Ants

Ants are everywhere today-in the cupboard,crawling on the floor.The weather is so dry and hot they are coming in for moisture.I jokingly say "Ants are my friends"but I am loathing cleaning up all the time.Everytime I clean up there is something else they have attacked.The worst thing is getting into to my cats bowl.To counteract this I have placed the food bowl inside another bowl filled with water.All is well until the cat drops food on the floor and then the trails begin again.
Any clues about my dilemma to keep ants away in a non toxic environmentally friendly way.So far I have tried peppermint oil and talcum powder with minimal success.