During high school one of my jobs was working the register at a tiny pasta restaurant in Scottsdale, AZ called Fasta Pasta. It sadly is no longer there, but was really ahead of its time serving fresh made to order pasta dishes with high quality ingredients in fun Chinese food to go containers. I loved the concept, and the food was exceptional. I’m glad I was paying attention, because I can still remember the menu and it still inspires me fifteen years later in my own kitchen–yikes that made me feel old.

Every morning the owner would make about eight beautiful fresh cold pasta salads to display in hand made pottery bowls in the front counter fridge area. They were perfect for a quick lunch, and not your typical “fast food”. Sometimes I was able to help prep the cold salads and I still remember the combination of ingredients to some of them including this cold pesto one. The combination of using pesto and ranch dressing is what I remember most along with the sauteed garlic mushrooms. At the restaurant he used penne pasta and also big pieces of grilled chicken.

This past weekend we hosted a small dinner party and I wanted to use up some tomatoes from my garden. (I’m really excited to have my first tomatoes this summer!)

We’re still enjoying basil from the herb garden too!

I wanted to make fresh pesto with my new fancy blender, but didn’t have pine nuts so I used pistachios instead. It turned out great!

Note: Of course you could use store bought pesto, I have many times and like the jar of pesto from Costco.

Pistachio Pesto Recipe by Lina Darnell

• Blend 1 cup of shelled pistachio nuts first (in a high powered blender or food processor)
• Then add and blend 2 cups fresh basil, 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 cup Olive Oil, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cold Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta Salad Recipe by Lina Darnell

Ingredients:

• box of pasta of your choice (I like bow tie or penne)
• 1 cup of pesto, either homemade or store bought
• 1/2 cup of ranch dressing
• 1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/2 cup of fresh tomatoes
• 1 – 8oz. package of fresh sliced mushrooms
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1/2 Tablespoon butter

Directions:

1. Cook your pasta and set aside.

2. Saute your mushrooms on the stove with the butter and garlic for around 4 minutes until cooked.

3. Mix the ranch dressing and pesto together.

4. In a large bowl mix pasta, dressing, mushrooms, fresh and sun-dried tomatoes together and chill for at least an hour or two. It gets better as it chills more.

This is a dish you can be proud to serve at your summer parties and it makes a lot so I’ve been eating it for lunch this week! I’m already so addicted to using my garden ingredients….

Thanks for stopping by to see me and my pasta salad today!

Hi Everyone! This is a quick post to share our cute little handmade gifts this year for Father’s Day! I love working on thoughtful inexpensive things don’t you? Dads and grandpas love this stuff…plus these are easy enough for last minute gifts.

For this owl handpint craft all you’ll need is a blank 8×10 canvas from the craft store, acrylic or craft paint, paint brush, a paint pen for the lettering, and some small handed participants

(Important note: I was inspired by these handprints on paper via pinterest)

Make brown handprints on a painted canvas as shown and then paint the branches, leaves, and details of your owls. Write you message to dad with a paint pen and your all set!

This year I decided to make some photo canvases with Mod Podge for the grandpas. My kids are blessed with three wonderful supportive grandpas that they love very much!

I made some of these for as Christmas gifts so in case you missed this post with directions catch up here.

Photographing my kids is one of my favorite hobbies! This is a great way to display those memories…

Wishing all the dads out there a beautiful Father’s Day!

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Feel like making a special breakfast for Dad on Father’s Day? Here’s an easy and fun idea.

I added these photos to the end of a father’s day craft last year, and I feel like it didn’t get any spotlight. so I’m sharing again with you since I know Father’s Day is already next week!

Make your pancake batter like you normally would and then then pour it in a plastic squeeze bottle like a clean empty ketchup bottle. Then draw your letters with the bottle on the skillet. We added blueberries to our pancakes and served with strawberries and melon.

Do you make a special breakfast for dad? I’m trying to come up with ideas for this year…

Sharing at:

Wow Us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern Style

I’ve been wanting to use the chives I’ve been growing in my potted garden and this was the perfect opportunity!

Have you ever seen the bag of small gourmet potatoes at Costco for around $5? They have a great combination of light, red, and these cool looking purple/blue potatoes, and they taste great!

I’m not a fan of traditional sweet tasting potato salad, but I do love this version that I’ve been making for the last few years.It’s usually a popular side dish when I do make it for barbecue parties and it’s perfect for summer! And yep it’s very popular with my hubby because it has bacon! You can make way ahead of time because it only gets better chillin in the fridge.

