Thirsty Thursday :: Kentucky Derby & Cinco de Mayo

This week's Thirsty Thursday is in honor of this weekend's festivities.  With delicious mint julep and classic margarita recipes.  Bottoms Up!



And if you are looking for some classic Kentucky Derby inspiration we've got you covered.  Happy Thursday!

Thirsty Thursday: Herb Infused Lemonade Station

Easter is just around the corner, which means Easter brunch.  When I saw this herb infused lemonade station over at the Pottery Barn blog  I was smitten.  I love the concept, and it's such a fresh idea that makes it perfect for spring and of course Easter!  You can find the how-to over at Honestly Yum.  Seriously how perfectly spring and refreshing does that lemonade station look!  Happy Thursday!

Soiree :: Sunshine Baby Shower

Today we're sharing the details behind the 'you are my sunshine' themed baby shower.  I love the combination of yellow and grey, it's the perfect contrast to drab and dreary December.  Fortunately the weather cooperated with us and there was plenty of sunshine to go around.  Here's a look back at the inspiration behind the party.  All in all, it was the perfect way to shower the parents-to-be and Baby G with lots of love.

 We had a little of something for everyone to enjoy.  Beverages included a mimosa bar, a prego-tini punch, and beer.  As this was a couples shower we decided to add the concept of a diaper party.  The guys provide diapers and in exchange we provided the beer.  To make sure they didn't end up with a million newborn diapers we indicated sizes on each invite.  And to make things a little more interesting, we had guests leave the parents-to-be fun love notes for their late night diaper changes.  Turns out their guests are pretty hilarious and some of the messages will make for entertaining diaper changes.

The welcome table housed the favors, little boxes filled with yellow candy and treats, and the guestbook.  Each guest signed a yellow sticker, which was then laid out into a bouquet of balloons and framed for the nursery. 

The parents-to-be sat front and center while guest played games and opened gifts.  Love the way the 36" balloon looks above the chairs, like their very own sun.  The fringe tassel was an easy DIY project, you can craft one yourself, here's the tutorial.  The dessert table featured cupcakes, cookies, cheesecake bites, rock candy, and oreo pops, yum!

 The soon to be parents with two of my favorite DIY elements from the party.  The ray of sunshine photowall, which was accomplished using tissue balls and streamers as sun rays.  And the personalized beer mug, that was etched 'Dad est. 2014'; wine glass which was blinged out and featured a charm that read 'momma knows best'.

Thirsty Thursday: Harry Potter Edition

As a Harry Potter fan I'm so excited about this.  Starbucks is now offering Butterbeer on their secret menu, pick from the hot or cold version.  As it's not on their menu, to order one of these delicious drinks you'll have to tell your barrista how to make it.  I can't wait to try the hot version, perfect for chilly fall day, and the cold version, perfect for being stuck in a mall holiday shopping.  Please note the recipe below is for the grande size, if you're ordering a tall you'll need to order 2 pumps of everything, and if you're ordering a venti you'll need to order 4 pumps.   



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Chicago Living :: The Aviary & The Office

Hope you lovelies made the best of daylight savings and slept in an extra hour.  This weekend we finally made our way to The Aviary.  It was a blast.  Not only did we try practically every cocktail on the menu between the 6 of us, my personal favorite was the luau, but we made it downstairs to The Office, where I sipped on the Tikki.  Special shout out to Jeremiah who explained the science behind their ice making and all the fabulous boozegastronomy that goes on at The Aviary!  The Mister had the following off the prefixed drink menu at The Aviary: Anything for Shrub, Lambrucha, and School Lunch.  I had the Tropic Thunder, and 90 Miles to Mexico.  Needless to say I was in bed till past noon on Saturday.  On a side note, I can't believe we are in November already, the holidays will be here in no time!  Happy Monday!

{Drinks at The Aviary from Top Left across: Tropic Thunder, In the Rocks, Dune Buggy; Anything for Shrub, Martinez & Lambrucha, Ford's Model Tea Party & 90 Miles to Mexico; Ford Model's Tea Party, School Lunch, & A Moment of Silence}

 

Thirsty Thursdays

For the Mister's birthday extravaganza we ended the night at a bar that made some amazing Moscow Mules, aka his new favorite drink.  I love how incredibly refreshing this drink is for the summer, and those cute little copper mugs are an adorable plus.  And if you're not a huge fan of vodka switch it out for some dark rum and you have yourself a Dark and Stormy.  Here's to our new favorite summer drink, the Moscow Mule! 

Tasty Thursday

Today I'm sharing the homemade hot cocoa mix we used for our holiday party's "Cup of Cheer" hot cocoa bar.  I made some minor adjustments to this recipe but it was a total hit.

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups nonfat dry milk powder

2 cups powdered sugar (I added 2.5 cups of powdered sugar)

1½ cups cocoa powder, dutch-process or regular

1½ cups white chocolate chips or finely chopped white chocolate (I added 2 cups of white chocolate chips)

¼ teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

Whisk together all ingredients in a large bowl. Working in two (or more) batches, depending on the size of your food processor, pulse the ingredients in a food processor until the chocolate is finely ground. Store the dry mix in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

To make hot cocoa, put 1/3 cup of the cocoa mix in a mug and stir in 1 cup of hot milk. Top with whipped cream or miniature marshmallows, if desired.

