Everything tastes better pink

In my heaven there is rose champagne.  And nobody judges when a pregnant woman takes a sip.  Since I am much more gluttonous when it comes to food than my party partner in crime, Lauren (she took only one small dainty bite of fried mac and cheese one night at dinner whilst I devoured the rest of the plate) it makes sense that I tell you about the food and drink for our New Year’s photoshoot/ par-tay.  While we realize that your New Year’s Eve entertaining is over for this year, this theme could easily be changed in to another type of celebration (hullo – it’s going to be Valentine’s Day before we know it).  

 Along with rose champagne, the rest of our beverage options contained tiny bubbles.  Lauren mentioned Almond Champagne and I thought it would be an awesome compliment to the desserts we served.  And it was.  For those non-drinkers, we had some sparkling lemonade and Segura Viudas Spanish sparkling wine for those who wanted their bubbles straight up.

Lucid Cherry Sparkler:
1 1/2 oz. Lucid
3/4 oz. Almond Syrup
1/2 oz. Fresh Lime Juice
3-4 pitted sour cherries


In a mixing cup, muddle cherries in lime juice and almond syrup.  Add the Lucid and ice and shake well.  Strain in to a chilled flute and top with champagne.  Garnish with fresh grated nutmeg and cherries.

My heaven smells like the muddled cherries, lime juice and almond syrup.  YUM!  But Lucid has a very licoricey flavor to it.  It’s quite strong in taste and alcohol – so be warned.  The champagne adds a little bit of lightness to the drink but overall the Lucid takes over.  If I were to make this again, I would use less Lucid and double the cherries, lime juice and almond syrup, or even add a little cherry juice (which you see pictured above) to give it a bit more cherry flavor.  The finished drink is sort of a milky pink and is very pretty.  And I love how we served it in mismatched glass bottles with Lauren’s hand written labels.  I know it is kind of hard to see in the photo above, but I am in LOVE with her writing.  Not quite calligraphy, but fun and fancy.  We used Freixinet Cordon Negro Brut as a mixer in this cocktail but it is also remarkably easy drinking on its own…(tipsy alert).
      

And now can we talk about the brilliance that is Meringue Bake Shop?  Once again, she nailed the desserts.  We discussed theme and look and what she put together was truly remarkable.  Lauren and I added a few treats to the mix to really take it over the top but the stars of this table were Kristin’s treats.  I was bummed she couldn’t be with us at the shoot but she had tons of orders to make because that is what happens when you do awesome work.  Meringue Bake Shop is known mostly for the cupcakes.  But Kristin is really way more versatile than that as you will see.  Check out the homemade vanilla marshmallows (2nd tier from the top in photo above) and the pink sugar cookies (bottom tier).  Delish!

How awesome are these chocolate suckers!  I think this might be one of my new favorite things.  So simple but the visual impact is amazing.  And don’t think that popcorn was just for show.  It was cherry flavored and scrumptious.  Like, seriously addicting.  I’ve ordered this for my son’s birthday next weekend.  I can’t quit this stuff!