A Beautiful Mess

St-Germain Mojito Recipe

The classic mojito is my favorite cocktail, but lately I've been trying new spins of my old favorite. I've been playing with some fruit and herbal infusions (watermelon + basil is a favorite!) and experimenting with different flavors, like this floral version using St-Germain!St-Germain Mojito, Serves One 

Fresh mint leaves
1 ounce St-Germain
1 ounce light rum
1 tablespoon honey
Club Soda
Lemon 
Lime 

In a tall glass muddle 5+ fresh mint leaves with honey. Add St-Germain, Rum, and juice of half a lemon and half a lime. Add ice and top off with club soda, mixing well with a long spoon. If you like it extra sweet, add a little more simple syrup! Garnish with limes and an edible flower. Enjoy! 

To make your own simple syrup: Simmer equal parts water and sugar over low/medium heat for 15 to 18 minutes. Store in a sealed container in your refrigerator. This can last for several months.I hope you enjoy this refreshing spin on a classic drink. If you like this you might also want to check out a few of my other springtime favorites... The Apple Flower Cocktail, Whiskey Lemonade, The Cinnamon Sour, The Cucumber Margarita and The Wasabi Bloody Mary. 

xoxo + cheers!  Elsie 

Kitchen Experiments: Peekaboo Bread

I've been wanting to try out a peekaboo bread for sometime now. I think the first time I saw one was last fall. It was a beautiful pumpkin bread with a pumpkin cut out in the center. You can probably guess what peekaboo bread is just from the name. Basically you hide a different kind of quick bread or pound cake in the center of another cake. You get to blend the flavors and create a cute design. I decided to give it a try.First I worked on a raspberry quick bread recipe that I liked. I baked one without any cut outs first, and it was yummy. I'm pretty partial to raspberries—love the flavor and the vibrant red color. 

Raspberry Quick Bread, makes one loaf.

5 1/2 tablespoons softened butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
12 ounces fresh raspberriesCream together the butter and sugar. Stir in the eggs and vanilla extract. In another bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder. Stir the flour mixture in with the butter mixture. In another bowl mash up the raspberries. Stir the raspberries and their juices in to the batter.

If you want to add cut outs here's what I did: Cut a store-bought pound cake in half lengthwise. Use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes (like stars). Fill a buttered loaf pan with a little bit of the raspberry bread batter. Now place the cut out stars upright in the pan. Fill around the stars with the remaining batter, being sure to cover the tops of the cut out shapes.* Bake at 350°F for 45-48 minutes.

*Try to choose a cut out shape that is not too large, or tall. If the shape reaches above your batter it may not look the best. This happened with my first loaf. 

I also noticed that the color of my outer loaf changed based on how close it was to the center cutouts. My guess is that the cut outs, while cute, do allow for some uneven cooking within the bread batter. Maybe that explains it, maybe not. I'm not really much of a food scientist, just a curious home baker.What about you? Have you ever tried making peekaboo bread (or cake)? What other kitchen experiments have you been up to lately? xo. Emma

Peanut Butter & Cayenne Ice Cream

This is one of the best parts of making ice cream at home: off-beat flavors! Life is an adventure, and playing around in the kitchen shouldn't be any different. If something sounds tasty to you, then I say give it a try. You never know what you'll come up with. It might turn out awful (and hilarious), or it might turn out amazing. I've had my fair share of hilariously bad kitchen experiments, but I am happy to report that this particular ice cream flavor falls in the amazing category. :)I thought about calling this something like, "thai peanut" or something along those lines. It's a really fun blend of creamy peanut butter and spice. To me this tasted just like a really yummy peanut butter ice cream but then the finish—that's where the heat is. It's like a surprise at the end.Peanut Butter & Cayenne Ice Cream, makes about 1 1/2 quarts

1 cup brown sugar
2 cups creamy peanut butter
3 cups half and half cream
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoon cayenne*

Blend together the sugar and peanut butter until well combined. Stir in the half and half, heavy whipping cream and salt. You want to slowly incorporate it as you stir, otherwise it will splash everywhere. Now stir in the cayenne.

*If you are concerned that it may be too much spice for you start with half the amount suggested above and taste the batter before adding any more. You may find that want more or less spice, it's up to you! I find that it's best to refrigerate ice cream batter overnight before processing it in my ice cream maker. Then follow your ice cream maker's directions to blend the batter into creamy ice cream! If you find that your ice cream is the consistency of soft serve you can put in the freezer for a few more hours to help it harden. Try this! It's a really fun, delicious and complex flavor. You're gonna love it. xo. Emma

Coffee Shop Oatmeal to Go!

This year has been awesome! It's been a really busy year, full of traveling for both work and fun times. :) I've found myself grabbing breakfast at many a coffee shop, or even the airport. I've come to love, what I call "coffee shop oatmeal." It's fast, delicious and super filling.This also makes a fantastic breakfast for when you need something quick but crave something homemade. This takes minutes to put together and provided that you have a travel mug or bowl, an easy breakfast to take on the go.Coffee Shop Oatmeal, makes one serving.

2/3 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 cup mixed nuts (I used pecans, sunflower seeds and chia seeds)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon sugar, brown sugar or honey*
2/3 cup milk

*You can adjust the sweetness level to your liking or cut out the sweetner entirely.Combine all the ingredients, besides milk, in a heat proof mug or small bowl. Steam the milk until piping hot. I did this using the steaming wand of my espresso machine, but you can also easily do this on the stove in a small pot. Whisk the milk as it heats up, incorporting air into the milk so you can get that latte foam. Foam makes this oatmeal seem more like a coffee shop. :) Pour the milk into the oatmeal mixture, give it a stir and allow it to soak and soften for 4-5 minutes.For added flavor you could add fresh berries or dried fruit. Enjoy this along side a cup of coffee and you'll feel like you're ready to take on the day. Or, at least, that's how I feel after oatmeal. :)Enjoy this friends! Happy breakfasting. :) xo. Emma