also helps the noodles be at exactly the right temp. Because we were eating it as a main, I added some shredded chicken.  You will probably have to buy the ingredients since they are not something most people have hanging around the cabinet but they will make about 4 batches of the noodles and believe me after you taste this it will go into the dinner rotation.  Then all you need is chopsticks.

Prosecco Pina

Do you ever feel like a Pina Colada but don't want to drag out the blender and you definitely don't have any coconut milk on hand.  Well here is a more sophisticated version that will still make you think of the tropics but without all that racket.  Behold the Prosecco Pina.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

For the simple syrup

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1 ¾ cups water

 For the cocktail

4 oz. of prosecco

Juice of ½ a lime 

I tablespoon coconut simple syrup 

Pineapple wedge

HOW TO MAKE IT 

To make the syrup: combine water and the sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir in the coconut, remove from the heat and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Strain liquid into a clean saucepan, bring to a boil and cook until slightly reduced — about 5 minutes. Let cool.

To make the cocktail: combine simple syrup, lime juice and prosecco in a flute or wine glass and garnish with pineapple wedge.

Watermelon Centerpiece

Got some time on your hands?  Well what could be cuter than a watermelon grill centerpiece complete with fruit kebabs...not much.

Straw Adornment

These cute origami dress straw toppers are the perfect reason to call together a group of your girlfriends for an afternoon brunch or lunch.  Check out the how to video at Popcosmo.  I suppose if you wanted to invite the guys that would be alright to...since she has a bow tie as well!

Link Love

Citrus and Candy
My birthday is next month and I start the narrowing down of the cake in July

House and Home
This is space planning at its finest...a hidden bed for guests.

Foodie with Family
Snickerdoodle cake with brown sugar cinnamon butter cream...option 2.

Cabbage Rose
This is perfect for myself and the hubby, it is a swimming pool made into a pond.

Chocolate Covered Banana Bites

I'm looking to solve a problem people.  I don't know if this happens to you but I have been getting terrible sugar cravings.  It normally happens about an hour after dinner when the hubby and I are enjoying some conversation and t.v. time.  The problem is that this is about 9pm and I definitely don't want to be eating anything calorie laden and heavy before bed.  I was thinking about putting a couple of this delightful little banana bites in the freezer and hopefully the bit of natural sugar plus the hint of chocolate will do the trick. Plus I think I read somewhere that anything with sprinkles doesn't go to your hips...HA.

Vanilla Ice Cream

Have you ever had a few guests stop by and wanted to offer them something but the cupboards were bare?  Well most of us have some vanilla ice cream stashed in the freezer and check out some of these fun combos that you might not think about but most likely you  have them or something similar stashed in your cabinets.

Lemon Berry Pie-Lemon curd or pie filling, fresh blueberries and crushed vanilla wafers or similar

Iced Mocha-Caramel sauce with a sprinkle of instant coffee and sea salt

Rainbow Crunch-Crushed raspberries and Fruity Pebbles cereal

Ode to Thanksgiving-Orange zest and a dusting of cinnamon

Banana Fest-Chopped banana, miniature marshmallows and rainbow sprinkles

Bastille Day Fun

Bastille Day is on July 14th and is a great reason to whip up some Gougeres.  There are many recipes and fun additives you can try but if you want to stick to the basics, check out this recipe.  I generally celebrate Sunday's anyway but Bastille day gives me a reason to take it up a notch with champagne and Gougeres and some French cheese.  What more could you ask for?

Regrets

I apologize that you have to look super close to tell what this is.  But it's worth it...a cheeky card that says "regrets her behavior at."  Now we've all been there and everyone understands that good times are not always without a couple of regrets that you would rather not think about the next day.  That's why a couple of these chic cards from catbird would come in handy.  Let's just not hope you don't need to buy a whole pack.

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Bev Cooks
Strawberry pastry bites...delish.

Better Homes and Gardens
Outdoor DIY scrabble

Little Cook
Fun idea for a kid's birthday party

Just Imagine
Fun idea for your old jeans.

Radish Chips

If you have followed this blog for any amount of time you know I have a serious love of turning fresh vegetables into crunchy chips.  I've tried them all....or so I thought...until I saw my kitchen affair's  radish chip recipe.  Not only does it look delicious but the pictures are so beautiful.  I'm going to the farmer's market this weekend and radishes are #1 on my list.

Cabinet DIY

I'm keeping them short and sweet this week because grilled hot dogs and hamburgers are calling my name.  But I wanted to share this Ikea cabinet makeover from 29 Rue House because the transformation is truly awesome.  If you are looking for a summer project that takes ordinary furniture and makes it ta-dow then look no further.

Happy 4th of July

Pan Bagnat

This my friends is the famous french sandwich called a Pan Bagnat.  It is the perfect addition to any picnic or get together.  I made a few this week for a french picnic themed event and it was the star of the show.  A couple of tips for making this sandwich "ooh la la" is to buy the more expensive oil packed tuna in herbs and to press the sandwich (I used a cast iron skillet) for about an hour after making to really distribute the juices. It's a little messy....but totally worth it!

Link Love

Southern Weddings
This looks like the perfect thing to do on a long weekend.

Spoon Fork Bacon
Shrimp Fritters with Spicy Honey Drizzle

The Every Girl
Love the gold accents in this picture perfect office...check out the phone.

Betty Crocker
Strawberry Cream Cheese Monkey Bread

Candy Poppin' Bottle Rockets

Check out this to cute for words table display.  Who knew bottle rockets could be so tasty...just a few gummy life savers, airheads and pop rocks.  She Knows you did it again.