The Tales of the Traveling Tote. #48

The Tales of the Traveling Tote is a series of adventures that share where our Mackenzie Childs tote bags have taken us.  Three times a year a group of bloggers each write a connected post about the places we have been. We have built incredible friendships through our blogs and we hope you enjoy our tales as much as we do!

To read about how it all began, go HERE

This is what I have been up to:

MAY

I picked up a few things for my little garden at the Farmers Market.  I have only a few peppers currently growing in the garden - This gal has no green thumb!

JUNE

Each year we attend the Polish Festival - the food is amazing, the talent is entertaining and the "Pierogi Eating Contest" is amusing

JULY

I enjoyed working the Annual Mackenzie-Childs Barn Sale in Aurora for a few days.

We attended the Blueberry Fest at the Blue Barn Cidery and we picked blueberries at West Wind Farms with our daughter's family:

Sunflower Farm

This lovely sunflower farm is on a country road in Phoenix, NY and is free for everyone to walk around and enjoy....

....you enter the maze and are welcome to cut flowers from the back of the sunflower patch.

I cut 5 flowers to bring home, took a few photos, and enjoyed the country ride to the farm!

How kind of the owners to do this for the community to enjoy!

A fun afternoon with my Town Tote!

Cape Cod

College Friends:

A day in PTown:

I could sit here for hours and just stare out into Cape Cod Bay:

Ohio 

We got to watch our two oldest grandsons go off to 3rd and 12th grade!

We enjoyed dining and walking around Dublin:

We participated in a Murder Mystery in Delaware.  Our task was to visit 10 stores in town to gather clues and we solved it correctly!

The Great NYState Fair always is a sign of summer ending.

I participated in making salami roses in the Culinary Center, went to the Commodore concert, saw the farm animals and was amazed at the butter sculpture this year!

Apple picking is always on the agenda in the fall, this year we went early with our other two grandsons:

In a blink of an eye, the summer has ended.  Leave a comment for Emily for a chance to win this tote:

Don't forget to visit my friends:

Debbie with Miss Aurora @ Mountain Breaths

Emily with Miss Courtney Childs@ The French Hutch 

Linda P with Miss Lola @ Life and Linda

Patti with Miss Kenzie @ Pandora's Box  YOU ARE HERE

Rita with Miss Luna C @ Panoply 

Sarah with Miss Merri Mac @ Hyacinths for the Soul

Jackie and Miss Madi K @ Purple Chocolat Home

Ricki Jill and Countess De Monet @ The Bookish Dilettante  

Happy Travels!

Thanks for stopping by, Patti

FAUX- CACCIA

 Focaccia is different from regular loaf bread because it uses a high amount of olive oil that pools in the dimples of this thick, fluffy and airy flatbread.  It is stays soft on inside and has a crispy bottom.  Using your fingers to poke deep holes cause the dimples in the bread, and shaping it in an oblong flat loaf gives it a unique shape

This is a quick and easy way to make a FAUX - Caccia bread:

Coat a shallow pan with 2T mayonnaise or extra virgin olive oil and spread 1/2 store bought pizza dough (room temp) on top. Coat with another 2T Mayo or olive oil.  Poke dimples throughout the dough with your fingers.  You can add veggies, herbs, pesto, cheese, seasonings or anything that comes to mind!  Bake at 425° for about 20 minutes

I topped mine with some chopped pimento, pesto, S&P, Paprika, grated cheddar cheese, chives, basil, red onion and tomato slice.

The MacKenzie-Childs Emerald Check Round Tray is perfect for serving this bread!

Thanks for stopping by, Patti

Mackenzie-Childs affiliate link

Graphic by Susan Branch

Chocolate Cheesecake Pumpkins

These were a delicious dessert, and easy to prepare!

I began with a silicone mold....

....and I brushed chocolate inside each to make "cups"

I filled each cup with prepared cheesecake....

...and then topped with graham cracker crumbs:

These were flipped over....

...and decorated with a broken pretzel stick and a squiggle of green chocolate:

Thanks for stopping by, Patti