Strawberry Bellinis #Giveaway at That Skinny Chick Can Bake!

Strawberry Bellini

Only a few hours left to pop over to Liz's place and enter to WIN!

Have a Bellini on me while you're there :)



Sparkling Not So Simple Strawberry Limonaide



Sparkling Not So Simple Strawberry Limonaide

I know I should be taking more time on my posts and staging my pictures and such but it's just not where I am at right now.

 

When I find a moment to enjoy a cocktail, there's no time for staging.  These are my real life moments.  I need a drink dammit ;-)

 

And bottom line, I'm afraid I'll lose these awesome recipes if I don't start chronicling better....

 

This drink was what I VERY late in the season dubbed my official drink of Summertime 2013. I only had the recipe in a comment on my Facebook Instagram post. 

It was only a matter of time before it was

gobbled up by my endless ramblings

never to be found again....

 

But now it's safe.  And you really should try it. 

 

I. LOVE. THIS. DRINK.

 

and you will too....

  

What You Need:

• 1.5 ounce Limoncello
• 1.0 ounce Strawberry Not So Simple Syrup
• A couple lemon slices
• 3 ounces Brut Champagne
• A couple strawberries for garnish

 

What You Do:

• Lightly muddle your Syrup with a couple lemon slices
• Add Limoncello
• Pack your glass with ice
• Top with Brut Champagne

Insert Straw into drink, butt into lounge chair.... AHHHH

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Young Grasshopper's Top 5 in 2012!

Remember me?  I am alive. Things just got so crazy over the last couple months I had to make some tough prioritizing choices and alas blogging took the hit {which even David said was a bad thing as blogging really made me a happier person}.  I'm hoping the New Year will afford me more blogging time as the holidays end, the company departs and "normalcy" resumes. 

Reflecting on 2012 it was a rough one in Chez Webb.... I lost my Mom in January, My Great Aunt {107 years old!} in September and my Father-in-Law in October.  It was a lot of sadness not only for me but all I love.  My kids lost 2 grandparents.... my Dad, a wife, my husband, a Dad and my most awesome Mother-in-Law lost the love of her life.  The sadness was potentially all consuming.

It can be hard to notice the positives when there's a lot of sad but noteworthy in 2012 is that the kids continue to shine in every aspect of their youth, David & I were lucky enough to have the opportunity of the Kress Building fall into our laps, we are all healthy and have the best support system in our extended family and friends.  And yes, we have each other.

Good & Bad I'm so very excited to kick this year out the door and ring in a glorious new year.... HELLO 2013!  I'm starting if off by running from Miami to Key West with my BFF and our 9 Ragnar teammates and then relaxing with MaryAnn & David for a couple days in glorious Key West.  I vow to truly relax and I'm hoping I will return renewed and ready to kick some ass in 2013!

To end on a blogging note and since I've been so MIA
I thought I would close out the year with a
 Featured 5 celebrating my Top 5 posts of 2012....
I always love those radio count downs.... 
You won't be surprised to find they are all cocktails....

Cheers to you all.....
 

#5 the Classic Whisky Sour

 
 



#4.... The St~Germain Cocktail....



 



#3 was a guest post by the
fabulous Messy Baker!
who served up a
Grilled Peach Bourbon
Old Fashioned!



#2 The Dark & Stormy 



& drum roll please.......


#1 My Champagne Mojito

 Happy New Year Everyone!

Hope to see a lot more of you in 2013 ;)

A Birthday Wish & A Guest Post {Midnight Kiss Cocktail}

Midnight Kiss Cocktail

When my friend Anita from The Hungry Couple asked me to guest post her Friday Happy Hour Cocktail because she was taking off for her birthday you can imagine a girl like me's delight!

A Birthday! A Cocktail! AND a Guest Post? WAAAAHOOOOO :)
The trifecta of blogging.

Head on over to wish her a Happy Birthday and see how this FABULOUS cocktail is made..... click HERE

You mean you can Just EAT them? {Strawberry Recipe Round Up}

Champagne Mojito

I see a strawberry and I think.... hmmmmm, what kind of drink can I make? like for instance a Champagne Mojito :) 


Carla over at Chocolately Moosey on the other hand spends a whole week celebrating National Strawberry Week and tops it off with an AWESOME round up of the best of the best.... and yes a few of mine slipped in there <3


Go check her round up out!

