Pat's Tomato-Bacon Tart

I am on a "food kick". And just in case you need a main dish to go with yesterday's Pinterest cookie recipe -- here is an excellent vegetarian option. AND, if you're like me, at this time of year -- this is your problem...

TOO MANY TOMATOES!!



Pat Leslie is the best cook I know. Julia Child was a friend of hers!! Well, actually, that's not very remarkable -- because EVERYBODY SHE MEETS becomes Pat's friend. Believe me -- she has COOKED it all -- written columns, had her own radio show -- and she teaches very popular cooking classes (she keeps trying to retire, but they won't let her!). The woman LIVES AND LOVES cooking. If you're getting a lot of tomatoes out of your garden -- this recipe is JUST IN TIME.

YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE HOW DELICIOUS this tart is. Totally wonderful --

this could be the dish you will be famous for!!

Pat’s Tomato Tart

Crust:
1 cup fresh basil leaves
4 garlic cloves
2-1/2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1/2 pound chilled butter, cut into small pieces
8 to 10 tablespoons ice water

In a food processor bowl, chop basil and garlic. Add flour and salt. Mix well. Add butter pieces and pulse just to combine with flour mixture, leaving pea-size pieces of butter. Add water while pulsing until dough clings together. Don’t over-mix. Transfer dough to a lightly floured board. Gently form into a flattened ball, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for ½ hour.

Pan-spray a 12 x 16-inch baking pan. Unwrap dough and roll to fit the pan. Prick dough with a fork. Bake in a preheated 450°F. oven for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven before edges are browned and lower heat to 350°F.

Filling:
4 to 6 cups grated cheese, divided*
1 pound chopped bacon, cooked & well-drained
1-1/2 cups mayonnaise
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
6 or 8 green onions, chopped
6 to 8 thinly sliced tomatoes
Garnish: fresh basil leaves

Sprinkle a generous amount of grated cheese over baked crust. Scatter cooked bacon over cheese.

In a bowl, mix together mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt, pepper, cayenne and green onions. Spread over bacon by spoonfuls. Arrange sliced tomatoes, overlapping in rows, on top. Sprinkle with remaining grated cheese. (Allow tomato slices to show.)

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes at 350°F. until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly. Remove from oven and allow to cool before slicing. Cut into squares or fingers. Makes about 30 appetizers .

*Cheddar, Monterrey Jack, Mozzarella (I used ½ Cheddar and ½ Monterey Jack)
Notes: - Roma tomatoes are best. If using more juicy tomatoes, blot with paper towels
before adding to tart.
- Add chopped basil and garlic powder to mayonnaise mixture if desired.

*********
On the SAME DAY Pat sent me this recipe -- John picked a five gallon bucket of tomatoes. Here it is...the beautiful finished "Tomato Tart". Altho, I must confess -- I started with a refrigerated pie crust. My tomatoes were very ripe, so I sliced them and let them sit between paper towels before assembling the tart, just as Pat recommended...

WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL. This is one of those seasonal things that should only be made when you have fresh tomatoes from your garden. It gives you something to look forward to...

THANKS, PAT!!

Pinterest Experiment

We were at Kelcy's house for her birthday dinner. Kelcy is always helping me with the technology part of my life, so I thought it would be fun to do a "Pinterest Experiment" with the kids..

One of the things I "pinned" last week was an "Easiest Cookie Ever" recipe. Three ingredients: Cake mix (any flavor), one egg, one container of Cool Whip. Mix it all up, drop spoonfuls into confectioner's sugar, bake for 12 minutes.

It sounds like magic COOKIES...

You can see that Lilly was delighted to be sharing the baking experiment with cousin Mason...lol...


I'm thinking this makes no sense. It cannot work. Crazy. And it was VERY dry...so we added a second egg...

Mason REALLY ENJOYED the "roll 'em in powdered sugar" part of the task...
And -- HEY -- SHOCKING -- IT WORKED..!!


NO KIDDING. These cookies were delicious. I love the idea that you can use any flavor of cake mix, too. I'm going to STOCK UP ON CAKE MIXES...

Honestly -- I cannot remember what I did before Pinterest...

Reluctant Model

I started working on these dresses weeks ago. Emily's dress started with a great orange top that had a built-in bra. I was going to add some colorful panels to make it a maxi -- but she liked it short. Lilly's little version WAS long -- but she hated it and refused to model...