It’s definitely something you can edit to make your own and I like the combo of sour cream and mayo instead of all mayo.

Bacon & Chive Potato Salad by Lina Darnell

(adapted by this recipe via Taste of Home)

Ingredients

• 4 cups cubed red potatoes or potatoes of your choice like the gourmet bag from Costco like I bought
• 1 cup chopped onion (I like red but on this day I used white and it was good too)
• 7 strips of cooked and crumbled bacon
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup real Mayo
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3 tablespoons prepared ranch salad dressing
• 2 tablespoons prepared mustard
• 4 teaspoons white vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• handful of chopped chive

Directions

• Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain.
• In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, onion, bacon parsley. In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Pour over potato mixture; toss to coat. Sprinkle chopped chive over the top. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled. Yield: 8 servings.

Let me know if you try it or if you make something similar. Have a beautiful weekend friends!

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Wow us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern STyle

I’m so excited about this giveaway! What a great opportunity for you all to refresh your patio too!! Yeah!!! I am giving away a $50 gift card to 5 yep FIVE lucky fancy frugal life readers!!! Whoohoo this our biggest contest yet!

Last week I showed you how I refreshed my tired looking patio into a brighter, stylish place to entertain and relax with beautiful Better Homes & Gardens items from Walmart. Go here to see then entire mini makeover.

My favorite elements are these Bombay planters that look very high end and expensive, but are actually lightweight and affordable!

This red canvas umbrella and expensive looking red deep seat outdoor cushions tie the whole space together!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 Update: Congratulations to my $50 Walmart gift card winners Shelly Langley, Kelly Saver, Jennifer Moyer, Meagan Sayers, and Wild Orchid! Please respond to my email and thanks to everyone who entered and thanks for reading Fancy Frugal Life!! Lina

Good luck and we will pick the winners next Wednesday!

So tell me? What would you buy if you win???

Thanks for reading fancy frugal life and thanks so much to the wonderful people at BHG Live Better for sponsoring this fabulous contest!!!

I wrote this article for www.centralvalleymoms.com but I’d thought I’d share here too My goal this summer is to spend more weekends experiencing events and sights around our central California community. There are lakes and beautiful scenery an hour or less away from us and we haven’t seen any of it yet! (I pretty much go from school to baseball games/practice to the grocery store.)

A farmers market is the perfect opportunity to get out, enjoy this great central valley weather, and purchase beautiful locally grown produce and specialty foods.

The Old Town Clovis Framers Market is now open for the summer!

It  runs from May 10 through September 27, 2013 every Friday night from 5:30pm to 9pm on Pollasky St.

 Take a look at these gorgeous vegetables we spotted on our first visit here last Friday!We are not from California so these farmers markets you guys have out here are AMAZING!!

 This fresh herb booth smells insanely good!

Herbs are so expensive at the store. I think I might buy some and dry them myself next time I go. Have you ever done that?

Here’s my kids checking out some local honey.

 There’s lots of fresh bread,,, Yum.

Our kids had a blast riding on the ponies. Her pony was named Arial and she’s still talking about it

The balloon art guy was a big hit.

 There’s live music too! Visit here to find out about tonight’s band.

I’m trying to get my kids excited about eating more fresh fruits and veggies, so this is a perfect place from them to sample new foods!

 We came home with some fresh berries and kale.

Each morning I’ve been making a healthy smoothie with kale, blueberries, strawberry, almond milk, and protein powder. Buy a bunch of these berries, freeze them, and you don’t have to add ice! It’s a great breakfast.

I LOVE this sign so much and want it for my kitchen.. I spotted it for sale at Glorious Junk Days last weekend also in Old Town Clovis. That’s a great event too!

Have a great weekend!! Are you lucky enough to have a great farmers market where you live? What do you buy there?

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This past weekend I participated in a room refresh challenge utilizing fabulous Better Homes & Gardens products exclusively sold at Walmart. I am thrilled with our mini patio makeover and am excited to share the details with you today! I adore these high end looking pieces I was able to snatch up at affordable prices.

Let’s see some before pictures! We’ve had this patio set from Costco for about five years. It’s starting to show some age and is very, very, beige.

One of the beige chair cushions blew away when we lived in Las Vegas years ago and we never replaced it. I called to see how much a matching replacement Sunbrella fabric cushion would be and you might as well buy a new chair! Cushions can be so expensive, so I’ve been thinking about an alternative.