Thanks for including me!  XXOO

HAPPY WORLD GIN DAY! GINSANITY CHAPTER IX: Quick Ruthie get the flag.... it's Happy Hour! {Basil French 75}

Basil French 75

OK, so much to my chagrin I had no mint today for my Happy Hour.... have I told you when I was growing up my folks actually had a flag they hung every summer evening that said Happy Hour?  LOL, I kid you not.  I would kill for that flag.


Anyhow, back to my mint conundrum...


So, I called my friend/neighbor Barbie.... NOPE
I accosted PopPop... is he growing it yet?  NOPE


DAMN.
Plan B.
Basil....
So, fistful of basil, lemons and some champagne I Google for an assist and who woulda thought it.... 
MARTHA came through.


BASIL FRENCH 75 
{only very slightly modified}
thanks & credits to Martha Stewart

WHAT YOU NEED:

5 basil leaves

2 slices lemon in quarters

1 ounce simple syrup

2 ounces gin

1/2 ounce lemon juice

Ice

4 ounces Champagne {brut}

WHAT YOU DO:

Muddle basil leaves with 1 lemon slice and simple syrup in a shaker. Add gin, lemon juice, and a little ice. Shake well and strain into glass. pack with ice and top with Champagne.

Your are Welcome. You SURVIVED the day & I was waiting with an awesome idea.

A Drink & A Tripod, Life is good. {St~Germain Cocktail II}

St~Germain Cocktail II

There are so many things that bring me joy about this picture... of course the most obvious is that it's a cocktail and I drank this cocktail on Friday, which also made me giddy with joy... because I am so ready for the weekend, and it's a THREE DAY WEEKEND, can it get better?  


WOOT WOOT!


What else do I love?

• Cupcake Prosecco
• St~Germain
• Fresh Mint from Mr. Donald Kent's garden
• my new boards that Olga & Steve made for me

AND.... the sharpness that my tripod is gifting me.  OMG.  $30 and I feel like I moved ahead like 25 squares in the photography game of life.

Thank you Katherine Martinelli.  Katherine is an awesome food photographer & writer that I've followed for a while.  A month or so ago I came across an old blog she wrote called "7 Top Food Photography Tips" which I read and took to heart.  Tip #2.... GET A TRIPOD.  I operate on a delay so it took me a month but it arrived and WOW.

Now, I need to go and implement Tip#3 and so on.... I love the growth.

I love it so much that I think we should drink to that!

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED:

a rocks glass packed with ice

4-5 ounces Prosecco

1 ounce St~Germain

a sprig or two of mint

HERE'S WHAT YOU DO:

Fill ice packed glass with champagne, add mint and top with St~Germain.

You are welcome.

XXOO

p.s. I'd like to shout to Zested which inspired this cocktail, I didn't have cucumber so it's not really her drink {THIS time!}.... but she inspired it this time {this isn't my 1st St~Germain cocktail} and so I want to nod her way.... she has an awesome blog.

Featured 5

T.

G.

I.

F.

Anyone disagree?

I didn't think so...

Especially when you see what I've got ready for 

Friday's FEATURED 5!

Can you say OOEY GOOEY PEANUT BUTTER S'MORES BARS? Well, Kristina from Whipped sure can... YUM!

Kim Bee over at Cravings of a Lunatic was up to her elbows in yumminess making ice cream bites ... I'm only showing one but she made
Cocoa Pebbles Ice Cream rolled in Cocoa PebblesVanilla Ice Cream rolled in CoconutVanilla Ice Cream rolled in Pistachios

Get over there & check it out.

Did you see this? 

Well, I try not to play favorites among my favorites but this was the funniest post I saw this week.... and it ended like every joke EVERYTHING with a yummy dessert recipe. Go check out Kale at Tastes Good To Me and her Strawberry & Lemon Curd Pots.

Have you checked out Anurradha at Baker Street?
Well, you need to and if you needed a reason this is it... Cookies & Cream Pound Cake. Yup, you heard that right.

I just realized that ALL 5 of my picks this week were sweets. HOW ODD. I'm really much more of a savory girl... salty one might say. But it is what it is... look at what Anne at From My Sweet Heart made.... I can hardly type it. Biscoff White Chocolate Chip Blondies. 