The second Mommy & Me set is actually a dress for Lilly and a top for Mommy...I loved the colors...again, Lilly was not a fan...


On yet another dress -- Lilly did try it on. I wanted to get the length right before I cut the t-shirt fabric into fringes...

But can you see the look of enthusiasm? She is covering her mouth because I told her it was rude to say, over and over again, "I don't like it"...

FINE...if I really need a picture -- I'll find a different model. WHERE IS MEMPHIS?? Hey -- at Aunt Amy's house.....BINGO...
Good job, girls. You both look adorable. Great Mommy & Me dresses, eh?

I'm telling you, Amy -- YOU NEED A GIRL!!

Kelcy & Myla's Maxi Dresses

My new addiction: Recycled t-shirt Maxi Dresses. OMG.

I don't know when I've had more fun sewing. Really. There are sooo many enjoyable elements to this addiction.

FIRST OF ALL -- it gives me a great excuse to GO THRIFT STORE shopping...you'll be reading more about that in the coming weeks...

Secondly -- it gives me the PERFECT EXCUSE to use those funny words on t-shirts that have, for so many years, made me laugh out loud...

Third great thing -- I love, love, love the idea of "Mommy & Me" dresses. Probably because I had two boys.

For Kelcy's birthday, I was inspired by these words...which set a black and white tone for the dresses...

I took the dress to breakfast club on Tuesday morning for "Sew & Tell" and Sandy held it up so I could take the picture...

For Kelcy's actual birthday -- Myla tried on her little version of the one-sleeve black and white striped dress with t-shirt fringe...HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ANYTHING CUTER?? Oh My...
AND, yes, her Mommy looks stunning in the maxi version...(maxi just won't work for a one year old baby)...


MY TWO BEAUTIFUL MODELS...they ROCKED the dresses, don't you think?
Oh, yes, this is going to be fun. Although, clearly, I MUST QUIT SHOPPING.

I have purchased so many twenty-five cent t-shirts (Tuesday is "quarter" day at the Bettendorf Goodwill store).... if I made ten dresses every week, I'd be 160 years old before I ran out of t-shirts...

T-shirt FRINGE

The world is a different place because Thomas Edison invented the lightbulb and Elias Howe invented the sewing machine. Just like Al Gore invented the internet -- I like to think I invented "T-shirt fringe". You've seen it on everything in my life -- my own clothes, dresses, jackets, wraps -- shower curtains, porch furniture -- my last project shown here -- the curtains in Lillian's room...

It is SO EASY TO DO. You simply insert a piece of t-shirt fabric into a seam. The curtain fringe started as a 4" strip of pink fabric.... AFTER all the sewing is done, cut the "fringes"...

For Kelcy's birthday, I wanted to make "Mommy & Me" dresses. And when I looked at Kelcy's Pinterest pages -- I could see she liked one-shoulder outfits. That would be adorable...My initial idea was to start with this baby onesie...

However -- that didn't work out. YET. I got distracted last week when I was making some Maxi-dresses for a friend of mine. She's temporarily living at a Ronald McDonald house -- and there's nothing better than a few long t-shirt dresses. She can walk to the kitchen, check her email, visit the library, etc. -- and she won't be wearing pajamas!

I'll post those pictures later on. Here's a maxi dress I made for my niece Amy. I gave it to her the night they were leaving on a two week camper vacation to South Dakota. Although I love the t-shirt fringe in this dress, because one of the t-shirts said, "Save the planet -- it's the only one with beer" -- I call it her "drinking dress". She has three boys inside that camper. She may need the beer...
Yes, I know. My pictures suck. But for Kelcy's "Mommy & Me" dresses -- I was obsessed with black and white. STRIPES. Oh, yeah...this is gonna be fun...

My Favorite Pinterest Food Ideas

Here's the most fun thing about Pinterest. IT'S ALL ABOUT THE PICTURES. I see something that I fancy -- and I simply "pin it" onto one of my boards. AND, someday, when I'm planning a big fancy party or a premiere of some kind -- I'll have all these good ideas. When I saw this picture, I knew I would do it one day...

And doesn't that look easy enough? I'd buy a cheesecake from the grocery store -- and use pretzel sticks -- then dip them in chocolate and roll it in nuts. I AM IN HEAVEN...

