Honey Basil Collins

Ok, so, I'm definitely cheating a little bit here because I didn't actually come up with this cocktail, but this collins from Oven & Shaker was the first drink I wanted to try my hand at when I got home. I figured I'd share the recipe here since not everyone has the privilege of living (+ eating + drinking) in Portland! If you're in Portland, I would highly recommend giving Oven & Shaker a try (get the spicy salami pizza - you'll never have pizza without honey again!).

For this drink you will need a small handful of fresh basil, 2 oz. vodka (I've also found this drink is pretty good with gin), 3/4 oz. lemon juice, a squirt or two of honey (I would adjust this based on your preferences), 2 oz. seltzer water, and ice.

What I do is tear the basil up roughly (not too small) and throw it in my cup with the vodka and honey. Muddle to release the flavor of the basil. Add the remaining ingredients, mix well, and fill your glass with ice. Enjoy your perfect summer drink!

Do you have any favorite summer drinks? I would love to hear! xo

Happy Hour // 6 Cocktail Recipes to Try This Summer!

Today is my last day in Portland before I head to New Hampshire for the summer...The past week has been full of packing/cleaning, visits with friends, and trips to all of my favorite restaurants and bars. I'm gonna miss this little foodie city! Time for me to drink away my sorrows, right? ;) Summer is the season of cocktails in my book, so I'm excited to spend the summer coming up with some new boozy concoctions. Have you tried any of the drinks I made last summer? Here are a few cocktails I can't wait to try! (Most of these would also be pretty easy to make virgin as well).

1: Blackberry Sage Cooler // 2: Pomegranate and Ginger Spritzer // 3: Raspberry Rose Fizz // 4: Lavender Lillet Cocktail // 5: Pear Nectar and Thyme Mimosa // 6: Ginger and Cucumber Gin Fizz

Guest Post: White Rose Hot Tea Cocktail

Hey friends! I'm over on Life Laid Bear today sharing my recipe for a hot tea cocktail!...I know, sounds pretty weird. But it's delicious, I promise! Head on over to Jessica's blog to see the full post!

In other news, I apologize if posts over the next week are a little sparse. I started my new job today (yay!) and am adjusting to the new schedule and trying to figure out how to fit in all the other responsibilities I committed to while I was unemployed (ugh). Then this weekend Taylor and I are heading up to Seattle to see my mom (she will be there for a wedding) and do some exploring...So you might see some pictures from that trip around here in the near future!

Jasmine Lavender Lemon Drop

Ok, time for another cocktail recipe! You didn't think I would go more than a couple weeks without posting one, did you? This is another one using the infused alcohols Caroline and I made a while back. This one is probably our favorite...and it's super simple.

You will need:
1/2 shot jasmine infused vodka + 1/2 to 1 shot regular vodka (we only mixed the infused vodka with regular vodka because we left the jasmine in for too long and it got really strong).
Juice of 1 lemon
2/3 shot lavender syrup (heat equal parts sugar and water and some fresh lavender until sugar is completely dissolved)
Fine lavender infused sugar for the rim (if you're planning ahead, put a few spoonfuls of fresh lavender in a container with some sugar for a few days...but if you're doing it last minute like us, just smash the lavender into the sugar)

Mix everything together and shake with ice in a shaker (a mason jar will do). Rim your glass with sugar, pour your yummy drink in and serve!

For your viewing pleasure, here is a photo I took of Caroline's kitten Willow making herself at home in my purse while we made drinks. Such a silly kitty.

In other news, I got offered a job today! I think I'm gonna take it. Consistent income...wooo! No more interviews and scary networking...double woo! Who else gets way too anxious about meeting new people? Getting a job is stressful!

Ginger Pear Margarita

Here is drink number three! Just in time for you to make it before Summer is over! This drink is nothing crazy...we just decided to go ahead and make a margarita with the ginger/pear infused tequila we made. Here are the measurements we used: 1.5 shots ginger/pear tequila, half shot of triple sec, and the juice of 1.5 limes. Rim your glass with salt and enjoy!

I hope your September is starting off well! I'm not quite ready to accept that Summer is winding to an end...the last couple of days we have had typical rainy Portland weather, which was a bit of a shock after an unusually dry Summer. This week is supposed to be sunny again so we're hoping to squeeze in one last trip to the beach (and maybe a few margaritas and g+ts ;)! What're your plans?

Strawberries + Spice

Here is the second drink we made using our infused alcohols! For this one we mixed the jalapeño rosemary tequila with strawberries to make a sweet and spicy drink. You could also use the jalapeño vodka in this if you want something with slightly simpler tastes (or even a plain or fruit infused tequila if you're not down for spicy).

Start by taking 5-7 medium sized strawberries and heating them in the microwave until they are soft. Muddle the strawberries until they are a puree. If you don't want your drink to have chunks, put the strawberries to make a sauce (similar to the one I used here). Mix the strawberries with 1.5 shots of the infused tequila, a couple shots of club soda, 1.5 shots simple syrup, and the juice of half a lime. If need be, do a little tweaking at the end-- depending on the strength of your infused alcohol, you may need to use slightly different measurements...if the rosemary flavor is on the stronger side, try adding more simple syrup and lime. I love the hint of spice in this drink. Do you like spicy drinks? One of my all time favorite drinks is a mango habañero martini--that's next on the list to experiment with!