MADNESS I SAY.

& My one for good luck? 

It isn't a new post but I just found it 

and I'm having one this weekend.... 

The Elderflower Champagne Cocktail posted by Zested 

...if you know me at all that choice 

requires no further explanation!

****ALL PHOTO CREDITS TO THE POST REFERENCED,

HUGE Thank you to all for letting me repost****

As usual I have a couple housekeeping matters :)

I'm very excited that I will be joining CJ at Food stories to be on a team of Judges for her new Food Stories Award.... I'm joined by some of my favorite bloggers in this honor: Jen - Juanita's Cocina, Kim - Treats & Trinkets, Jennie - The Messy Baker, Uru - Go Bake Yourself and of course CJ. Go check it out....

and of course don't forget May's GIVEAWAY is less than a week away from it's drawing.... enter to win your awesome 

Williams Sonoma Sea Salt collection 

& POSSIBLY a grilling rub collection too! 

WOOT WOOT!

THIRSTY THURSDAY {Fruit & Flowers Sparkler}

Meet my Thursday.... this is my daughter's Middle School Orchestra.  It was a field trip today.  I try not to miss because I know these days are coming to an end but this one was pretty hellish.  We had to be at the school at 7 a.m. so we could travel WITH the Chorus AND the Band to visit and perform at 4 Elementary Schools in the area.  Two school buses packed full, a U-haul full of instruments & music stands and about 80 kids all told in 90 degree heat.  Unloading, slepping, watching them perform, packing up, riding in the bus to the next school and then doing it all over {and over again}.  Don't get me wrong the kids were AWESOME.  Well mannered, helpful and performed incredibly but I'm an OLD WOMAN and I am whooped {and Rebecca forgot the flask!}.  

So, I'm THIRSTY.  But it's all good because it's Thirsty Thursday and I'm enjoying a lovely cool cocktail.  I'm calling it the Fruit & Flower Sparkler and it is YUMMY AND REFRESHING.

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED:

1 & 1/2 ounces St. Germaine Elderflower Liqueur
1 & 1/2 ounces pomegranate juice
4 fresh strawberries sliced
4-5 ounces Brut Champagne


HERE'S WHAT YOU DO:
Add everything but the Champagne in your processor {I used my Magic Bullet of course} and puree then add to glass, fill with ice and top with Champagne.


AHHHHH, it's Friday soon but this will hold you over :)


p.s. have you gotten a Magic Bullet yet?  You deserve one.... summers here.... frozen drinks in a snap ~

Thirsty Thursday {Cava Sangria}

Cava Sangria

A woman is sitting at home on the terrace with her husband and she says: "I love you." 

He asks: "Is that you or the wine talking?

She replies: "It's me... talking to the wine."

snicker. snicker. 

As summer approaches, I hope you are stocking up on all these awesome Sangrias I'm feeding you.... this is one of my personal favorites. But, then again.... I don't think you can go wrong if it involves champagne <3

Happy Mother's Day to ME {The Champagne Mojito}

Champagne Mojito

I need to nod to Viviane at Food and Style for this genius.... not sure HOW I haven't thought of it! Two of my favorite things... Champagne & Mojitos.  The dry Champagne is a perfect counter-point to the sweet Mojito.

That said, here's my celebratory Mother's Day Mojito.... the Champagne Mojito!

Drinking Already Ansel? {Orange Pomegranate Mimosa}

On my way to cook brunch I got sidetracked.... as David walked by he laughed "Drinking already Ansel?" Purely for blogging purposes.... I responded.  Anyhow, a simple morning cocktail....

The Mimosa but with a splash of POM
3 parts champagne, 1 part Orange Juice & 1 part POM.


GOOD MORNING!

Leftover Raspberries??? No such thing {Raspberry 20-10 recipe}

Raspberry 20-10

• Muddle in shaker 1/4 cup Raspberries, 1/2 lime [wedged], 2 shots of vodka & 1 tsp of sugar. 
• Fill shaker with ice shake like you mean it. 
• Divide [not strained] between 2 glasses. Fill glasses rest of way with ice & top with Brut Champagne.
• Crisp & Refreshing.... and no more leftover raspberries!

                   I know, I know, I love you too