One clever Pinner had a picture of her cupcakes...after 5 minutes in the oven, she pushed a Hershey kiss down into each cupcake for a creamy chocolate center. Another cupcake idea -- when they're just about done -- place a marshmallow on top of each one for the final 3 minutes of baking time to create a toasted frosting...I CAN DO THAT.

Because my cakes are from a "boxed mix" -- I was stunned when the "make a richer cake" pin kept popping up. In all these years, it never once occurred to me that I could mess with the recipe on the back of the box. REALLY?? Pinterest tells me to add one additional egg, use melted butter instead of oil, and milk instead of water. I CAN DO THAT!!

Although -- there are also some crazy time-consuming ideas on Pinterest that I love to make fun of.

Like, for example, homemade marshmallows.

You cook a sugar syrup mixture to the hard crack stage...then pour it into your mixer stand...with gelatin and egg whites or something...and beat it for 30 minutes...or something...huh?? My comment to this pin was, "If I live to be 100 years old, I will never do this. Because my grocery store is still selling marshmallows for $1.50."

You are right. I have been so busy "pinning" about sewing and cooking and doing laundry...I haven't actually had time to do any of it. I understand irony...

Yes, Debra...I, too, need a "Pintervention"....

I Love You To The Moon And Back

Oh, yeah, I am taking this "I love you to the Moon and Back" thing a little too far...It all started with the Ikea Moon light that I hung on the wall in Lilly's room. It was sooo special...and Linda painted the words...

THEN -- in a stroke of "Ritaluck" -- I found this vintage Fisher Price clock radio at the Goodwill store. $2.38 Everything works! It has a little moon night light on the top -- and plays lullabyes -- OH MY GOODNESS!!

THEN -- in another stroke of "Ritaluck" -- I found this bookcase at thrift store. $12. Really, people?? Fine...put it in the car...

I think I showed this FABULOUS MOON LAMP already. But here it is in the room. I paid A LOT OF MONEY for this treasure. $38. But it is really beyond wonderful. It has three small lights on the actual moon base -- and a regular lightbulb in case you want some REAL light in the room. IT IS AMAZING...


Here it is in the room. Gosh. The funky orange nightstand came out of the spare bedroom. I used to PAINT ALL MY FURNITURE...

I almost forgot how much fun that was. And you can see a bit of the wedding chest Lillian uses for all her "dress-up" clothes. I painted that, too...

Another post, eh?

Here's the last Moon treasure from Lilly's room. It's a stained glass mirror. I almost forgot there was a moon on the darned thing...it has been hanging in my living room for many years. One Saturday, many moons ago, Bert and I were treasure hunting -- and I it was sitting in an alley in Davenport, Iowa -- leaning against the dumpster. No kidding.

I had no way of knowing that one day I'd hang it in a little girls' room...and I'd be her Grandma, and she would see her reflection in this mirror....and she would smile and give me a hug when I said the words, "I love you to the moon and back"

Pinterest

It is absolutely unbelievable to me that I have been able to find time in my very busy day for YET ANOTHER TIME SUCK.

No kidding. My new obsession is called PINTEREST...

Facebook was all about communicating via the written word. One person said, "I used to wonder what people were thinking. Then along came Facebook. I am sooo over it..."

Just when I thought I might get my life back -- along came Pinterest.

I spend more time on Pinterest than I ever did on Facebook. It's like getting your favorite magazine delivered to your door EVERY HOUR OF EVERY DAY.

Pinterest is all about PICTURES. It allows you to easily sort your "Favorites" list into manageable "bulletin boards" or individual "scrapbooks". You don't have to worry about writing something clever -- you just "pin" pictures that appeal to your sense of adventure, your personal taste, anything that tickles your fancy -- everything you love.

You could have a "cupcake" board -- I love my "Toddler Dresses" board.

You might be asking yourself -- what's so great about that?

Beats me.

I just know I CAN'T STOP DOING IT...and something on Pinterest makes me laugh every single day...

SEE WHAT I MEAN??

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE going back and reading my boards. Sometimes I just grab an interesting "pin" -- so I can look at it later. (click on the picture and it takes you to the source -- a website, blog, tutorial, etc.) Like the one that said you could break one of those glow sticks into a jar of children's bubbles...then you will have glowing bubbles at night. Really? WILL THAT WORK??

