Italian Grapefruit Cocktail (or mocktail)

Following up on my Grapefruit, Beet and Salad recipe, with the additional Rio Star grapefruit we had on hand, I decided to make this Italian Lemonade recipe from Giada de Laurentiis, but with a twist. We enjoyed the first half of the batch with Italian sparkling water at our picnic, and the second batch we enjoyed with Champagne the next day at brunch!

Italian Grapefruit Cocktail

2 cups water
2 cups sugar
1 bunch basil
3 Rio Star grapefruit
1 bottle Italian sparkling water OR 1 bottle Chamapgne


First, make your basil simple syrup. Combine the water and sugar in a medium sauce pan and simmer until sugar evaporates. Stir in basil and simmer 5 minutes. Strain out the basil leaves and place in refrigerator to chill.

Next, juice the grapefruit so you have about 2 cups. If you're smart, you'll juice a few extra for more tomorrow (I did!)

To assemble the drinks, pour 1 part basil simple syrup, 2 parts grapefruit juice and 2 parts Italian sparkling water or champagne in a fun glass and stir to combine. Taste and add additional simple syrup to match your preference, but this ratio was perfect for me. enjoy!

*I wrote this post on my own free time and not for work. Full disclosure, TexaSweet Citrus is a client of mine, but I love Rio Star Grapefruit and wanted to post this anyway. Enjoy!

Feasting at Fino

Local Austin foodies were invited to visit Fino for our second Blogger Happy Hour (first was at Uchi). Although the event was a little early for my taste (5 p.m. is hard to do on a work day) it had a great turn out. I was immediately greated with a cocktail, which perked me right up.

Had a great conversation with Beth of Texas Locavore and Lissa of This is Life in Austin with the head chef, Emmett Fox. He was really friendly and also knowledgeable about the source of all his ingredients, which is always refreshing.

Speaking of refreshing, I wanted to share a fantastic cocktail we enjoyed. My favorite by far was the Bee Sting which included 42 Below Honey Vodka, Black Pepper Syrup, Lemon-Orange Juice, and a Sauza Blanco Tequila Rinsed Glass. I loved the black pepper in the drink, which was a new experience for me and overall just really surprising.

Out of the food we tried, my favorite hands-down was the Fried Goat Cheese with Onion Jam & Honey. Unfortunately I scarfed it down before taking a picture, but I'm sure you can imagine the deliciousness for yourself :)