drinks – Page 2 – Exploren with Lauren

Aquavit Hot Toddy

November 6, 2019November 6, 2019Posted in Cocktails, RecipesTagged apple cider, aquavit, autumn, cocktail, Cocktails, delicious, drink, drinks, fall, fall cocktails, hot toddy, recipe, spiced cocktails, yumLeave a comment

We’re already getting lots of snow in Wisconsin so we were inspired to create this drink to help us stay warm and cozy!

To make two toddies you’ll need:

1/2 tsp cardamom pods
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
3 anise stars (one for the syrup and one to garnish each drink)
2 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp honey
2 cups apple cider
4 oz aquavit (we used the Celebration Aquavit from 45th Parallel Distillery!)

Instructions:

Begin by heating the apple cider on the stove. While it is warming up, we’ll make a spiced honey simple syrup.
Heat cardamom, peppercorns, and star anise in a dry sauce pan over medium heat, stirring and crushing them against the pan until fragrant.
After about 2 minutes, add water and sugar, and bring to a simmer, stirring frequently to dissolve sugar.
Let cool.
Stir in the honey and add to the heated cider.
Once the mixture is heated thoroughly, remove from heat and stir in aquavit.
Serve immediately in mugs, and garnish with star anise.

Enjoy!

How to Make a Fall Charcuterie Board

October 14, 2019Posted in Food, RecipesTagged apricots, autumn, blueberries, charcuterie, charcuterie board, cheese, Cocktails, delicious, drinks, fall, Food, foodie, foreign, fresh, fruit, gouda cheese, lauren, lauren and the foreign, laurenandtheforeign, olives, pears, pickles, raspberries, recipe, salami, salami river, snack, toscano cheese, tutorial1 Comment

One of our favorite snacks and drink pairings is a charcuterie board. There are so many different options for foods to include, and the variety of tastes and textures is sure to please any palate.

There are also many ways to design and create your own board — the possibilities are endless! We put one together for family and friends at Lauren’s sister’s Fall Fun Day event! Below you will find a step-by-step for the charcuterie board we built.

We started with two blocks of Toscano cheese from Trader Joe’s: one soaked in Syrah, and one dusted with cinnamon. Two perfect cheeses for fall! Then we added two small ramekins for pickles and olives and built the “salami river.” We folded the salami in half twice and then placed each piece facing opposite the last to create this beautiful river flowing across the board.

Next, we added some fall fruits: Bosc pears and dried apricots! We also added a round of Gouda cheese. You can never have enough cheese, right?

To finish it off, we added a couple of cracker varieties and the last of this season’s fresh blueberries and red and yellow raspberries! Here are a few more looks at the finished product:

This charcuterie board was absolutely delicious and was a big hit at the Fall Fun Day event this weekend, as you can see below! 🙂

Like we said before, the possibilities for your charcuterie board are endless. Aside from the meats and cheeses, other things you can include are fruits and veggies, nuts, jams, mustard, or honey. We hope this gives you some inspiration to start making your own!

If you try it out, or you’ve made and enjoyed cheese and charcuterie boards before, let us know your favorite thing to include on one in the comments below!

Dirty Shirleys (Adult Shirley Temples)

September 30, 2019October 6, 2019Posted in Cocktails, RecipesTagged cherry, cocktail, Cocktails, dirty shirley, drink, drinks, grenadine, lauren, lauren and the foreign, laurenandtheforeign, lollypop, monday, shirley temple, vodkaLeave a comment

We just received our monthly Lolly Box from Lollies By Leah and we got some Shirley Temple lollipops that put us in the mood for some Dirty Shirleys.

For this recipe, we reached for our Azeo Distillery Vodka distilled from apples, Pratt Standard True Grenadine Syrup (which is made with natural, real ingredients, and way less sickly sweet than the typical stuff you might be familiar with!), and some Lime Waterloo Sparkling Water (less sweet and more crisp and refreshing than a 7UP or ginger ale). For garnish, we obviously had to go with the Shirley Temple lollies, but of course maraschino cherries are the classic way to go.

Here’s our recipe so you can kick back and end your Monday with a tasty Dirty Shirley too.

Ingredients:

2 oz Azeo Vodka
1 oz Pratt Standard True Grenadine Syrup
4 oz Lime Waterloo Sparkling Water
Shirley Temple lollipops or maraschino cherries for garnish

Instructions:

Fill a glass with ice.
Pour vodka over ice and top with sparkling water.
Drizzle grenadine over the top, or slowly pour it into the drink along the side of the glass so that it sinks to the bottom.
Garnish with a Shirley Temple lollipop or 1-2 maraschino cherries.
Enjoy!