A sneak peek at our "Cup of Cheer" hot cocoa bar...

Winter-Warm Up with Hot Cocoa

I love this winter themed hot cocoa bar.  It's perfect for any holiday get together or for Christmas Eve with the family.  The festive blue and white color palette and the lovely treats ties this party together.  And those adorable mugs are functions favors, that guests can use to create their own one of a kind hot cocoa creation.

{photos via Celebrations at Home}

Thirsty Thursday: Summer Cocktails

Nothing is as refreshing as chilled, crisp, white wine on a hot summer day.  And what I learned from Alpana Singh, at this years Epicurious Entertains Chicago event, is that sommeliers love a good Riesling for the summer.  Can't wait to make this Riesling Strawberry Slushy this weekend, and it's one more thing off my summer bucket list.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups hulled strawberries

1 bottle [750ml] dry Riesling

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons sugar

DIRECTIONS:

1. Reserve 1 cup of the Riesling – cover and place in the fridge to chill.
2. In a food processor, puree strawberries with the remaining wine, lime juice and sugar.
3. Pour the mixture into ice cube trays and freeze until solid.
4. When you’re ready to serve [or drink], puree the ice cubes with the remaining wine in your blender.

The Perfect Autum Beverage

Fall is here, celebrate with a Carmel Apple Spiced beverage a la Starbucks.  Love these directions from an ex-Starbucks Barrista via The High Heeled Hostess. Happy Sipping!

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Ingredients:
*Apple Juice
*Cinnamon Dolce Syrup (from Starbucks!) *Carmel Sauce*Optional- whipped cream

Directions for a Single ServingFor a single cup (and by cup I mean tall size of Starbucks so 12 oz), add apple juice (12oz or so) add 3 pumps of Cinnamon Dolce (1 pump= about 2 Tbs) you can always add more if you’d like! Then go ahead and heat it up in the microwave.

If you are a whipped cream person, this is where you put the whipped cream on the top! Then top it off with caramel sauce!

Summer Cocktails

Loving these fruit fused summer cocktails.  Happy Sipping

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Blackberry Mint Lemonade
Ingredients

• 3 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
• 18 mint leaves, torn
• 2 cups frozen/fresh blackberries
• ice
• 3 mint sprigs
• 4 cups natural store-bought lemonade
• mint sprigs

Instructions

1. Bring the water and sugar to boil in a small pot. Stir the water/sugar mixture until the sugar is dissolved then turn off the heat. Add the torn mint leave and give the pot a stir. Allow the simple syrup to cool.
2. Add the blackberries to a blender. Place a strainer over the mouth of the blender and pour the mint simple syrup into the container. Discard the mint leaves. Blend the simple syrup and the blackberries on low speed for just a few seconds at a time, just enough to break the berries apart but not enough to puree them.
3. Fill a juice pitcher halfway with ice and add the mint sprigs. Pour the lemonade and the blackberry mixture over the ice. Stir the blackberry mint lemonade and add more ice if necessary before serving.

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Watermelon Mint Lime Martini
Ingredients

• 1 cup watermelon juice (crush watermelon in a tall cup and strain through a metal strainer or cheesecloth)
• 4 ounces Vodka
• 1/4 cup simple syrup
• Juice of 1 lime
• 6 torn mint leaves
• ice
• lime wedge and mint leaves for garnishing

Instructions

1. Place the watermelon juice, vodka, simple syrup, lime juice, and mint leaves into a cocktail shaker halfway filled with ice. Muddle the watermelon cocktail until the mint leaves are torn in smaller pieces. Shake well and strain the drink into two martini glasses. Garnish with a wedge of watermelon if desired

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Blackberry Thyme Margaritas

Ingredients:

18 blackberries, divided

3 small sprigs fresh thyme

1 cup crushed ice

1/3 cup tequila

¼ cup simple syrup

Juice of 1 lime

1 tbsp. orange liqueur such as triple sec or Cointreau

¼ cup sparkling water

Directions:

Place 16 of the blackberries in a food processor or blender with the thyme leaves.  Pulse to puree until smooth.  Strain the blackberry puree through a fine mesh sieve into a small bowl, pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible.  

Combine the blackberry puree, ice, tequila, simple syrup, lime juice, orange liqueur and sparkling water in a blender or food processor.  Blend until smooth and well combined.  Pour into two glasses and garnish with reserved blackberries and additional thyme, if desired.

Watermelon, Salt&Chili-Granita

This looks like the perfect summer treat!

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w a t e r m e l o n , s a l t & c h i l i g r a n i t a

1 kg fresh, seedless watermelon, skin removed & roughly chopped
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried chili flakes

add watermelon, lime juice, salt & chili flakes into a food processor and blend until mixture forms a pulpy consistency

pass mixture through a sieve, pressing firmly through with the back of a spoon; discard remaining mixture from sieve

pour the sieved mixture into a wide metal baking tray or freezer-proof dish (make sure it will fit easily onto your freezer shelf) and freeze for approximately 2-3 hours or until ready to serve (mixture will keep in the freezer for 2-3 days)