it was a success + blog worthy farm visit

The "tomato pie" was delicious (and easy):

You start with a store bought pie crust, and place it inside a buttered glass pie dish. If you have one of those fancy-spancy tools you can even make the edges of the dough pretty. I don't. Then you spead the crust with 2 Tablespoons of dijon or spicy mustard. 

Next you grate 1/2 pound of swiss cheese, and place it evenly over the mustard. 

Next up cover the cheese with 1/4 inch thick sliced tomatoes. The recipe called for 3 tomatoes, but I used more. 

Lastly for the preparation part...sprinkle the tomatoes with coarse salt, dried basil (or fresh thyme leaves).

Bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for about 45 minutes, or until the crust is brown. Sprinkle with fresh basil (from your garden). And TaDa!! YUM-O!

After eating that scrumptious garden dish, the beautiful outside calls your name. So I ventured out to our farm in "Little Texas" (in Alabama) to see what projects my grandpa has been up to lately. (the camera came along too!!)

So follow me! Come on through the gate and lets explore:

Since last time I have been out there (pre-Rome), the barn has been restored. 

The cupola has been built for the roof, but yet to be placed. It was so large that, they had to construct it in two separate pieces. My grandpa has special ordered the weather vane (I am embarressed to say this, but I had to google (yes, those are the google colors) that word to make sure I spelled it right:-/ vein? vane? who knew!)

and the landscape it pretty enough to speak for itself :-)

...with rows of sweet corn planted, and ready for harvesting this summer! 

The other project up my grandfather's sleeve...recreating an old country store. The interior is so NEAT! These old shelves he bought and had restored, even the ladder.

The $25 dollar mantle...

and another shot of the old wooden shelving

and another $25 dollar steal, the fixture in the side room (a new one he found just like this one...$125)

and one of my very favorite details...the front door, which my grandpa and helpers meticulously hammered away at for hours and hours. 

details...

more details...the glass is hand poured by a company in Germany, but it is avaliable from a place in Montgomery (I love the old glass look...)

and another favorite the old troughs, which were salvaged and reset in the barn

for the 3 new shetland ponies (yet to be named)

Thats all for now folks...I have 500 million things on a "to do list", but for some reason my "to do list" has fallen off the priority list.