Pizza Pizza

I have a *thing* for pizza. It doesn't matter what kind, what style; it doesn't matter if it's low fat or heart-attack-inducing; all that matters is that there is a bread dough cooked with cheese and some kinda sauce on it.

But my all time favorite is good ol' pepperoni and cheese. This is, in fact, a complete contradiction to who I think I am as a person when it comes to food... or at least who I believe to be: I refuse corn because of Monsanto's genetically modified infestation of the crop, I don't eat meat unless I am 100% sure it lived a good life, was raised on grass and without chemicals, and I haven't eaten at a fast food joint in...oh...I don't know? Years?

So, this led me to search for a healthier version of pizza (yes, I do often make my own from scratch at home, but I'm looking for a SERIOUSLY, GLOBALLY, & ENVIRONMENTALLY HEALTHY pizza).

Instead, I found these:

Yes, it's a freakin' bacon-cheeseburger pizza. Next!

OMG, are you serious? ANOTHER burger-turned pizza?

Deep-Fried Pizza. Because a slice of Domino's pepperoni pizza doesn't already contain 14 grams of fat and 340 calories (although that's debatable: clicky)...

You guessed it, macaroni and cheese pizza.

Grilled pepperoni and cheese pizza sandwich. This one might just be dinner tonight, you know, with whole wheat organic bread and soymilk cheese and vegetarian pepperoni...of course...(psh - yah right!)

Chicago-style pizza. :O !ROAD TRIP!

Ginormous, humongous, gargantuan, mega-pizza. Wonder how many calories are in a slice of that thing (it does look like it needs more cheese, though, don't you think?)...

A Yoda pizza, it is.

I just don't know if I could traditionally just slice through these pies. I would have to take a pair of scissors and make a cut-out of the characters (Hello Kitty is my favorite, but it looks like she's loaded with WAY too many onions). Which one would you choose?

This waffled-pizza-pocket idea seems appealing as well. Definitely trying this one. Waffles are one of my other all time favorite foods, and...I mean, c'mon, you get to DIP it!

Does this look fake, or just a day-old hardened cheese slice with fresh uncooked veggies on top? Either way, FAIL.

Japanese Pizza. I wonder what those toppings are! I'd really like to try them all! And the white drizzle over some of them - is that more cheese?!

Breakfast Pizza. Oh, yes, every meal can be made into a pizza, especially if you can turn a burger into one!



The next three are the MOST appealing to me (I like to think of myself as a foodie, but then again, I am also a completely contradictory person...anyway, ONWARD - to the gourmet pizzas!

Apricot-prosciutto pizza. *droooooooool*

Artisan Margherita *swoon* !

When heartburn threatens, white pizza is always a wise choice (sans tomatoes).



Okay, now, I did find some healthier styles of pizza, although, there is a fear of the resulting "undesirable-ness" of them, so you're all invited over for a pizza party in which I'll attempt these next few and, if they ALL suck, we can just pitch in and order out. Cool?

This cheese-less pizza just seems to be lacking the whole concept of pizza. Can we at least put a sprinkling of fresh shredded Parmesan on it? Please?

Okay, this one looks to have globs of fresh mozzarella, atop of fresh basil leaves, red peppers, and, oh, mushrooms! AND PESTO! OMNOMNOM. So what makes it healthy? The crust: It's made of chick pea flour!

This one looks pretty delish, too, but again - it's the crust: Cauliflower!

And this little number could be a gluten-free dieter's dream. There is no crust! It's just slices of zucchini with traditional sauce and cheese on top! I'm pretty sure this one is fail-proof.

I just threw this in there because it's calorie-free. Wouldn't it be great though, if, when you stuck it into your USB port, it gave off the smell of pizza baking in the oven?



(I compiled these images over time, and was in too much of a hunger fit to jot down the sources for them. If they belong to you, send me a comment and I'll give you due credit or remove them upon your request)



Happy craving!

BEST BAKE SALE RECIPES

Easy, cheap, & best sellers, too!

GRANDMA'S EASY COCONUT MACAROONS
1 (16 oz.) bag coconut flakes
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. almond or coconut extract
Cherries for topping (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix coconut flakes, condensed milk and almond extract together in a large bowl. Mix until blended and the milk is absorbed. Drop the mixture from spoon on ungreased pan. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until bottom of cookie turns light brown. Cool on rack. Put on 1/2 slice cherry if desired. These cookies stay soft and chewy.

RICE CRISPY TREATS 
1 or 2 bags miniature marshmallows
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups Kellogg's Rice Crispy Cereal
Melt butter in a saucepan. Add marshmallows. Stir until mixture becomes difficult to stir any more. Mix in the Rice Crispy Cereal and stir until hot. Butter a pan (a square pan like a brownie pan) and spread mixture evenly in the pan. Allow to cool and cut into squares.

FLOURLESS PEANUTBUTTER COOKIES
1 CUP Peanutbutter
1 EGG
1 CUP Sugar.
mix together, Scoop with a Teaspoon and form into a ball bake these on an ungreased cookie sheet at 350 for 10 minutes. cool.

