And in tonight’s very special Valentine’s Day Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew drink we have the Deauville! Another bright tasting drink with cognac, bonded apple brandy, Cointreau, lemon juice, and simple syrup. A bit boozy, but yummy nonetheless. Recipe below! Happy Valentines’s Day! ❤️🍽️🍴🍸🧶🐈❤️

It’s an Olympic doubleheader in Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is the Calabrian Word! A Last Word riff - but we couldn’t figure out why it was called Calabrian. Gin, Yellow Chartreuse, Italicus, and lemon juice - it’s bright and happy. And I’m watching Women’s Team Curling! Recipe below! 🍸🍴🍽️🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is a Caipiroska 43 - a sweet combo of vodka, Licor 43, and muddled limes. Tastes like key lime pie as a drink! Watching the men’s 10k ski race. Recipe below! 🍽️🍴🍸🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is the Royal Gingersnap! Canadian blended whisky, Domain de Canton ginger liqueur, orange juice, and marmalade with a cinnamon sugar rim. Sweet, spicy, and gingery - I love it. Andrew upped the ginger liqueur to 1/2oz at my request. Recipe below! 🍴🍽️🍸🧶🐈

This is a winner - Herbed Italian Sausage Potato Leek chowder. Mods: added in browned Italian sausage, used Italian seasoning blend rather than just rosemary, and added in a cup of corn kernels and half cup grated Parmesan. I’ll have great lunches the next few days. Recipe below. 🍴🍽️

My beautiful boy looking at the tiresome two week old white concrete outside. 🐈

It’s a golden doubleheader for the Winter Olympics with Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew - the Golden Daisy! Reposado tequila, Licor 43, lemon juice, honey syrup, and aromatic bitters. Brighter than our first cocktail of the night - Andrew says he likes this one better. Recipe below! 🍴🍽️🍸🐈🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is the Golden Torch! Overproof tequila, spiced rum, lemon juice, and chamomile orange spice simple syrup. Margarita-adjacent, I would consider making it with Créole Shrubb rather than rum to make it even more margarita-ish. Recipe below! 🍴🍽️🍸🧶🐈

It’s an Opening Ceremonies doubleheader with Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew - the Golden Retriever! This is a spicy mix of Green Chartreuse, rum, and Licor 43. Andrew says it is definitely a winter drink - I say Licor 43 makes Green Chartreuse more palatable for me. Recipe below! 🍴🍽️🍸🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is Rings of Fire! Yes, I spent an inordinate amount of time looking up Olympic-themed cocktails. This is a light one - cinnamon infused whiskey, orange juice, maple syrup, and ginger ale. And I have cast on for my sweater! Recipe below! 🍴🍽️🍸🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is a BlackBerry Limoncello Martini - sweet and smooth. I’m getting ready for the Olympic Opening Ceremonies tomorrow - sweater pattern picked out, gauge achieved. Pattern is Anapest by b.Woolens. Cocktail recipe and knitting pattern links below! 🍸🍴🍽️🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is a Blackberry Sidecar. Blackberry brandy, triple sec, lemon, and we used blackberry syrup rather than agave. Tastes like summer! The blackberries were on sale for $3.99 a quart at Costco - I couldn’t resist. Recipe below! 🍸🍽️🍴

Had to show off my new doormat from IKEA - it reminds me of my cat, Hermione. 🐈

Tonight’s Birthday Edition of Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew (his, not mine!) is the Apple Cider Margarita! We used the Lalo over proof tequila and apple cider, and it is very tasty! Started a new pair of socks because I left my other project in the car and it is too cold to go get it! 🍸🍴🍽️🧶

Hermione trusts cocktails even less than George. Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is a Honey Whiskey Sour! We used the Celtic Honey, lemon juice, and the orange cinnamon syrup I made. Delightfully sweet (although Andrew said he would have halved the syrup)! Recipe below! 🍸🍽️🍴🐈

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is a spicy girl - a Spiced Apple Brandy Sidecar! We used Laird’s Bonded Apple Brandy, and it is so good! The glass was dipped in my homemade cinnamon orange syrup, and we used the candied orange peel for the garnish. The recipe is below! 🍸🍴🍽️