Cucumber Basil Breeze

This is the first of five cocktails we created using the alcohols we infused, and I think it is also our favorite! This drink is so light and refreshing -- perfect for a hot summer day.

For this drink you will need cucumber infused vodka, fresh basil, lemonade, lime and club soda. To start, put 1.5 shots of your vodka and 8-10 leaves of basil into a glass/shaker.  Muddle the basil well using a muddler or spoon. Add in 2 shots of lemonade and shake with ice. Add 1-2 shots of club soda and the juice of a wedge of lime. That's it!

Last night we used the cucumber vodka, but didn't have the ingredients to make this drink so we mixed the vodka with tonic and lime juice instead. So yummy!

Adventures in Infusing Alcohol

A couple of weeks ago my friend, Caroline, and I decided to give infusing alcohols a try. This has been the summer of cocktails -- all of our friends are finally 21 and we've been enjoying experimenting with different ingredients in mixed drinks. We decided to make 5 different infused alcohols using both vodka and tequila and were super happy with the results.  Over the next couple of weeks we will be sharing 5 different yummy cocktails we came up with using these!  See below for the details of each infused alcohol!

1) First, we made a small batch of jasmine tea infused vodka.  We just threw in a couple tablespoons of the dry tea (see above) with the vodka.  We left it in for 3 days but this made it wayy too strong...because it's tea...duh (honestly we kind of forgot about it...).  It worked out ok because we can just dilute it with plain vodka. We mixed about a third of a shot of this with 2/3 of a shot of plain vodka to get a good strength. If you just leave it in for 24 hours it should be fine to use on it's own.

2) One of the riskier concoctions we threw together was jalapeños and rosemary in tequila...In the end this one ended up being one of our favorites, even though it took a bit longer to perfect a cocktail using it since the flavors are a little different. First, we put around 5 or six sprigs of rosemary in with a little tequila and muddled it.  Then we added in a couple chopped up jalapeños and the rest of the tequila. Definitely take the jalapeños out after 24 hours or it will get too spicy.  We left the rosemary in for 3 days which may have been a little too long--it is a pretty prominent flavor.  I would suggest taking it out after 2 days, but if you want it to be a very subtle flavor you could take it out on the first day with the jalapeños.

3) We also made some vodka with just jalapeños.  Just throw in a couple of chopped up peppers and leave them in for a day.

4) One of our favorites was cucumber vodka -- so refreshing and summery (quick, go make it before summer is over!).  We just threw a chopped up cucumber into some vodka and let it sit for 3 days.

5) Last but not least was ginger pear tequila. We cut up a pear and a couple of inches of fresh ginger and let them sit in the tequila for 3 days.  The flavors weren't super distinct so I would suggest muddling the chopped up ginger in a little bit of tequila to get the juices out before you add in everything else.

Stay tuned over the next couple of weeks for some yummy drink recipes using these!

the perfect summer drink

I love mojitos.  I haven't really tried that many other mixed drinks, but I'm convinced that it will be impossible to find another drink that is as yummy or refreshing for the summer months.  A little while ago I decided to give flavored mojitos a try after perfecting my regular mojito recipe, starting with my favorite berry: raspberries.  I've had raspberry mojitos before but they've all either been too artificial or not fresh and minty enough for my taste.  Here is the simple recipe I came up with to make perfect raspberry mojitos.

What you will need:
Raspberries-- I usually just use a whole bag or box of raspberries and save the sauce to use later if anything is left over at the end (I often use frozen ones for the sauce and throw in a few fresh ones at the end since fresh raspberries can be pretty pricey).
Limes
Lemons
Simple Syrup (you can make your own by simmering equal parts sugar and water until sugar desolves)
White rum
Mint
Club soda


To make one mojito:
Before you do anything else you will want to make your simple syrup and raspberry sauce so they have time to cool down before you put them in your drink.  To make the raspberry sauce put your raspberries (save a few fresh ones for the end) in a saucepan and heat.  Stir and mash the raspberries for around 15 minutes, or until you have a juicy sauce.  I usually put this through a strainer to get out the seeds, but I've made them with the seeds before as well and its not really all that noticeable.  Once you're done with this put the sauce in the refrigerator to cool down.
To begin making your drink pour anywhere between 1 and 2 shots of rum into a medium sized class (I like 1.5 shots).  Next add a small bunch of mint.  I probably use around 10-15 leaves.  Use a muddler (such as this) or a spoon to crush the mint to release the flavor.  I usually take a minute or so to thoroughly muddle the mint so that the mint flavor is really noticeable.  Add in a half shot of simple syrup.  If the raspberries you are using are really sweet rather than tart or if the people you're serving prefer their drinks not too sweet start by adding around a quarter of a shot and add more at the end if necessary.  If you want to make your mojito virgin start with this step and muddle the mint into the simple syrup.  Next add the juice or half a lemon and half a lime.  Now add in somewhere between one and 1/2 shot of your raspberry sauce.  It really depends on the raspberries you have and the consistency of your sauce.  Add as much ice as you want and then fill your glass up with club soda.  Mix everything up.  At the end I like to take 3 or 4 fresh raspberries, break them up slightly and drop them on the top of the drink.  It's a nice little surprise to get a chunk of fresh raspberry, and it looks pretty.  You can also garnish with a slice of lime or a sprig of mint.  Enjoy your drink!