Meet my Campaign!

21 days left to reach my goal!

The Toothbrush Fence!

There is a fence in New Zealand, referenced in Flight of the Concords, made with toothbrushes!


-source unknown

The fence, created by Laird McGillicuddy Graeme Cairns in Te Pahu, New Zealand, is a real thing. He’s wired the toothbrushes on a fence as a rival to another infamous fence located in Cardrona Valley, New Zealand, made with bras. Cairns believes that just a few hundred more toothbrushes would attract tourists from all over the world to witness his fence.

He had his own hoard of used toothbrushes, and got the idea to use them on his fence. Soon after, others donated their used toothbrushes to the fence, and the fence has become Cairns' claim to fame. With so many positive reviews on his fence, he began accepting used toothbrushes from around the world! So, even you can have your toothbrush hanging from his fence. Just mail the used toothbrush to the following address:

The Toothbrush Bucket 294 Limeworks Loop Road Te Pahu, R D 5 Hamilton New Zealand.

Random Dump Spots En Masse

Today, we have an eclectic mix of embarrassing dump spots that currently live throughout the house.



An assortment of jewelry I've been akin to wearing lately, my e-cig charger, essential oils, frames with projects awaiting them, a notebook and earbuds. Oh, and your guess is as good as mine as to how long that coffee mug has been there…blech.



There's a little sprig of basil on top of the dog crate…remains of a printing/paper craft project…and a hammer? Dunno how that got there…



Future sewing projects (note to self: you must remove the fabric from the sewing machine in order to actually DO the projects).



What remains of my canopy bed after Dutch pulled it down. I'm still going back and forth with the bedroom colors and after changing my sheets and duvet from a deep purple to a calm light blue…I think I still have an attachment to the blue. So now I have all these curtains…*sigh*



This has been my "office" for the last few days: sitting on the edge of my bed and using this giant hassock as a surface…the phone, camera charger, some books on natural magic, and my, uhm…"happy bottle"…Tobi's Kindle and mp3 player have been placed here as a sacrifice to his groundation as well.



AND his laptop…



THUNDERCATS, HOOOOOOOOO! Do you remember them?



Yes, this is all completely random indeed. Blonde hair dye? I haven't made up my mind yet. Power tools and fishing line…and a prescription bottle. Right next to the oats…seems legit.



Ironically, the table that usually holds many of my prior dumping zones, is free and clear, save for nail polish remover and a box cutter...I like to think the blue glass belongs there. :)

While this is something I'm very ashamed of, I would like to share that just days prior to this posting, my home was spotless (except for the pile of Dutch-murdered bed canopy), as I had a guest...and also, even since photographing and typing up this blog, some of these "dump spots" have either moved or been removed...I really am a homebody.

EYE CANDY from a loved one!

I'm pretty sure by now, most of my reader(s?) are aware that I'm an artist of sorts. So, when a family member who has made a HUGE influence on my talents and pursuing them showcases her own mother's work, I feel inclined to advertise.

I refrain from advertising on this blog for many reasons, so, let's just perceive this as a promotion and a "sharing" of beauty, if you will...instead of an advertisement.

But ANYWAY, here it is:

Hardwick, VT's White Water Gallery Presents:
Looking Back: Hardwick in the 1950's
Paintings by Hazel Hall Rochester (1918 – 1988) who is fondly remembered for her paintings which focus on subjects in and around Hardwick in a former time but which are still very evident in the 21st. century. And in the photo gallery, a car show by N. Wasco
Opening Reception: Sunday, June 3rd. from 4 till 7pm.
Show runs through Sunday, July 8th @ White Water Gallery, 5 River Street, East Hardwick, VT.
Gallery Hours: every Sunday from 11-3 or by appointment
For information call: 802-563-2037

And also, a link to the White Water Gallery's blog:

CLICK ME!

Here's a preview:

-source

ENJOY!

Chair modification!

I have these kitchen chairs, right? They are from a set that I've had for...EVER. They've been taken apart, re-assembled, packed away in storage, moved four or five times from one home to the next, and they have taken a beating. My son has left his mark upon the cushions many times, and I, too, have spilled food stuffs on them repeatedly. The original cushions were a very light beige, so it was bound to happen that they'd show their age at some point.

Below, a picture of the original chair is on the right.

I re-upholstered all of them, in two different styles, to brighten up my kitchen and give these sturdy old-timers some new life.

Would you believe the upholstering fabrics are pillowcases from the thrift store? Yeah! I'm not sure I'm happy with the blue fabric on red, but when I tried the green fabric on red it looked far too "Christmas-y".

Then there's the mess I made with the spray paint...*sigh*...which my landlady refuses to let me live down. This is kind of annoying, because the red grass will grow out and she'll mow it, and I protected the rocks with cardboard, and only some of the paint made it on about thirty pebbles in the driveway. She tells me I'm going to "pay for those rocks"...so I just kicked them around, but I couldn't resist taking a picture to share here, first...LOL!

Yeah, I can hardly see the yellow either...oh well.