In breaking news, George continues to be suspicious in tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew. We have a Cinnamon Cara Cara Margarita - it’s sweet and spicy. I love Cara Cara oranges - such a pretty color and low acidity. Recipe below! 🍴🍽️🍸🐈

Holy moly, this is good. Chuck roast braised in Dutch oven for a few hours on mashed potatoes. Mods: used unsweetened pomegranate juice instead of wine, a more liberal and diverse hand at seasoning, and made mashed potatoes instead of cooking in Dutch oven. Recipe below! 🍴🍽️

Stuck inside, so let’s make some more simple syrup - this one is Cinnamon Cara Cara orange simple syrup. I even made candied orange peels with the leftovers - and my house smells fantastic. 🍽️🍴

George and I are ready for Winter Storm Fern! I may wear my PJs all day - definitely not going anywhere. Andrew’s coffee skills match his cocktail ones, so I will be cozy and caffeinated, too. 🧶🐈☕️📚💙🚀💙

Well hell, let’s make this an Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew doubleheader. It’s been a day, and this winter storm is incoming. Shanghai Gin is a Last Word variant, using gin, Yellow Chartreuse, Benedictine, and lemon juice. So good, and IMHO, so much better than a Last Word. Recipe below! 🍴🍸🍽️🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is so pretty! I love wanted a Chambord Margarita, but we switched up the recipe because we were using Lalo Overproof tequila. It has 2oz tequila, 3/4oz Chambord, 3/4oz Cointreau, 1.5oz lime juice, and 1oz raspberry simple syrup. So good! 🍴🍽️🍸

Isn’t this pretty? On a whim, I looked up how to make simple syrup using fruit jelly. Turns out it is pretty simple - 2/3c jelly to 1/3c water, boil for a few minutes, and let cool. I used Red Raspberry jelly from Highland Orchards and it is delicious. I have plans for this syrup tonight! 🍴🍸🍽️

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew, we have the Apple Brandy Sidecar! It’s a Sidecar riff with bonded Apple Brandy rather than cognac - and it is strong and tasty. I’m curious if there are other fruit flavored bonded brandies to try - the Sidecar is a versatile recipe. Recipe below! 🍴🍽️🍸🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is Mon Dernier Mot, a riff on the Last Word with all French alcohol (cognac, ginger liqueur, and Yellow Chartreuse). Yummy - I like it better than the Last Word (but then, I prefer Yellow over Green Chartreuse as well). The recipe is below! 🍸🍽️🍴🧶

First finished pair of socks for 2026! Plain Vanilla Socks in Hue Loco’s Dancing Queen colorway. I love the turquoise stripes on the silver grey. 🧶🧦

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails is a strong one - the Sidewinder! Cognac, Apple Brandy, Benedictine, the special Yellow Chartreuse, and an absinthe rinse. That’s okay, though - it snowed today and I don’t plan on going anywhere. The recipe we used is below! 🍸🍴🍽️🧶

It’s a wear your wool socks day here in Wilmington - I knew this pair had been in my collection for a while - so checked to see when I made them. 2007! People, these socks are nearly 20 years old. They are vintage! Socks That Rock Heavyweight yarn in Gingerbread Dude colorway. 🧶🧦

My friend Michelle and I went down to Ocean City, MD to go to a yarn show this weekend. Look at the beauties I bought! The weather was gorgeous, too - the convention center is right on the water. Imagine our shock when we returned to Wilmington yesterday afternoon and there was snow! 🧶

And in tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew - we have Double Cranberry Cosmicus! Made with cranberry apple infused vodka, Italicus, cranberry juice, and lime juice. Sweet and tart, and the prettiest pink. The recipe we used is below! 🍸🍽️🍴🧶

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is not a breakfast cocktail - it’s a Mandarin Orange Ginger Martini! Liberally dosed with gin, it’s a strong drink, but hey - with 2 mandarins’ worth of juice in each cocktail, we aren’t getting scurvy any time soon. The recipe we used is below! 🍽️🍴🍸

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is a bright, happy one - Winter Sunshine! Tequila, Clementine Shrubb liqueur, lime juice, clementine juice, and simple syrup (we used the rosemary simple syrup I made). This could a breakfast cocktail à la mimosa. I quite like it! The recipe is👇. 🍸🍽️🍴

