Much of the country is in the middle of a heat wave this week. During hot weather, staying comfortable and being creative can be a challenge. We decided to keep this post short, sweet, and cool. Here, we share a quick craft to make the simplest coasters you can imagine. Then, let’s cool things down with coffee-flavored iced cubes and a recipe for cold brew iced coffee. Plus, there is a garden update and we check to see how the bears are chillin’.

EASY TILE COASTERS 

Need some new coasters? Pick up a few ceramic tiles and some small self-stick cork protective pads. Adhere the self stick dots to the bottom four corners of each tile and within minutes – for less than a dollar each – instant coasters! We liked the look of both the flat and textured sides, so we made 2 of each. These are not dishwasher safe, but clean easily by wiping with a damp cloth. A perfect place for our iced coffees!

CUBE IT UP!

We love iced coffee, but melting ice cubes weaken the flavor. A great solution is to fill up an ice-cube tray with black, unsweetened coffee and make coffee ice cubes. Easy and tasty! This is a very versatile idea. Freeze fruit, fruit juices or herbs to make your drinks more interesting and flavorful. Put lemonade cubes into iced tea, mint cubes into mojitos, fruit cubes into . . . well you get the point – be creative! How about tomato juice/horseradish ice cubes for a Bloody Mary?

To keep the kitchen cooler, try this recipe for cold brew iced coffee:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/06/perfect-iced-coffee/

GARDEN UPDATE

The garden is doing well. During the heat wave, we are watering at least 2 times a day. Our pansy plants, which we started from seed, are starting to bloom (2 so far). We must have done something wrong early on, resulting in the pansies lack of growth and slowness to bloom, but they finally are starting to produce. Looks pretty!

We welcomed a new plant from our sister-in-law Sharon’s garden – a sweet potato vine. After a slow start, it’s thriving!

On the veggie front, we are bringing in a few peppers and tomatoes every day.  This week, we used our harvest in several dishes, including a pasta salad, a tuna salad, and a tomato and cheese tart. Oh, and in our veggie art, as seen below and in this blogs featured image.             (No veggies were harmed in the production of this art!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JOKE OF THE WEEK

What did the air conditioner say to the man? I’m your biggest fan! (Source: jokes4us.com.)

“ICE ICE BEARY!”

The bears will do anything to stay cool! Here, they even put themselves on ice! Looks refreshing!

ENJOY!

Roy and Kevin