summer || how i see it

Summer is my favorite season ever. I love almost everything about it. Summer is so special to me! And not having school helps make that even more special!! :D

Here is what most people think of when they think of Summer.

[gallery ids="4811,4812,4813,4814,4815,4816,4817,4818,4819,4820,4821,4822,4823,4824,4825,4826,4827,4828" type="rectangular"]

 

And here is what my Summer looks like!! :D <3

 

[gallery ids="4831,4833,4834,4835,4836,4837,4838,4839,4840,4841,4842,4843,4844,4845,4846,4847,4848,4849,4850,4851,4852,4853,4854,4855,4856,4857,4858,4859,4860,4861,4862,4863" type="rectangular"]

When I think of Summer, this is what comes to mind.  I guess I like these things because I'm a country girl. We live in the country and I've grown up with Summer's like this. I love the cookouts, the water fights, the sunflowers, the fishing, the lightning bugs, the sunshine, the tans and barefeet.  Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy going to the beach, but my family usually doesn't do this in the Summer time! :D

I'm so excited for Summer!!! Its my favorite season of all!

what does your summer look like?
do you like summer?
what is your favorite season?

 

 

recipe || homemade pizza

My family made this pizza not too long ago and it turned out so good!!! :D The hardest part in the recipe is making the pizza dough and chopping vegetables, but it really wasn't too difficult.



Pizza Dough

• 1 tablespoon sugar


• 1 1/4 ounce packet active dry yeast


• 3 tablespoons olive oil


• 3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting


• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

 

Directions

Whisk 1 1/3 cups warm water (hot from the tap) together with sugar and salt.
Sprinkle in the packet of yeast and set aside, allowing the yeast to get foamy.
Add the olive oil to the yeast/water mixture.
Begin to stir in the flour, stirring until the mixture forms a dough.
Sprinkle a working surface area with extra flour and begin to knead your dough ball for another 5-10 minutes, until the dough is smooth.
Brush a small amount of olive oil on the dough ball and place back into mixing bowl.
Cover and set aside at room temperature for about an hour, allowing the ball to double in size.
When ready, roll out the dough to about 1/4-inch thick (or to your preference).

 

Pizza Sauce

• 1 to 2 tablespoons olivie oil


• 3 cloves garlic, minced


• 1 medium onion, chopped finely


• 1/2 cup chicken broth


• Three 15-ounce cans crushed tomatoes


• Salt and pepper


• Pinch salt


• 1 teaspoon dried oregano


• 8 to 10 fresh basil leaves, chopped

Directions:

Add a tablespoon or so of olive oil into a hot pan over medium heat.
Throw in the garlic and chopped onions and give them a stir.
Cook until the onions are soft, 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the chicken broth, whisking to deglaze the bottom of the pan.
Cook until the liquid reduces by half.
Add the crushed tomatoes and stir to combine.
Add salt and pepper to taste and a pinch of sugar.
Add the dried oregano and basil.
Reduce heat and heat low and simmer 30 minutes.

 

Toppings:

You can put whatever you like on your pizza.
This is what we used:

• Italian sausage


• pepperoni


• mozzarella cheese


• peppers and onions (sautéed for a few minutes for extra flavor)


• fennel seed (we sprinkled this on the tomato sauce after spreading it on the pizza crust but before we added the rest of the toppings. The cheese goes on next, then the rest of the toppings)

 

The only thing we would do differently next time is spread the dough a little thinner because it was a lot of crust. We might also brush the crust with butter, and sprinkle it with garlic powder and parmesan cheese.

So that's the recipe! I hope you enjoy your pizza!!



 

 

 

do you like pizza?
have you ever made homemade pizza?
are you going to give this recipe a try?
let me know how it turns out for you!

 

my thoughts on real books vs. tablets

I love reading  (as if you didn't already know that by now ;) ). But when I read, I like having a real book in my hands. I know a lot of you enjoy reading on tablets (I've actually read a book or two on a tablet myself) but its just not the same. There is something just so much more special reading from a real book than it is reading from a tablet.
Today I will share with you why I think real books are better than tablets.

Every time I get a new book to add to my shelf, I normally end up changing its home from one shelf to another about 81717838294 times (ok. I know I'm exaggerating :) ) before it looks perfect. And every time I get a new book, I admire seeing on the shelf with my sizable collection of books.
But when you have a tablet, you cant admire your library like you can when your books are on a bookshelf. Its just a long list of books and its not very pretty.

I love smelling my books. (maybe i'm weird??) Especially when they're really old. They just have that certain smell about them that I love. Even the new books have the scent of newness. But the tablets just don't have that smell. In fact, they don't smell like anything at all, which is really quite sad. :(

Ok. So if you are anything like me, you buy your books mostly by going to thrift stores. I cringe when I spend money on books over $10. Actually I cringe when I spend money on anything over $10! :D
Anyway, when you have a tablet, you cannot buy second hand books to read on it. They have to be brand new.

I love sharing books with my bookish friends, and I love borrowing books from them too. But if you have a tablet I would think that it would be really, really hard to do.

I love pressing flowers in my books. I guess you could say that its a hobby of mine. I love it when I'm reading a book and I turn the page and I see a perfect flower pressed on the page! It just makes that book even more beautiful!

Reading real books is just so much nicer. You can listen to that lovely sound the pages make when your turning them, you can skim through your book without much difficulty, and they're just so much more special. Tablets just don't have that kind of magic.

what are your thoughts on this?
which one would you rather use to read?
do you have another point i didn't mention?