Browned Butter Bourbon | a cocktail

bulleit bourbon

lemon syrup & bitters

step 1: brown the butter (slowly, it browns quickly) 

step 2: pour browned butter into bourbon

step 3: shake well & refrigerate for 1-2 hours 

step 4: remove from fridge & scoop hardened butter out

step 5: filter browned butter infused bourbon 

step 6: be patient 

step 7: add bitters, lemon syrup and/or orange as desired 

step 8: burn wood or shavings & mix cocktail in smoke 

my girlfriend, Lauren, is whiskey obsessed. when we first started dating I spent countless dinners chocking down fiery cocktails and playing it cool but somewhere along the way I fell in love with it too. although cocktails are usually reserved for a weekend treat...it's only spring break for three more days so I indulged. when I was living in Alphabet City I fell in love with The Wayland's whiskey cocktails and in particular The Moxie. if you find yourself in that area it is worth stopping by for some ricotta and sausage flat bread and a cocktail. 

i'm no bartender but it was a lot of fun to play around with flavors like smoke and browned butter. to find out how to make more delicious smoky cocktails check out Man Made! the NY Times Sunday Mag also has a great recipe for browned butter old fashioned.

Spring Break | Project 2: Geometric Wall Stencil

Renter's Remorse No.1: White Walls 

Let's face it plain white walls are just plain depressing. We poured an enormous amount of love into our apartment when we first moved in but one thing we neglected was the large white walls. We initially searched for original art to start our own little collection with our very small budget and found a lot of amazing pieces that were all very out of that very small budget. Unwilling to give in to overpriced reprints and framing we eventually gave up and the walls remained white...until now!

Elle Decor inspiration (thank you Annie Neil) and Vintage Grey Valspar Paint (Lowe's)

Start from the middle and work your way out.  

Project 1 meets Project 2 

More of the same 

Things you need: 

Paint (< quart) 

Hard Foam Paint Roller (firm foam makes for easy and even application) 

Chevron Wall Stencil (A.C. Moore) 

Spray Adhesive (important for making sure the paint doesn't blot or run under the stencil) 

Painter's Tape (because you only want paint where you want paint) 

Pencil 

Paper Towels 

Spring Break | Project 1: Succulent Garden

I'm spending spring break doing all of the crafts and projects that I've been pining over since the start of medical school. At the very top of the list was a succulent garden to freshen up the apartment and bring in the spring! I found Etera garden tiles at Lowe's which made the project simple and inexpensive. 

As an added bonus - I learned a lot more about the Green Roof initiative. Green roof development is the creation of contained green spaces integrated with human-made structures. One of the focal points of the initiative is to improve urban health through benefits such as: enhanced air quality, moderated urban heat, reduced pollution, improved aesthetics, and a whole host of other things. 

One garden tile was more than enough... 

 and now we have succulents everywhere!

The variety is colorful, quick growing, and easy to maintain (or so it says).

  Here's to hoping I can keep them alive! 

For more information on garden tiles you can look here: 

http://www.etera.com/products/sedum-tile/color-max.aspx

Etera® SEDUM TILE®

For more information on the Green Roof initiative go here:
http://www.greenroofs.org/