Strawberry Pie

Posted on June 25, 2013 by

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Summer arrived on Friday and so did strawberry season in Michigan. At Friday’s local farmers market I bought a flat (8 quarts) of strawberries and after eating just about half of them I decided to make some sweet treats with it. First on the list was strawberry pie… a classic favorite.

Strawberry Pie Topping
Ingredients
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup boiling water
3 ounces Strawberry Jell-O
Red food coloring

Directions
1. Mix cornstarch and sugar
2. Add boiling water
3. Cook until thickens
4. Remove from heat and add Jell-O and red food coloring
5. Stir until Jell-O dissolves
6. Cool before pouring over berries.

Summer Checklist

Posted on June 24, 2013 by

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Summer has officially begun and what’s not to love? The days are sunnier, longer and warmer. So there is no better way to celebrate the season than with a summer checklist filled with seasonal fun. I hope it inspires you to make your own list or do some of the activities on my list.

Five Things

Posted on June 21, 2013 by

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 {Chilly evening boat rides}
Summer is officially here! My weekend plans include a trip to the farmers market, baking a fruit pie, making summer treats for Jack and plenty of time at the beach that is if the stormy weather holds off. How will you be spending the first weekend of summer?

{Summer essential: hourglass lip treatment oil}
 
{Jack loves to play in the kayak}
 {The last peony from the garden}
{Recent additions to my summer collection}

DIY: Stepping Stones

Posted on June 20, 2013 by

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 {Stepping stone for Jack\’s area of the yard}
One of the simplest and cheapest ways to add character to your yard is with stepping-stones. The possibilities are endless when it comes to designing your stones. I wrote on mine with skewers and also placed stones on them from Lake Michigan. I also decided that I would be making more this weekend to use as Christmas presents for family.

What you need: 
• Quikcrete (I bought an 80 pound bag at Home Depot for $4)
• Planter trays (also bought at Home Depot .89 each)
• Bucket (I bought a 5 gallon bucket from Home Depot)
• Small gardening shovel (to pour the cement in your molds)
• Something to stir the cement with 
• Water (I just used the hose outside)
• Skewers (for writing)
• rocks, beach glass, tiles, glass stones…etc

 {I bought the yellow bag}
 {Add enough water to make the cement pancake batter consistency}
 {Shovel into mold}
 {Shake to flatten}
 {Place your decoration such as stones on right away}
This will ensure they sink a bit into the cement
 {Wait about an hour before you write on them or until semi-set}
You will want to go over what your write a few times during the next few hours to make sure it\’s legible.
 {Notice how the stones have semi sunk in}

Peanut Butter Cookie Dog Treats

Posted on June 19, 2013 by

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Monday night I made peanut butter cookies (this recipe) for a cookout yesterday with friends. The smell of the peanut butter from the cookies was enough to drive Jack crazy. So I decided I would make a batch of peanut butter cookies especially for the pups at the cookout. The “cookies” were a huge hit with the dogs! I used all-purpose flour (whole wheat does not sit well with my little dog) but you can substitute it for whole wheat flour or do half all purpose and half whole wheat.

Crunchy Peanut Butter Cookie Dog Treats
Ingredients
<!– /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin-top:0in; margin-right:0in; margin-bottom:10.0pt; margin-left:0in; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} –> 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup smooth peanut butter (I mounded the peanut butter pretty high on the measuring cup)
¼ cup crunchy peanut butter
½ cup water
1 tablespoon oil (I used canola)

Directions
<!– /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin-top:0in; margin-right:0in; margin-bottom:10.0pt; margin-left:0in; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} –> 1. In a large bowl combine water, peanut butter and oil.
2. Add flour in small amounts.
3. Knead to form a dough.
4. Continue to knead until all flour is incorporated.
5. Drop balls of dough onto a cookie sheet and create the crosshatch look as if you were making peanut butter cookies for yourself.
6. Preheat oven to 350 and bake 13-20 minutes depending on size
7. Allow to cool before serving to your pet.

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