More meals my kid won’t eat! Italian Herb and Cheese Monkey Bread with Sun-dried Tomato Pesto and White Bean Soup. It is a freaking delicious combination. 🍴🍽️

Preparing myself for some very low energy reading - I bought myself a gooseneck kindle holder and a connected remote to turn the pages. I’m going to have fun with this! Currently reading Exodus: The Archimedes Engine by Peter F. Hamilton. 💙📚🚀📚

And it’s a double header with Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew! I feel like I missed out on a bunch of holiday cocktails from being sick before and after Christmas. Here we have a Pomegranate Limoncello Margarita! Sweet and tangy, and I love the lemon-lime zest rim. Recipe below! 🍸🍽️🍴

Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is back! The morning after the last post on 12/31 had me in chills, coughing, and with no energy, and that lasted over a week. Anyway, here is the Honeymoon! An equal parts cocktail, sweeter than expected with the apple brandy - quite yummy! The recipe is below. 🍸

It’s a New Year’s Eve double header for Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew - the Accoutrement. It’s a heady mixture of bonded apple brandy, Créole Shrubb, and subbed the fancy 1605 Yellow Chartreuse for the Strega. Another first - it called for chocolate as the garnish. The recipe is below! 🍸🍴🍽️

And we’re back! Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is a Cranberry Apple Bees Knees! We used honey syrup infused with cranberry apple tea leaves. Pretty in pink, slightly tart, and easy to drink. The recipe we based it on is below! 🍸🍽️🍴🐈🧶

Back to bespoke syrups! I was sick the 10 days before Christmas, so no cocktails were had then. Here we have Rosemary Ginger simple syrup on the left and Cranberry Apple Tea honey syrup on the right. Stay tuned to see what we make with them! 🍸🍽️🍴

Just returned from a quick trip to Vancouver Island to spend Christmas with my family. I meant to take pictures, but somehow didn’t take many. Enjoy this shot from Oak Bay looking over at Mt. Baker with a very photogenic seagull instead.

And because I hate letting things go to waste, I made simple syrup with all the leftover bits of lemon, lime, and apple. It is so citrus bright and sweet - if the Apple Pucker I made tastes anything like this at the end, I will be very happy. 🍸🍽️🍴

Can anyone guess what I am making here? There haven’t been any cocktail updates all week because I have been sick, but I am finally feeling better today. 🍽️🍴🍸

I don’t have a problem…

I’m going to start a new blog series - meals my kid won’t eat. Orzo with pesto Alfredo sauce and turkey meatballs, topped with cherry tomatoes along with steamed asparagus and mini garlic bread. 🍽️

The bespoke simple syrup journey continues! This is an unusual one - persimmon simple syrup. The preparation method was different, too - rather than cooking the syrup, you let equal weights of chopped up fruit and sugar masticate overnight. Let’s see what fun we can have with this one! 🍸🍴🍽️

It’s a Not Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew night - because we have separate cocktails. Andrew has a Death In The Afternoon, a cocktail invented by Hemingway - a mix of Absinthe and champagne. Mine is Between the Sheets, with Cognac, Créole Shrubb, Rum, lemon juice, and some simple syrup. 🍽️🍴🍸

This was dinner tonight - a baked Italian Sausage Gnocchi dish! Very yummy! It made a huge amount, so lunch is set for the next few days. The recipe is posted below, and my only mod was to add tomato paste. 🍽️🍴

Tonight’s Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is one we completely made up! I’m calling it the Sweet and Spicy Whiskey Toddy! It’s 1c decaffeinated cinnamon spice tea, 2oz Celtic Honey whiskey, and 1oz Domaine de Canton Ginger liqueur, and 2 lemon slices. Fragrant and warming - so very nice! 🍸🍴🍽️

Tonight’s *not* Adventures in Cocktails with Andrew is the Apple Sidecar! We used my homemade apple spice syrup. A perfectly pleasant drink, but I was hoping it would be more spice forward… and then Andrew reminded me there was only a 1/2oz of syrup in this drink. The recipe we used is below! 🍽️🍴🍸🧶

Best meal for a cold day - Beef Stew baked in Dutch oven. My mods: used leeks instead of onions, deglazed my pan with some cranberry juice and dark soy sauce, and put a dollop of balsamic glaze in before putting in the oven. So tasty and the meat was just falling apart. Recipe used is below. 🍽️🍴