last night, wes left for three weeks of work. he's headed to indian wells to work at the nobu pop up restaurant they have at the big tennis tournament. the restaurant is literally on the court. it is a great opportunity and he is super excited. 

i can't lie, i'm going to miss him. when i traveled fifty percent of the time for work for a few years, we weren't married and i was far less codependent. but it has been YEARS since we have spent more than two nights apart. i'm sure i'll get plenty of work done and spend time with friends and family, but i'll miss my best buddy. my kitchen copilot. the best coffee maker in town. 

but my first and last love is me. so i'm going to indulge in my favorite things while he is gone. starting with this cocktail. i've been anxiously waiting for the lavender plants to pop up at trader joe's and they have finally arrived. i love lavender. probably because it's so calming, and i could always use a bit of that. looking for an easy drinking, relaxing cocktail to prepare for the weekend? this is your jam. be careful. it goes down nice and easy. 

lemon + lavender whiskey smash

serves: 1 cocktail 

prep time: 3 minutes

active time: 1 minute

total time: 4 minutes

ingredients: 2 oz rye whiskey. 1 oz fresh lemon juice. .5 oz simple syrup. 3 oz club soda. handful of lavender leaves. 1 cup crushed ice. 1 cup ice. lavender flower + lemon twist for garnish. shaker. 

start by filling your shaker with the regular ice and your serving glass with the crushed ice. in the shaker, add the whiskey, lemon juice and simple syrup. smash up the lavender leaves to release their oils and add them to the shaker.

add your twist and lavender garnish to the glass. shake your cocktail till well combined. about 30 seconds.strain the cocktail into your glass.  

top off with club soda and give it a good stir. 

serve and enjoy.

xo, a

lemon + lavender whiskey smash

serves: 1 cocktail 

prep time: 3 minutes

active time: 1 minute

total time: 4 minutes

ingredients: 2 oz rye whiskey. 1 oz fresh lemon juice. .5 oz simple syrup. 3 oz club soda. handful of lavender leaves. 1 cup crushed ice. 1 cup ice. lavender flower + lemon twist for garnish. shaker. 

start by filling your shaker with the regular ice and your serving glass with the crushed ice. in the shaker, add the whiskey, lemon juice and simple syrup. smash up the lavender leaves to release their oils and add them to the shaker. add your twist and lavender garnish to the glass. shake your cocktail till well combined. about 30 seconds. strain the cocktail into your glass. top off with club soda and give it a good stir. serve and enjoy. 

spring is just a couple of weeks away, and you know what that means? spring means parties. and parties, mean guacamole. guac is great, but avocados are pricey and can be temperamental. so here are some tips and tricks on picking, slicing and preserving your avocados so that your guac comes out perfectly every time. 

the first thing you need to know is how to pick a good one. good food starts with good ingredients. when looking for a ripe avocado, it is not so much about the look of the skin, but more about the feel of the avocado and the stem test. you want your avocado to feel firm, but to have a slight give when your press your thumb into it. you do not want it to feel soft or mushy. too hard is no bueno either. once you think you have picked a good one, find the top of the avocado where the fruit would have come off of the stem. remove the little nub. 

it should look like it is bright green in there. then you know it is ripe. 

when it is time to slice your avocado, find that little nub where the stem was. start there and slice your knife around the pit in the center of the avocado. once you have cut around the whole outside, take one side of the avocado in each hand and gently twist so that the sides separate. use your knife or a spoon to remove the pit. now, avocado flesh begins to oxidize (turn brown) when it is exposed air. so wait until the last minute to slice them. now that you have slice avocados, it's time to make some guac! 

in a small bowl, combine your tomato, shallots, half the salt and pepper, cilantro and garlic. stir well to combine and set aside. then set up your guacamole bowl. you will want a large bowl and you need your cooling rack. place your rack on top of the bowl. one half at a time, place your avocado flash side down on top of the rack. 

use your hand to press the flesh through the holes in the cooling rack. you get perfect cubes with little time, effort and mess.

after you have finished all your avocados, season with the rest of the salt and pepper. 

then add your tomato mixture into the guac. 

stir well to combine. 

stir well to combine and serve with your favorite chips. now, it is very rare, but sometimes, just sometimes you have a bit of extra guac. there are lots of suggestions on how to keep your already made guac from oxidizing and turning brown. manny suggest plastic wrap or more acid from the lime juice but while researching this post a came upon a method that seems to be a true winner. before you put your guacamole in the fridge to store, cover the guac with a very thin layer of water. the guac will not absorb the water and when you are ready to eat it again, dump the water off the top, stir and serve. 

xo, a

guacamole
serves: 4
prep time: 7 minutes
active time: 3 minutes
total time: 10 minutes
ingredients: 3 medium or 2 small ripe avocados. 2 tbs diced tomato. 2 tbs finely chopped shallots. 1 garlic clove, minced. juice of 1 lime. 1 tbs finely chopped cilantro. 1 tsp salt. .5 tsp pepper. cooling rack (you can get one HERE). tortilla chips for serving.
in a small bowl, combine your tomato, shallots, half the salt and pepper, cilantro and garlic. stir well to combine and set aside. then set up your guacamole bowl. you will want a large bowl and you need your cooling rack. place your rack on top of the bowl. one half at a time, place your avocado flash side down on top of the rack. use your hand to press the flesh through the holes in the cooling rack. you get perfect cubes with little time, effort and mess. after you have finished all your avocados, season with the rest of the salt and pepper. then add your tomato mixture into the guac. stir well to combine and serve with your favorite chips. now, it is very rare, but sometimes, just sometimes you have a bit of extra guac. there are lots of suggestions on how to keep your already made guac from oxidizing and turning brown. manny suggest plastic wrap or more acid from the lime juice but while researching this post a came upon a method that seems to be a true winner. before you put your guacamole in the fridge to store, cover the guac with a very thin layer of water. the guac will not absorb the water and when you are ready to eat it again, dump the water off the top, stir and serve.