Guide to Delicious & Beautiful Smoothie Bowls

September 5, 2019October 6, 2019Posted in Recipes, SmoothiesTagged berries, Cocktails, delicious, drinks, foreign, fresh, friends, lauren, lauren and the foreign, laurenandtheforeign, smoothie bowls, summer, yumLeave a comment

This week we are talking smoothie bowls! This has been a big trend for a while now, so we decided we wanted to share some of our favorite recipes and combinations too!

A good smoothie bowl starts with a good smoothie! Here’s what you’ll need:

A base ingredient to help the smoothie be thick and creamy such as bananas or Greek yogurt.
A splash of liquid to help get the blender going. You can use a variety of juices but lately we’ve been using non-dairy milks such as almond milk, soy milk, or oat milk.
Fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds — pretty much anything else you want to add for taste, color, and nutritional value!

Once you’ve got your smoothie, the next step is toppings! These give your smoothie bowl a variety of tastes and textures, and help it look pretty too!

We usually start with some of the fruits that we included in the actual smoothie. Then we get a little more creative. For example, if we included almond milk in the smoothie, perhaps we would top the smoothie bowl with actual almonds for some added crunch! Use your creativity, the options are ENDLESS!

Below are a few fun recipes to help you get started!

Purple Peaches Eater

Fresh peaches
Frozen blueberries
Frozen blackberries
Frozen raspberries
Frozen strawberries
Oat milk
Honey

Give Almond Love to You

Fresh banana
Frozen strawberries
Greek yogurt (we used Chobani Peach)
Almond milk

Good luck and happy blending! Let us know your favorite combinations in the comments below!

Peaches & Honey Summer Spritz

August 23, 2019October 6, 2019Posted in Cocktails, RecipesTagged citrus, Cocktails, delicious, drinks, foreign, friends, girls, honey, lauren, lauren and the foreign, mint, peach, recipe, summer, tutorialLeave a comment

Peach season in Wisconsin usually ends sometime in September so we’re soaking up every ounce of it while we can. With that in mind, this week we are sharing a delicious peaches & honey cocktail!

This recipe is a variation of one developed by Spring44 Distilling and features their fantastic honey vodka. Here’s what you’ll need!

Ingredients:

1 oz Spring44 Distilling Honey Vodka
1 oz peach liqueur
lemon or grapefruit sparkling water (we used Klarbrunn’s Citrus Blend!)
sliced peaches
mint leaves

Directions:

Muddle the honey vodka and peach liqueur with peaches and mint leaves.
Shake with ice and strain into highball glass.
Top with sparkling water.
Garnish with sliced peaches and a sprig of mint.
Enjoy!

Let us know your thoughts in the comments if you try it out! What is your favorite peach recipe for the summer?

Fresh Summer Cucumber Melon Cocktail & Tomato Basil Bruschetta

August 13, 2019October 6, 2019Posted in Cocktails, Food, RecipesTagged basil, bruschetta, Cocktails, cucumber, drinks, easy, Food, foodie, friends, gin, girls, melon, mint, mozzarella, recipe, summer, tomato, watermelon, yumLeave a comment

We’re putting a fresh, new twist on the classic cucumber melon combo. And with it, we think we’ve found the perfect summer drink to cool off with.

Ingredients (for 4 servings):

4-5 oz your favorite gin (we used Calamity Gin!)
8.4 oz Belvoir Cucumber & Mint Lemonade
12 oz sparkling water (we recommend lime, lemon, watermelon, or original flavors and Waterloo Sparkling Water has all of these options!)
15 frozen watermelon “ice cubes”
1 cucumber, sliced
mint sprig for garnish

Directions:

Place frozen watermelon cubes and cucumber slices into pitcher.
Add gin and lemonade and stir.
Top with sparkling water.
Serve with mint sprig.

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We can’t think of a better summer snack to pair with this cocktail than this easy bruschetta with tomato, basil, and fresh mozzarella.

Ingredients:

Loaf of french bread
Olive oil
Fresh garlic or garlic powder
1 tomato (per 4 large slices of bread)
Fresh mozzarella balls
Fresh basil
Balsamic vinegar or vinaigrette

Directions:

Slice bread and rub with clove of garlic if using fresh garlic.
Drizzle with olive oil. If using garlic powder, sprinkle on after olive oil has been poured.
Broil for about 5 minutes or until bread is golden brown.
While the bread is in the oven, dice the tomato(es) and slice the mozzarella and basil.
Remove bread from oven and top with tomato, mozzarella, and basil.
Put back in the oven and broil for about 5 more minutes or until cheese has melted to the level desired.
Drizzle with balsamic vinegar or balsamic vinaigrette and enjoy!

If you try out either of these recipes (or both!), let us know in the comments! We’d love to hear what you think!