still in a drought in Ohio...

my bushes are green and I am thankful for that. My grass has been brown for weeks now. I have not had to have it mowed for over a month. It looks like a desert around here. We did finally get some rain and I have only a few specks of grass looking even remotely green. I am thankful for the rain we got though.

Prior to that rain the grass was all brown....just really brown..looked like dried straw. It was really bad. I don't think I have any pics of it like that. Now I have a few sprigs of green sprouting up here and there.

I guess it is starting to make a comeback now with the moisture...but since I get full sun and have no shade trees...my yard may take a long time to recover. It saves me paying the mowers...and I really don't mind having brown grass..I am just thankful my bushes and the neighbor's trees so far have not died off or suffered too much.

Christmas in July cookies

Raccoon visit .....

been having a couple raccoons visit occasionally to eat the birdseed I have been putting out...and often they hang around in the morning probably a little too long...here is a short clip of 2 of them from the other morning. 

full size tomato pie with slice...YUMMY!

homade tomato pie.....yum

Tomato Pie

1 pre-baked pie shell

Spread 2 Tablespoons or so of any kind of mustard you like on baked pie shell crust.

Place 1 layer of sliced tomatoes in bottom of crust. (I also added some sliced Vidalia onions on top of the tomatoes but you don't have to).

Sprinkle the 1st layer of tomatoes with a layer of cheese..any kind you like. I used a mixture of shredded cheeses like you buy in the store already pre-packaged.

Place another layer of tomatoes on top of that...sprinkle with (onions if you want again) and then another layer of cheese.  Work your way to the top of the pie crust.

You end with cheese layer.

For the topping you can mix 1/2 cup of mayo and 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese..spread over cheese and tomato layers. (You do not have to use this last step ..it is super rich...but it makes it good...but you can just have your last layer cheese or maybe top with bacon bits or something). If you need more you can always increase the mayo another 1/4 cup and same for Parmesan cheese...

Bake in 350 to 375 degree oven for about 15 to 20 minutes..till golden brown and bubbly on top.

Cool slightly so juice will set up some...slice and enjoy!

This is one of the best tomato pie recipes I have ever had or made!

sunset that reminded me of rainbow sherbert

Angela's Strawberry Pavlova

hot rolls almost out of the oven at mom's on Mothers Day!

antique Hoosier cabinets

my sister took this out of storage and gave to me to use in my kitchen..wasn't that nice of her? AND it looks wonderful in my kitchen too!

Old Fashioned Sugar Cream Pie

Oven fried chicken strips and strawberry rhubarb tart

roasted lemon pepper chicken.....yum!

being grateful...having a "good" day

woodpeckers....

these photos were taken through my kitchen window so are not great quality..but I enjoy feeding and watching birds and animals come up to eat in my backyard. I have lived in this location now for 6 years..and have tried all that time to get woodpeckers to come up. I finally have them coming up to eat! I had a red-bellied woodpecker and a hairy woodpecker so far...I am so thrilled and excited! Here are a few shots

giant cloverleaf hot rolls!

Chocolate Cinnamon Snowball Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
2 cups flour
powdered sugar to roll cookies in

Beat butter, sugar, cocoa, vanilla, cinnamon with mixer until light, gradually add flour, mixing until blended. Form into balls about 1 inch or so..place on cookie sheet (they say greased but with all that butter in the cookies I did not grease my cookie sheets and it was fine)

BAKE at 350 or a little hotter (they called for 400 degree oven and I NEVER use that hot an oven for baking cookies..I used 350 and bake just till brown on bottom or starting to get light brown...

Remove and let cook only slightly, roll in powdered sugar....cool completely and roll in powdered sugar again!

mini peach pie/cobbler...before and after...

my second rotisserie chicken...rosemary and thyme....wow!

it was delicious! I then decided to make homemade mashed potatoes and fresh green beans..I even made gravy from the juices from the rotisseried chicken! It was one of my best meals and the great thing was I had a lot of leftovers!

to grandmother's house we go......

looks a little spooky no??

homemade tortilla chips...

Before baking....


AFTER baking...


I think I would prefer CORN tortilla chips...so next time I will use CORN instead of FLOUR tortillas...but that was all I had in stock so I used what I had.

I am sure frying these as most would makes these taste richer but...to save fat and calories I baked mine.

I sprayed a cookie sheet with cooking spray...you can use olive oil or butter...whatever you wish.

I stacked my store bought round tortilla shells on top of each other and cut into pie wedges...

I placed the wedges on the cookie sheet...gave them another spray...added any seasonings...and baked at about 375 till nice and golden brown. They are pretty good..but CORN would likely be a lot better. They taste great with salsa...whether they are corn or flour.

Quick, easy snack and you get a lot more than in the bags at the store and it is healthier for you.