Everybody has different "boards" -- depending on their interests. Some of mine: Books, Food, Sewing, Style, Painted Furniture, Laundry, Maxi Dresses, Make Me Laugh, Quotes, Kids Stuff, Sewing & Stitchery Expo, My Favorite Books, Places I've visited..

And you would not believe all the fabulous sewing tutorials on Pinterest!!

One of my favorite boards is MAXI DRESSES....which is mostly a direct result of my other favorite board "Recycled T-Shirt Ideas"....

Now that I'm done messing with the blogger interface -- I'll be able to write some posts about the maxi dresses I've been making. I am having a mountain of fun with recycled t-shirts!!
I love "mother-daughter" dresses. Starting with a t-shirt, I made these two dresses for Emily and Lillian...

Well, maybe they'll look better ON my people, eh??


Okay -- apparently I still have some issues to resolve. But now that I've kicked the new blogger interface to the curb -- I AM VERY HOPEFUL

IF YOU HAVEN'T DONE IT ALREADY -- check out Pinterest. Bonne is hooked. So is Debra. Mary is one of my new best friends. Kelcy does it...(altho she pins for Deena)...

Thanks for all the supportive emails during this blogging dark time. I missed you, too, Violet!! And Sharon -- you are the bomb! I appreciatated every email...Bonnie, Heidi, Pat and Mary Jane, Sandy, Lin, Kathy, Elaine, Martha, Anne, Kaye, Barb, Susan and Michelle...well -- YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE.

Summer Television

YOU HAVE NO IDEA how much time I've spent trying to work with the "new blogger interface". I am so sorry -- because the new interface just kept causing me more problems -- and YOU WERE HAVING PROBLEMS. I know many of you couldn't even open the damn thing...and you've probably given up and aren't reading this anyway.

I have now eliminated most of the "design elements" and have gone BACK to the old blogger interface. WHICH WAS ALWAYS FINE WITH ME ANYWAY...

Here's the new twist. No matter what I do -- blogger comes into my posts and adds their own "hyperlinks". With double blue underscore lines -- it looks like I've provided you with an link...but I HAVE NOT. THOSE LINKS ARE TO ADVERTISING. DO NOT CLICK ON THEM. I can't even figure out how to take them out. It is SO ANNOYING. So I'll be putting THIS disclaimer up on every post....let me know if you can NOW read the blog. Send me an email: ritafar@aol.com

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Saturday, July 21, 2012

I am having a hard time trying to keep up with my fabulous new summer television shows!! Of course, like all of you -- I LOVE my So You Think you Can Dance. And I have the finale for the HGTV Deisgn Star coming up. Could you believe all the drama on the reunion shows for the Real Housewives of Orange County? I am also enjoying the Next Food Network Star. And I am addicted to "Dance Moms" -- my week just wouldn't be the same without my Abby Lee fix...


But the NEW PLAYER on my television-landscape is the very unexpected "Virgin Diaries". It is totally unbelievable to me that anybody would even come up with this idea -- and then -- how did they find the people?? I thought it was going to be a one-time special. I mean -- how many 30+-year-old-virgins can there be in the world?? BUT IT IS A SERIES!!

Skippy is a Mormon, living in his Mom's basement. Shocking that he is still a virgin...

Abby Lee Miller is like watching a train wreck every week. I cannot get enough

of Dance Moms -- and I think that says something very bad about me...

Project Runway is BAAAAACK...!!

Every day of the week has a special television treat for me. Monday I have new episodes of the Closer, AND then I have Love it or List it. Tuesday is Dance Moms. Wednesday is So you Think You Can Dance. Thursday is Project Runway. Fridays always suck. Thank goodness I have "On Demand" -- so I can catch up with my New Jersey and New York city Housewives.

Do not even bother to judge me....I am blissfully happy with my television viewing habits....which actually reinforce one of my life credos..."the key to happiness is lowered expectations"...

Hummm -- now that I'm hooked on the Virgin Diaries...I wonder if Abby Lee Miller is a virgin? HOLY COW. She could be a star on YET ANOTHER reality show.

Random Pics

So, then, you are probably wondering how my poor nephew Toby turned out? Did he manage to recover after the childhood trauma of attending a live performance of "The Sound of Music" with his Aunt Rita?

Here he is today, holding the happiest baby in America...his son Oliver...

Toby has two sons.  Clayton is off playing someplace...Oliver is trying to
 stay out of trouble on his Daddy's lap.

