ORANGES! (A Cocktail And Floral Arrangement)

My inspiration for today's post is oranges!

 
I thought I'd share a delicious brunch cocktail with you! (I would have used it for my Mother's Day Brunch, but my mom and mother-in-law don't drink so I didn't think it would be appropriate. ;) It's one that my bestie shared with me quite a few years ago and it's still one of my favs. It's basically a fun twist on a mimosa. The great thing about it is that it makes a large quantity, but has to say frozen. So once you prepare it, you can literally just take it out of the freezer and use it anytime you'd like.

Orange Cream Mimosa
by Tyler Florence

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups orange juice (he recommends freshly squeezed - I just use store bought)
1 orange, zested
1 cup half-and-half
1 cup superfine sugar
1 bottle sparkling wine or Champagne*

*Non-alcoholic sparkling wine, sparkling cider, or ginger ale can be substituted

Directions

Put orange juice, zest, half-and-half, and sugar into a blender and process until the sugar has dissolved, about 30 seconds. Pour this mixture into a shallow pan and freeze until hard, 4 hours or overnight.

Remove the frozen orange mixture from the freezer and let it sit to soften slightly, about 10 minutes. With a scoop or tablespoon, scrape out a small scoop and put it into a Champagne glass. Slowly add the champagne. Enjoy! (I also jazzed up the glass rim with pink sugar crystals!)

And while I was on an "orange kick", I started brainstorming about a potential floral arrangement. I wanted to somehow incorporate the oranges. I decided to slice them in half and put a skewer through them. (In hindsight I should have bought floral sticks since they are darker green in color and would camouflage better.)

My finished product!

I hope I have inspired you to not only alter your mimosas the next time you fix them, but to also try and incorporate different fruits in your centerpieces. (Lemons would look great too!)