Natural Homemade Living

Simple Summer Mantle  Keeping it simple is an easy technique when decorating your home. I’m not fond of the cluttered look so I picked my favorite items to use for my mantle. I love my Magnolia Market baskets, cherry blossoms and metal vase. My candles are set on a timer for the evening hours because I always want the “light on”. Happy decorating! Love and peace, Tammi

I love this time of year when I can finally enjoy some of the fresh herbs and vegetables I am growing and go to Farmer's Market's. This recipe is adapted from Caprese Salad, which I like but sometimes I want it to be more of a meal. On these days where it seems too hot to cook I really enjoy salads. If you aren't a fan of basil, this probably won't be the salad for you, but add what you like and what you have on hand. You don’t have to be exact with the measurements just taste it along the way until it's how you like it. Here's what you need: fresh basil, I just picked a small handful of leaves and cut them into small pieces med to large tomatoes, 1-2 diced, you can use canned I would use about 1/2-1 c drained or cherry tomatoes halved 3 c pasta, I use rotini or penne, but anything about that size works Simply Homemade Olive Garden Italian Dressing  (optional) or you could drizzle it with olive oil or use your own Italian Dressing fresh Mozzarella cheese,