this week was the calm before the storm. i took a little "spring break" along with all the kiddos i teach and gave myself the week off from cooking. next week is the beginning of what i'm hoping will be a very busy spring and summer season for our businesses. 

so i'm going to be hitting easter weekend with the family hard. i have to soak up every last second of freedom before i'm back in the kitchen for hours on end. it is a dream job, but still a job. 

with spring in full force and easter this weekend, i was feeling something, light, bright and fruity for cocktail time. wes and i found this delicious blood orange soda at our local produce store and i knew just what to do with it. 

sun kissed cooler
serves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 2 minutes
active time: 1 minute
total time 3 minutes
ingredients: 2 oz vodka. .5 cup citrus juice (i used a mixture of orange and blood orange). .25 cup citrus soda (or club soda if you don't like the extra sweetness). 1 tbs grenadine. 1 cup ice. start by filling your serving glass with ice. make sure you pour this drink in order and don't stir it. otherwise it will become one color before serving. 

start by combining your citrus juice and vodka. stir well to combine. 

pour your juice over the ice. 

then pour in your soda. 

finally add in your grenadine.

 garnish with an edible flower or citrus wheel and serve. 

xo, a

sun kissed cooler s
erves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 2 minutes
active time: 1 minute
total time 3 minutes
ngredients: 2 oz vodka. .5 cup citrus juice (i used a mixture of orange and blood orange). .25 cup citrus soda (or club soda if you don't like the extra sweetness). 1 tbs grenadine. 1 cup ice. start by filling your serving glass with ice. make sure you pour this drink in order and don't stir it. otherwise it will become one color before serving. start by combining your citrus juice and vodka. stir well to combine. pour your juice over the ice. then pour in your soda. finally add in your grenadine. garnish with an edible flower or citrus wheel and serve.

we all know that alcohol isn't exactly "good for us." sure, some of the different varieties offer a few benefits. but the real benefits of booze are measured in my mind by how it makes you feel. sure, overindulging in some libations is not good for you, but the relaxation and release you receive from a drink or two is undeniable.

so how do you balance the benefits of relaxation with what we know isn't necessarily "healthy?" 

duh, just add more healthy stuff to it.
and the benefits of ginger are undeniable. it is a great anti inflamitory, helps hearth health, increase digestions and is fabulous in a margarita. 

ginger margarita
serves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 5 minutes
active time: 2 minutes
total time: 7 minutes
ingredients: 2 oz tequila. 1 oz grand marnier. 1 lime. 1 inch of ginger, peel removed. 1 tsp sugar. couple pinches of salt. micro plane. stainer or cheesecloth. tumbler. 1 cup of ice. 1 lime wheel. 

start out by zesting your lime. on a plate, combine the salt, zest and two pinches of the sugar and set it aside.

in a glass, combine the tequila, grand marnier and the juice of the lime. 

use the squeezed lime to rub some lime juice on the edge of the glass. 

dip the lime juice rubbed lip of the glass into the zest mixture, coating the rim of the glass. 

grate your ginger with the micro plane over a strainer or some cheese cloth. 

when you have grated all your ginger, press all the juice out. you should end up with about 1 oz of ginger. 

pour in your tequila mixture. stir well to combine. 

top with ice. garnish with a lime wheel. enjoy. 

xo, a

ginger margarita
serves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 5 minutes
active time: 2 minutes
total time: 7 minutes
ingredients: 2 oz tequila. 1 oz grand marnier. 1 lime. 1 inch of ginger, peel removed. 1 tsp sugar. couple pinches of salt. micro plane. stainer or cheesecloth. tumbler. 1 cup of ice. 1 lime wheel.
start out by zesting your lime. on a plate, combine the salt, zest and two pinches of the sugar and set it aside. in a glass, combine the tequila, grand marnier and the juice of the lime. use the squeezed lime to rub some lime juice on the edge of the glass. dip the lime juice rubbed lip of the glass into the zest mixture, coating the rim of the glass. using your micro plane. grate your ginger with the micro plane over a strainer or some cheese cloth. when you have grated all your ginger, press all the juice out. you should end up with about 1 oz of ginger. pour in your tequila mixture. stir well to combine. top with ice. garnish with a lime wheel. enjoy.