holiday food + drink
12.9.19

The Drink You Need to Make for NYE: Raspberry Mint Champagne Cocktails

It’s hard to believe we are just a few short weeks away from 2020—this year has absolutely flown by! Since I graduated college, my New Year’s Eve plans have varied. I’ve done everything from taking a trip with friends to going to one of those big open bar parties to having a nice dinner and lowkey night at home. The one thing that has remained the same about my NYE, no matter where I’m at, is that I love indulging in a champagne toast.

To celebrate 2020, I am planning to put a festive twist on the timeless classic and make Raspberry Mint Champagne Cocktails to celebrate the new year with. I wanted to go ahead and share the recipe today in case you’re in the process of planning your NYE festivities like I am!

If you’ve been reading here for a while, you know I’m not a huge cook—so it should come as no surprise that I don’t really enjoy making my own simple syrup for cocktails either. That’s where Master of Mixes comes in! They have a line of great cocktail essentials that make it easy for me to mix up a delicious cocktail from scratch. And, it just so happens, the Master of Mixes Mint Syrup is the perfect mint-flavored simple syrup for this cocktail—and for everything from mint juleps to mojitos. Made from fresh muddled Pacific Northwest spearmint, the flavor is unbeatable and ensures you can mix up a great craft cocktail at home—even if you’re not a pro bartender. Read more “The Drink You Need to Make for NYE: Raspberry Mint Champagne Cocktails”

dc food + drinks
12.8.19

Dinner Club: Live Oak

Happy Sunday! Earlier this week, my sister and I were invited in for dinner at Live Oak in Del Ray in Alexandria, and we had such a fun meal, I wanted to share. We put this date on the calendar about a month prior, and when the day of came around, I won’t lie, I felt kind of meh about going. Not because I wasn’t excited about the restaurant, but because it’s so busy this time of year that I’d accidentally scheduled myself something after work every single night, so I was feeling a little bit maxed out. But as it turns out, this sister date to Live Oak was just what I needed during a busy week—great food, great atmosphere, and great company.

I’m a big fan of the Del Ray neighborhood in Alexandria, and the first to admit, I don’t get there enough! My sister and I were a bit early for our 7pm reservation, so we took a scenic route and drove around looking at Christmas lights in the neighborhood while listening to some of our favorite holiday tunes. When we parked in front of Live Oak, our first thought was how cute it was! There’s a big wrap-around porch and an outdoor patio with bistro lights—which I am sure is so popular when it’s warmer out. We were seated at a booth right near the bar and started the night off with a round of drinks. I opted for their Tito’s Cranberry Spiced Mule, which is on tap, and it was so good—and made me feel really festive! It came in the cutest mule glass shaped like a red solo cup, which is shown in the picture above.  Read more “Dinner Club: Live Oak”

winter
12.2.19

My Five Favorite Things from L.L.Bean

Happy Monday! I can’t believe it’s already December—this year has flown by. Even though it’s back to reality today after a nice long Thanksgiving break at home, I’m reminding myself that there are only 15 business days left in the year and then I get to enjoy two full weeks off from work. I could not be more excited, and really am craving the break to recharge.

My Thanksgiving was a great one. On Wednesday night, my best friend Molly came over to my apartment and we grabbed some Cava, drank wine, and watched cheesy Christmas movies. On Thanksgiving morning, I went home and my family went on a nice long walk before heading over to my Uncle’s house for our annual Thanksgiving dinner. The rest of the weekend was so lazy—lots of football, books by the fire, movies, and carbs. And, I left the house just once, to go to my 10-year high school reunion, which was actually a lot of fun!

As y’all know, I shared my gift guide and stocking stuffer ideas—I’ve been updating both posts regularly as more ideas pop into my head, so even if you didn’t purchase all your gifts during the sales last week, you can probably grab most of it on sale today during Cyber Monday!

One retailer I have been loving lately is L.L.Bean. This year, I’ve really been focusing on buying less crap, and instead, favoring high-quality things I love, and L.L.Bean makes some of the highest quality items I’ve ever owned. I know when I’m buying from them, I’m buying for the long hall! Today they’re running a 20% off sale when you use the code THANKS20, so I wanted to share my five favorite things I’ve ever purchased from L.L.Bean. I’ll also say that if you’re in the DC area, the L.L.Bean store at Tysons Corner Mall is amazing! It’s two stories and they have just about anything you could ever dream of wanting. I also love making my returns there since it’s faster than mailing back items. Read more “My Five Favorite Things from L.L.Bean”