Looking for new patio cushions is FUN, deciding is HARD!

I was so happy to pick up two of these BHG deep seat cushions in red that fit the back of our chairs perfectly.

This matching Sedona red 9 ft wood umbrella creates the perfect amount of shade in our little seating area.

This green outdoor rug, also from Walmart, provides a fun accent color and really brings that indoor look outside.

I’m obsessed with these decorative BHG Bombay planters, and three of them together at varying heights really make a statement. Don’t they look like expensive pottery? They’re actually lightweight plastic..shhhh no one will know.

I made a little salsa garden in one pot with jalapenos, cilantro, onion chives, and ancho chilies. These will be perfect for the tomatoes I planted behind the seating area! Read that post here in case you haven’t, I enjoy making fresh salsa and now I can grow my own ingredients

These are plastic garden markers from the hardware store dipped in chalkboard paint, and then I wrote on them with a white Sharpie paint pen.

Here’s my first succulent potted garden! Succulents are so beautiful, interesting, need very little water, and easy to maintain.

The third pot has a Lily of the Nile surrounded by some red annuals.

The pots brighten our patio and I love these colors together!

These two little cute flower accent pillows, also from Walmart, fit right in.

This bundt cake pan re-purposed as a fun succulent planter is a fun flea market find from this weekend as well as the cheerful yellow and orange vintage tray and candle holder from Re-Markable J.

I love to add vintage elements to my makeovers

Speaking of makeovers, It’s not a fancy frugal makeover with out some spray painted accessories I already had!

These little candle holders and succulent planter are on the coffee table under the covered patio.

I moved our couch under the covered patio to create two separate seating areas. and it made such a difference. More on that seating area in the future.

It’s amazing how moving furniture around and adding great accent pieces can change an entire space! We’ve already had a BBQ and have been relaxing in our new patio, and it’s so perfect to start out the summer.

What do you think? Would you like to refresh your patio? Well guess what?!!

I will be giving away FIVE $50 Walmart gift cards, exclusively to my readers, so you can also give your patio a mini REFRESH! Stay tuned for that awesome giveaway!

For more information on BHG @ Walmart visit www.bhg.com/Walmart and follow them on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/BHGLiveBetter

(Disclosure: I was given a Walmart gift card to participate in this patio refresh, but all opinions are my own.)

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Wow Us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern Style

Our backyard hasn’t really been a priority since we moved here in August. It’s pretty plain with a small covered area, some grass, trees, and a flower bed that has sat empty. The kids spend lots of time out here so my goal is to give it some much needed attention and create a nice space to entertain and be proud of.

(Here’s a couple before pictures.)

I plan on rearranging the furniture, adding some more potted flowers, and maybe an an outdoor rug and curtains to hide the trash cans.

The first step we completed recently was to clean up this flower bed and plant our first garden. I decided to get brave and also plant some tomatoes! I figure since we now live in central CA where agriculture thrives, I should give it a try! (We’ll see, but so far the tomatoes are growing better than the flowers.)

In the past I’ve done lots of flower planting in pots only. Sometimes it stays alive and sometimes not…I am not an experienced gardener. It turns out planting in the ground is a lot of work! Manual labor work..Ha

I decided to do this mid April when my husband was still recovering from foot surgery so lugging bags and bags of soil and plants and all the digging was up to me!

I ended up picking up all my flowers and soil at Home Depot and Costco. Costco had a great deal on tomatoes this year..A three pack of small potted tomatoes for $7. I bought two kinds of tomatoes, some lavender, lots of annuals, two bougainvillea, a few small cucumber, and two hydrangea.

Not all of these survived planting. The lavender is about dead. The hydrangeas died right away and I returned those to Home Depot. The bougainvillea lost all it’s leaves immediately and I thought it died, but now it’s starting to come back. If you have any ideas I’d love to hear. This bed gets lots of afternoon sun. I’ve been feeding with Miracle Grow plant and vegetable food, and watering regularly.

I did have some help from some from tiny eager to help gardeners

Here is the garden as it is now about five weeks after we did all our planting. The tomatoes are a couple feet tall now and we added some cages. I’m so excited there are tomatoes growing on all of them! The kids both LOVE to participate by watering and pulling weeds. This is such a great family project, and worth the work

(I also re-stained part of the fence where it was faded from the sprinkler…that was bugging me!)

I painted a few garden markers last week.

