Best BBQ Tips for Summer

Summer is coming for us on the east coast, and I couldn't be more excited. And with summer comes the best things - warm, sunny days, outdoor gatherings with friends, and of course BBQs! My absolute favorite way of cooking is on the barbecue. If I could do it all year round, I would; however, because we get such terrible winter weather (as much as I love it, I'm not standing at a BBQ in a blizzard), I always take full advantage of the months when barbecuing is possible.

Even though L and I barbecue on a regular basis every summer, we are by no means professionals...things still smoke and occasionally burn, and usually we stick with old faithful barbecue options - burgers, hot dogs, sausages. This year, I've decided to expand my barbecue horizons, and learn how to 'cue properly. I've toured around the blogosphere and gathered up some of my favorite all purpose barbecuing tips that will certainly be put into practice this BBQ season!

Summer Reading List - June 2015

As long as I can remember, I have always been a reader; I love books, all kinds of books, and can read anywhere and everywhere. I am also most definitely a collector of books. Between L and I, we have three bookcases full - and overflowing - with more books somehow making their way into our house all the time! This year, I've decided I'm going to make time to read more, and now seems like the perfect time to start, with the weather improving all the time and reading outside is an option again! Here are some of my picks - from my bookcases at home - that I can't wait to dig into this summer.

Summery Iced Tea Lemonade

It took a long time to get here, but it seems like warm summery weather has finally arrived! While there are still some chilly and damp days, the warm, sunny days certainly outnumber the yucky ones. One of the most important things to do during the summer is drink lots and lots to stay hydrated...buuut water can certainly get boring after a while.

My absolute favorite drink for summertime is that shaken iced tea lemonade they make at Starbucks. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately! Haha), there is no Starbucks in my town; the closest one is about an hour away!! And realistically, who wants to spend $5 on an iced tea anyway? So, clearly I decided that I needed to figure out a way to make this super refreshing summertime drink at home. It's so super easy that everyone can make it; also, its easy to customize to your own personal taste - it tastes delicious with just about any flavor of tea you can think of!

Lemon-y Vanilla Cheesecake

My whole life, I have never really liked cheesecake. I couldn't stand the taste of cream cheese, and since that is the main ingredient in cheesecake, it really puts a damper on enjoying it. However, over this past holiday season, there was a lot of the stuff around, and I thought I'd give it another try. I've been trying to really expand my food world lately, and since everyone else seems to love cheesecake (and to think I was crazy for not liking it), it was near the top of my list for trying.

So, over Christmas I tried all of the cheesecakes. Seriously. Every where I went there was a different type of cheesecake, so I just tried them all. And all of them were pretty freaking delicious. So, with my new found appreciation of this classic dessert, the next logical step was to figure out how to make one of my own.

DIY "Welcome Spring" Flower Arrangement

Although there is still snow on the ground, the weather has been warming up outside lately. This makes me so, so, so happy. The winter weather didn't start here until later than normal - about early December - but once it started we got pummeled by crappy weather; I mean, feet of snow, day after day. It was one of the worst winters I remember in the recent past. BUT, on a much happier note, spring will officially be here in just over a week, and I am pumped!

So, to get myself even more in the mood for the changing of seasons, I started decorating my Spring/Easter mantle over the weekend! You may remember my rambling story about the first mantle I have ever had, and how inspired I was to decorate it for every major holiday. And since I only started this on-going project for Valentine's Day, I'd say I'm doing a pretty good job, haha!!

I kind of struggled with what I wanted my Spring mantle to look like, pretty much because there are so many great ideas out there sometimes it's difficult for me to narrow things down to what I like the most and what I think will work for my house. I'm sure I'm not the only one who struggles with this...I can't be! So, this time, I started off slowly. I went out shopping one day and found a lot of things I liked, but only a few things I absolutely loved. One of the things that I decided I really wanted was a spring flower wreath or arrangement; eventually I decided on a simple flower centerpiece, mainly because wreath forms are so expensive! So, I popped by the Dollar Store, picked up a cute mini metal wash tub, picked out a bunch of lovely flower stems from Michaels (at 40% off!!), and went home and got to work.

Apple-Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Lately, I have been working a lot of night shifts. I don't usually mind it, but I do find I crave really unhealthy snacks - chips, chocolate, candy, yum yum yum - when I'm up all night. I totally support indulging occasionally, but working 2+ night shifts a week, this snack pattern has been seriously impacting my diet, and my waistband, in a baaad way. So I decided I was going to bake a little something to take with me that was a little sweet, but also pretty healthy.

I started out with a banana bread recipe I found in one of my handwritten cookbooks. Its a great recipe that I've made many times before, but sometimes plain ol' banana bread is a little boring. So, I added in some oatmeal, diced Gala apple, and baked it in a muffin tin, and created a breakfast feel - exactly what I was looking for! For a little something extra, I added streusel on top - just enough sweetness to trick my brain into thinking it's getting some of the candy it so craves at 3am. This recipe is a win-win in my books and I couldn't be happier!

Hitting the Reset Button...Already

March is here already. I honestly can't even believe how quickly this year has started out! The days are passing quickly, and each day I am learning more and more about myself, and this crazy little adventure I began early in the year.

I started Burlap & Breadcrumbs at the end of January this year, and my oh my, did February ever present a steep learning curve for me. I had thought about starting a blog for a few months before actually getting up the courage to put pen to paper, so to speak; however, in those few months, while I did do a lot of researching on starting a blog, I didn't ever really come up with a "game plan" for when things got rolling. I strugled through my first few posts, and then disappeared for a few weeks. Things got busy in life and at my "real job", and because of my lack of pre-planning, B & B fell by the wayside.

With the beginning of March brings a sense of a new season...I know spring doesn't technically start for another few weeks, but the weather around here has actually been pretty great, and I'm getting the first tastes of sun and warmth - my favorite things about spring. With the changes in the weather, I am inspired to pull up my socks, and bring about some change to other aspects of my life. It's time to buckle down, literally put pen to paper, make a plan, and succeed!