the countdown is on till mother's day. and long gone are the days where the only ladies i am celebrating are my mother and grandmothers. 

these days, there are beautiful mommies all around me. many of my coworkers, best friends and family are now mommies. and i don't know a better way to celebrate all the lovely moms in my life than with a very pretty, very delicious cocktail. (especially for those new mommies & mommies of teenagers). 

the great thing about this cocktail is that while it is bright and tangy, you can easily adjust the sweetness of the drink to your liking. not a huge lavender fan? not a problem! you can easily tailor this drink to your taste by using whatever fresh herbs you love in your garden. the goal isn't necessarily a lavender cocktail, but one that reflects your favorite herb form your spring garden! all you need to do is sub the lavender for the same amount of your favorite herb. thyme, marjoram or basil would be great options. 

spring splash
serves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 3 minutes
active time: 2 minutes
total time: 5 minutes
*author's note* if you already have simple syrup on hand you can soak some of your simple syrup with the fresh herbs for thirty minutes to an hour. if you need to make simple syrup, add in an additional half hour to make the syrup and allow it to cool to room temp before use. you can store your simple syrup on hand in the fridge for a month. 

ingredients: 2 oz vodka. 1 oz fresh pink lemon juice. 1 oz lavender simple syrup (use this simple syrup recipe just add .25 cup fresh lavender leaves or any of your other favorite garden herbs, strain and use or store). .5 oz campari. club soda to taste. lavender sprig for garnish. shaker. 2 cups of ice divided. serving glass of choice. 

start by combining half your ice with the vodka, lemon juice and simple syrup in your shaker. if you know you like a sweater cocktail, i would recommend using 2 oz of the herb simple syrup. 

shake well till bubbly. about 10-15 seconds. fill your serving glass with the remaining ice. 

pour the contents of your shaker over ice. 

top with club soda till just sparkling. 

top with campari. 

garnish with lavender sprig and enjoy!

xo, a

spring splash
serves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 3 minutes
active time: 2 minutes
total time: 5 minutes
*author's note* if you already have simple syrup on hand you can soak some of your simple syrup with the fresh herbs for thirty minutes to an hour. if you need to make simple syrup, add in an additional half hour to make the syrup and allow it to cool to room temp before use. you can store your simple syrup on hand in the fridge for a month.
ingredients: 2 oz vodka. 1 oz fresh pink lemon juice. 1 oz lavender simple syrup (use this simple syrup recipe just add .25 cup fresh lavender leaves or any of your other favorite garden herbs, strain and use or store). .5 oz campari. club soda to taste. lavender sprig for garnish. shaker. 2 cups of ice divided. serving glass of choice.
tart by combining half your ice with the vodka, lemon juice and simple syrup in your shaker. if you know you like a sweater cocktail, i would recommend using 2 oz of the herb simple syrup. shake well till bubbly. about 10-15 seconds. fill your serving glass with the remaining ice. pour the contents of your shaker over ice. top with club soda till just sparkling. top with campari. garnish with lavender sprig and enjoy!

today was a great day. i'm just going to lead with that. nothing crazy got accomplished. i didn't earn a bunch of money. no jobs were secured. but, it was a great day. 

after teaching my usual tuesday morning class, i headed to a swim lesson with two of my favorite little boys. we just started back up now that it is warming up and they pretty much have me in stitches for a solid hour. i followed that up with a few hours at the beach with wesley (who has a rare day off now that nobu is open) which lead into a really solid beach nap. there aren't too many things better in life than a beach nap. my nap was followed up with some really great news about a job we have coming up and finished off with one of my all time favorite dishes in the garden. with rose. mic drop. 

if you are like me, and don't give a shit about garlic breath, this is a great meal to serve for date night. it is light, zesty and delicious. not to mention, it cooks up quickly so you have plenty of time to actually enjoy yourself. 

shrimp scampi
serves: 2
prep time: 10 minutes
active time: 10 minutes
total time: 20 minutes
ingredients: .5lb peeled and deveined shrimp (i found and argentinian red shrimp at my local fish guy that was delicious). .5lb spaghetti pasta (fresh if you can get your hands on some). 4 garlic cloves, minced. .25 cup grated parmesan cheese. zest of 1 lemon. 4 lemon slices. 2 tbs lemon juice. 2 tbs butter. 2 tbs olive oil. 1 tbs parsley, chopped. 1 tsp oregano, finely chopped. 1 tsp red pepper flakes. 1 tsp kosher salt. .5 tsp pepper. 

start by bringing a pot of salted water to a boil. cook your pasta to the package instructions. try to time the completion of the pasta around the time you complete your shrimp (pay attention to the cook time on your pasta) while your water is boiling and you are cooking your pasta, work on the rest of your dish. pat your shrimp dry and season it well with half the salt and pepper. 

in a large pan, heat you butter and oil with the garlic and red pepper flakes over medium high heat. you want the butter to start to sizzle, but not burn. be careful as garlic can burn quickly. 

once the garlic is fragrant and the butter is bubbling, about 2 minutes, add in the shrimp. cook until the shrimp is cooked through (slightly firm to the touch) about 5 minutes. 

add in your lemon wedges, juice, lemon zest, oregano and the rest of the salt and pepper. stir well to combine. cook until the liquid starts to bubble. 

toss in half the parsley and the cheese. stir well to combine. 

toss in the cooked pasta and toss everything together. 

serve on a platter or plated topped with the rest of the parsley and cheese. 

xo, a

shrimp scampi
serves: 2
prep time: 10 minutes
active time: 10 minutes
total time: 20 minutes
ingredients: .5lb peeled and deveined shrimp (i found and argentinian red shrimp at my local fish guy that was delicious). .5lb spaghetti pasta (fresh if you can get your hands on some). 4 garlic cloves, minced. .25 cup grated parmesan cheese. zest of 1 lemon. 4 lemon slices. 2 tbs lemon juice. 2 tbs butter. 2 tbs olive oil. 1 tbs parsley, chopped. 1 tsp oregano, finely chopped. 1 tsp red pepper flakes. 1 tsp kosher salt. .5 tsp pepper.
start by bringing a pot of salted water to a boil. cook your pasta to the package instructions. try to time the completion of the pasta around the time you complete your shrimp (pay attention to the cook time on your pasta) while your water is boiling and you are cooking your pasta, work on the rest of your dish. pat your shrimp dry and season it well with half the salt and pepper. in a large pan, heat you butter and oil with the garlic and red pepper flakes over medium high heat. you want the butter to start to sizzle, but not burn. be careful as garlic can burn quickly. once the garlic is fragrant and the butter is bubbling, about 2 minutes, add in the shrimp. cook until the shrimp is cooked through (slightly firm to the touch) about 5 minutes. add in your lemon wedges, juice, lemon zest, oregano and the rest of the salt and pepper. stir well to combine. cook until the liquid starts to bubble. toss in half the parsley and the cheese. stir well to combine. toss in the cooked pasta and toss everything together. serve on a platter or plated topped with the rest of the parsley and cheese.