These are the “early girl” type of tomatoes.

Here are the “sweet 100s” type of tomatoes.

After five weeks the cucumber plants have grown lots, but are not yet producing…hopefully soon!

In case you didn’t see this is what I did with my herbs. Read the details here. It’s still going strong and I’ve been using the basil to make pesto and in mozzarella tomato salads

Now here is the real surprise! The hydrangeas I bought for the backyard died, but guess what has bloomed in the front yard!

I didn’t even know this bush was a hydrangea because we’ve lived in this house for about eight months. It just decided to bloom!

What a nice surprise, right?! Has that ever happened to you?

I love this quote and decided to make a little graphic for you.

Thanks for stopping by to visit my little garden. Stay tuned for some other fun happenings in my backyard!

Savvy Southern Style

Isn’t it exciting when strawberries are $0.99 a pint at the store?! I love it..and It means lots of strawberry goodness for the week,

This weekend we made these frozen strawberry treats and they were a big hit! My kids loved them and actually we all did. I’ve been making smoothies everyday since I received the Ninja blender for Mother’s Day…Love that thing. I found these cool ice cream looking Popsicle forms at Ross on Friday .My daughter begged for me to get them You know how that goes. There were cute, and inexpensive there so I did…

Tovolo freezer molds

Strawberry “Ice Cream” Treats by Lina Darnell

(These made 8 small pops, depends on your molds.)

Blend together :

1/2 pint strawberries

1/4 cup Vanilla Almond Milk

1/3 cup Greek style yogurt

Pour them in your molds and freeze for at least a few hours before you enjoy.

Look at my other cool “find” from Ross that day. I love it…just $24!

wow us wed @ Savvy Southern Style

Party Wednesday At The 36th Avenue

Savvy Southern STyle

Last week my son’s school had testing so this week we are celebrating Teacher Appreciation Day. We happen to have a great teacher right now who has been filling in long term for our original teacher who had a baby in January. Ms. Johnson is a new teacher and so full of enthusiasm and joy for these kids. I love being able to volunteer in class and with the home room parents. Our school has a tradition of decorating our classroom teacher’s door and bringing her treats and gift cards all week. This year we decided to do a Disney Tangled theme since our teacher is a big fan of the movie.

My part was to bring in the teacher and class a snack yesterday and I made these sweet little Repunzzle inspired ice cream cone cupcakes. I originally spotted these here, but with just a photo and no instructions. I kept track of how I made them so you can too!

First let’s talk about making cupcakes in ice cream cones. I read a ton of posts on doing this, and even asked my Facebook fans how they do it, and I decided to go with the method of baking them in muffin tins. It worked great! I will say that I threw away one batch because they sunk in the middle and looked yucky after baking. I’m not sure if it was my oven or what happened…. I then bought two boxes of Betty Crocker cake mix and they turned out great! Make sure to fill half way or a tiny bit over!

Now let’s talk decorating! I don’t have fancy cake decorating supplies so I went with these tubes of frosting for convenience. I also bought the 4 small corresponding Cake Mate tips. I thought they worked great for what I needed.

My first step was to make the door with chocolate frosting in a plastic bag by cutting the tip of the bag to pipe a thin amount.

For the hair I used the tip with the circle jagged looking edges. I made the hair sort of loop all the way down.

The vines are green frosting with a simple thin tip. Attach the flower sequins right away.

The buttercream frosting is this recipe and contains shortening so it’s stiff along with purple food coloring. This will be important in the transporting of these treats in the car! The last thing I did was pipe on the purple frosting to look like an ice cream cone. I do have a plastic Wilton tool I use for frosting cupcakes.

Not to shabby, right?! Now try making 27…That was a little time consuming! I did have a friend assisting me and we had fun.

I ended up transporting them in muffin tins placed in larger boxes. They did fall over in the car but since the frosting is stiff it didn’t hurt them too much. Plus those Cake Mate tubes dry stiff as well.

I wanted to show you the small double tiered cake I made especially for teacher. I baked it in two different sized small glass ramekin bowls. Here is how I do ruffle cakes.

This is the unfinished wood frame I painted to put a class photo in as a fun gift. The lizard is from the craft store too.

Another room parent made these cute wanted posters!

Our class and teacher were all thrilled to receive these treats and we all had some fun celebrating! Wouldn’t these be perfect for a Tangled theme birthday party?!

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Wednesday Party @ the 36th Avenue

Savvy Southern Style