Toby is married to beautiful Brenda...this is my favorite zebra-stripe picture of the summer. 

On "Laser Tag" day -- Lillian picked out her own outfit. (obviously)

Another wonderful young Mom -- Emily lets Lilly make her own choices. (when appropriate)

Myla -- looking up at her great Aunt-Rita. 

Hey -- it just doesn't get any better than this, people!! I am SO LUCKY to have all these children in my life. And I know what a blessing they are. Also -- I am old enough to understand that they will REMEMBER a few of the moments we spend together. And I love knowing that. It's how we go on. It's what really matters.

Pass it On

As you know -- my niece Kelcy is the best photographer I know. Ironic that I end up taking pictures of HER -- and often, they look like this...

But -- thre was a REASON I wanted to get this picture!!

Because just a year ago -- KELCY STARTED TO SEW!!

The girl is fearless!  She whips into a project with no pattern whatsoever.  She wanted a unique bonnet for her newborn photos.  So -- just because she could -- SHE MADE ONE...

No, Myla, you're a year old now, honey -- the bonnet is not for you...

Myla is a SHOE FAN...and I'm sure when she's a mature woman, she will remember her Great-Aunt-Rita toenails.  Who knows what they'll be doing for pedicures by the time she's my age??

Here's my point.  (Yes, I know -- ofthen there IS NO POINT)...

You never know what will make an impression on a kid....

So you never know what you are "passing on".  My mother didn't think about what she was passing on when she did the laundry every Monday morning...My mother-in-law, Helen Farro, didn't think about the fact that we would be eating her pesto or tabouli salad many years after she was gone....
If you love to sew -- pass it on.  Get the little kids involved.  Let them pick out the fabric, and create something of their own.  You never know what's going to "stick"....maybe it'll be my pedicures, my wacky porch furniture, or crazy t-shirt pillows....

With my cousin Kim, enjoying one of our "porch moments"...(the pillow says DO NOTHING, Avoid Criticism)

Thanks, Mom!  Line-dried sheets and pillowcases are one of the joyful pleasures of my daily life...

You just NEVER KNOW what a child is going to remember.... My theory is you should GIVE THEM LOTS OF CHOICES...lol...

Ally & Lexi

You've met these young women before. My sister Deborah's daughter Glennda and daughter-in-law Stacy. I will ALWAYS be grateful that Deb included me in her "girls trip" to New York City.

Stacy's daughter is Lexi and Glennda's daugher is Ally....both girls remembered the great
Aunt Rita Adventure we had last summer

Even though I didn't have much notice -- I managed to ramp up an adventure for THAT VERY NIGHT...

When I picked them up -- they had NO IDEA where we were going.

SHAKESPEARE, of course!!  The Complete Abridged Works of William Shakespeare was being performed that night in Rock Island, Illinois.  When we got there, I told them, "I don't know how much of this you'll understand...the truth is, I don't know how much of this I will understand..."

BUT I NEEDN'T HAVE WORRIED!  Turns out -- it was four guys doing a parody.  For example -- they did all of Shakespeare's comedies as a "rap number".  And they did Hamlet as SUPERHEROS!!

OMG!!  I truly don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my life.  This theater group is called the "Prenzie Players" and they've been around for ten years.  This was the first time I attended one of their shows.

After the show -- we went to Ross's 24-hour diner for our Magic Mountain.  It had been such a special night -- I wanted them to have a souvenir -- and a tye-died t-shirt seemed like just the right thing for this raucous Aunt Rita Adventure.

It was a perfect night.  The show was great.  The girls were amazing.  But the best part, for me, was just having the time to really talk to Ally and Lexi.  It is always fascinating to see the world through the eyes of a young person who is just starting out.  I remember youth and enthusiasm -- but it was a very long time ago.

Big dreams.  Change-the-world-idealism.  Judgment.  Wow.  For me, most of that remembers like a bad case of the measles...I vaguely remember it -- but I got over it.

I distinctly remember saying to my Dad, "all you care about is money".  It was 1966.  I was 18 and completely believed that I knew everything.  He just laughed at me.  I was furious. 

This is all reminding me of one of my favorite quotes.  "Old age and deceit will outsmart young and enthusiasm every single time."

Of course, I only started to like that quote after I hit the age of over-40.  I don't have it quite right.  But it's close.