We really enjoyed the cocktail at Jackie’s tea. It was fresh, and ginger-y, and bubbly and the perfect color for a plaid celebration that happened to occur on Valentine’s weekend.
We found the recipe on Driscoll’s website and god only knows how they got theirs so perfectly red…but, our pale version was delicious enough that we hardly noticed. We used a bottle of Blason de Bourgogne Crémant de Rosé ($12 at your friendly Trader Joes) and it was really delicious, but if rosé isn’t your thing, I think the ginger and raspberry are powerful enough that you’ll get the same idea with any sparkling wine.
It’s so much easier to make the liqueur mix in batches, so I’ve adjusted the original recipe to serve 4.
Ginger Raspberry Bellini
(makes 4 cocktails)
4 oz ginger liqueur
2 oz lemon juice (freshly squeezed!)
2 oz simple syrup
16 fresh raspberries
bottle of sparkling rosé or sparkling wine of your choice
4 raspberries and 4 pieces of candied ginger for garnish
Add ginger liqueur, lemon juice, simple syrup, and raspberries to a cocktail shaker. Muddle the raspberries into the liquid. Add ice and shake until fully chilled. Strain mixture into each cocktail glass, about 2 oz per glass. (It’s ok to eyeball.) Top each glass with about 3 oz of sparkling rosé and garnish with a raspberry and candied ginger on a cocktail pick. Toast your friend going on an amazing adventure.
My friend 
We started planning the tea back in November and we went a little crazy with the plaid. Peggy has an amazing collection of plaid tablecloths, napkins, and runners that she brought over, along with loads of dishes, a Scottie dog, a lighthouse light, and many more additions to the table. 
We set the table with Peggy’s dishes and a collection of lighthouse statues from my mom’s house. I also made a little banner from twine and plaid triangles and strung it up with two gold garlands I’ve used for a few parties. (All three fell down during the party–womp, womp.) 
Karen made lighthouse place cards and we added a little Scottie dog shortbread cookie for each setting. 
We tried to be really careful not to make the table look too Christmasy and I think we succeeded thanks to the addition of the blue plates and glasses and the black place mats. 
I mixed up a cocktail that was bubbly and tasty. (I’ll share the recipe later this week!) 
We drank cocktails and ate a cucumber appetizer before we sat down for the tea. 
We enjoyed Waldorf Salad, bacon shortbread cookies, Meyer lemon & almond scones with clementine curd and Meyer lemon curd and Devonshire cream, and two types of tea sandwiches, ham with apricot cream cheese and chicken salad with grapes, thyme, and toasted almonds. (Thanks, Marissa, for the suggestion!) And of course, we drank tea! So much tea that we could have floated away. (We drank 
For dessert, Karen made Scottish cream puffs, which were so delicious and really a perfect way to end our feast. It was so much fun and I love that I got to share the party with friends who appreciate all of the tiny details in the planning.
I only made a few Valentines this year. (I got behind in planning as usual.) I made a few Elvis Presley Valentines and a few MY Presley Valentines. For the Elvis ones, I started with my 
They were fun to make and, even though some will be late, I suppose a little message of love is well received all month long, right?
Naoto and I loved experiencing Japanese coffee culture during our last trip to Japan and now, we can enjoy a bit of it here in Chicago! 
Hiroshi Sawada is an award-winning Japanese barista and latte artist who owns a shop, Steamer Coffee Co, in Tokyo. This is Sawada’s first coffee shop outside of Japan. (You can read a little bit about it 
Naoto ordered the Sawada Style Cold Brew, an iced coffee mixed with Japanese shochu. It came in a pot and was poured into a glass sitting in a box, similar to the way 
I had a Benedictine Chai Steamer, a chai latte with Benedictine liqueur added. Both were amazing. 
We found a seat at the windows, in spite of the place being crazy busy. 
I couldn’t resist trying a matcha latte, too…it was the perfect mix of strong matcha with a tiny bit of sweetness. 
We can’t wait to go back again soon…for the coffee and the postcards. 
I was charmed by the sweet donut shapes and the waxed paper bag envelopes. They end up looking like the treats Naoto brings home from Stan’s Donuts. They are flat cards, so they are perfect for short hellos, thank you notes, thinking of you notes, orrrrrr…Valentines?
Are your pens and piles of stationery all ready for another 
kimberly ah 