It’s Friday!!! That time of the week again! Last week I got to feature my Husband. That was fun. This week I’m introducing a special Co-Host. She is a fellow Mommy blogger that I met through doing Featured Friday, when I went on the search for more Mommy Blogs I ran into Mandy. She blogs over at Mommy Musings and she writes about a lot of things us Momma’s experience.
Besides being a SAHM to her two beautiful daughters she is also a former teacher, and her husband is a former Marine, you know how much respect I have for the men that fight for this country. In her free time she enjoys working out, going on long walks, writing, and doing projects around the house. She is also the biggest NY Giants fan! We won’t judge her right local readers?? 🙂 Mandy is a lot like me and loves throwing parties and spending time with her friends. Something about entertaining I guess, speaking of entertaining, since Mandy doesn’t really have a Food Blog I asked her if there was a recipe she recommended that I could share with my readers and she passed on William Sonoma’s Fresh Mozzarella and Tomato Crostini. I made these this week but my darn camera died so I couldn’t get a picture, but I’m still sharing the recipe with you and I’ll use William Sonoma’s picture to show you how yummy they look!
Ingredients:
Extra-virgin olive oil for brushing, plus 1/4 cup
1 baguette, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
Salt and coarsely ground pepper, to taste
8 vine-ripened tomatoes, about 1 1/2 lb. total
1/2 cup slivered fresh basil leaves
2 Tbs. finely minced red onion {or more for your personal preference}
1/4 tsp. minced garlic {or more for your personal preference}
1 Tbs. aged balsamic vinegar {or more for your personal preference}
1 1/2 lb. fresh mozzarella cheese
Directions:
Preheat an oven to 350°F.
Brush a baking sheet with olive oil and arrange the baguette slices on the sheet in a single layer. Brush the tops with oil, and season with salt and pepper {use lots of salt and pepper}. Bake until crisp and golden, 15 to 18 minutes. If not using immediately, let the crostini cool, then store in an airtight container at room temperature until ready to use.{If you are going to store it, store it with the top off a plastic container, as if the top is on, they lose some of their crispiness.}
Core, seed and dice the tomatoes. In a bowl, stir together the tomatoes, half of the basil, the onion, garlic, vinegar, the 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and pepper.
Slice the mozzarella into 1/4-inch-thick pieces or into smaller pieces so they fit on the crostini. To assemble, lay a piece of mozzarellaon each crostini and spoon 1 to 2 Tbs. of the tomato salad on top. Garnish each with a pinch of the remaining basil. Serve immediately.
So besides this awesome recipe above I’d also like to share some awesome posts that Mandy has written up over the past few years.
1. Waiting for the Shoe to drop. Mandy has a beautiful way of writing about how life is just life and how just as all of our dreams are coming true, there is always a shoe that drops. This one hit close to home for me because with all that I’ve lost in life, I always feel like there is another shoe to drop. Read Mandy’s story and share a time when you’ve waited for the shoe to drop.
2. Pause In Chaos. This is a great post. Something we should all do on a daily basis. I know I’ve written about this before. It’s just another reminder that other Momma’s feel the same way I do. Go visit Mandy and let her remind you to Pause in the Chaos.
3. Before I was a Mom. Oh we all know this list all too well now don’t we. Go visit Mandy’s list.
4. It’s About Parenting. Not Parenting Style. I really enjoyed this article because Mandy and I seem to be on the same page as far as parenting is concerned. None of parent the same, but go see what Mandy has in mind as far as it being about Parenting not Parenting Style because she is spot on with this one.
5. Sometimes. A reflection of what’s important. Mandy’s reflection of the “Sometimes” way we get annoyed with the everyday life and the “Sometimes” we forget what life is really about.
And last but not least this post is a special post from Mandy about the days she spend alone, sad, waiting patiently for her (husband now) to return home from being overseas. Let this post remind us all of how lucky we are for those of our husbands/fathers/brothers that are home with us everyday.
Thank you for Co-Hosting with me today Mandy, I really enjoyed getting to know you and your blog. It’s so refreshing to know that there are other Momma’s out there that like to “Put it on the table” like I do!! 🙂 Make sure you go visit Mandy and if you do let her know that this Momma sent you! Happy Friday everyone.
