spring has sprung and i am thrilled. i love the rain, and it’s been so wonderful having a wet winter (we needed it), but i am a summer girl and i'm ready for warmer weather.

now that it is lighter longer and we cut back the passion fruit vine that had taken over our yard, we are sprucing things up in the garden. wes spent the last two days reorganizing the whole yard and reinforcing all of our planting spaces and it looks amazing. a very far cry form the six foot tall bed of weeds we inherited when we moved in here together almost six years ago.

to assist in the garden spruce up, i headed to our local nursery to pick up some bee favorites, herbs and edible flowers. and the beautiful fresh basil i got had to go into today’s super refreshing paloma.

basil paloma

prep time: 3 minutes

active time: 1 minute

total time: 4 minutes

ingredients: 2 oz tequila. 3 oz fresh grapefruit juice + a small grapefruit wedge for garnish. club soda. 4 freshly chopped basil leaves + extra for garnish. 2 cups ice. shaker. edible flowers optional for garnish.

start by combining half the basil, the tequila and grapefruit juice in a shaker with half the ice. shake well to combine about thirty seconds, till the basil is beaten up and the oils released.

fill your serving glass with the rest of the basil and ice. pour the contents of your shaker over ice.

top off with club soda.

garnish with grapefruit wedge, basil sprig and edible flowers and serve.

xo, a

basil paloma

prep time: 3 minutes

active time: 1 minute

total time: 4 minutes

ingredients: 2 oz tequila. 3 oz fresh grapefruit juice + a small grapefruit wedge for garnish. club soda. 4 freshly chopped basil leaves + extra for garnish. 2 cups ice. shaker. edible flowers optional for garnish.

start by combining half the basil, the tequila and grapefruit juice in a shaker with half the ice. shake well to combine about thirty seconds, till the basil is beaten up and the oils released. fill your serving glass with the rest of the basil and ice. pour the contents of your shaker over ice. top off with club soda. garnish with grapefruit wedge, basil sprig and edible flowers and serve.

um, where did january go?

i feel like it took me much longer than usual this year to regroup after the holidays. normally, i attack a new year with extreme enthusiasm. but this year, i just couldn’t kick it into gear. but with a new month bringing a fresh perspective and one of my favorite times of the year, i’m finally feeling like i’m getting back in the swing of things. and right in time for happy hour.

citrus season is bringing its best right now. grapefruit, cara cara and blood oranges are offering up some really gorgeous flavors and colors. and nothing pairs better with citrus than herbs.

this lightly sparkling sip will brighten up a cold february day and you will want to keep this cocktail handy all the way through spring.

thyme & grapefruit spritzer

serves: 1 cocktail

prep time: 2 minutes

active time: 2 minutes

total time: 4 minutes

ingredients: 2 oz vodka. 3 oz freshly squeezed grapefruit juice + grapefruit twist. .5 oz st. germain. 7 sprigs thyme. 5 oz club soda. 2 cups ice. shaker.

start by filling the base of your shaker with half the ice, 5 of the thyme leaves roughly torn, and the vodka. give it a stir and let the thyme start to infuse into your vodka.

pour in the grapefruit juice and st. germain. cover the shaker and shake well till everything is well combined and the thyme leaves are nice and bruised up. about 30 seconds.

fill your serving glass with ice. pour the contents of your shaker into the serving glass.

top the glass with club soda.

gently stir it up with the remaining thyme sprigs and use them as a garnish. top with your grapefruit twist, serve and enjoy.

xo, a

thyme & grapefruit spritzer

serves: 1 cocktail

prep time: 2 minutes

active time: 2 minutes

total time: 4 minutes

ingredients: 2 oz vodka. 3 oz freshly squeezed grapefruit juice + grapefruit twist. .5 oz st. germain. 7 sprigs thyme. 5 oz club soda. 2 cups ice. shaker.

start by filling the base of your shaker with half the ice, 5 of the thyme leaves roughly torn, and the vodka. give it a stir and let the thyme start to infuse into your vodka. pour in the grapefruit juice and st. germain. cover the shaker and shake well till everything is well combined and the thyme leaves are nice and bruised up. about 30 seconds. fill your serving glass with ice. pour the contents of your shaker into the serving glass. top the glass with club soda. gently stir it up with the remaining thyme sprigs and use them as a garnish. top with your grapefruit twist, serve and enjoy.