Blood Orange Bourbon Smash with Spicy Vanilla Sugar

I think I say this every year, but it’s only because I think of it every year. If I had to be in first or second or fifth or whatever grade today, whatever grade still makes totally cool valentine’s day boxes to fit little cards in, I would have a complete meltdown. Back in the day, my decorated box was a small old shoe box, usually covered in white tissue paper and maybe some red felt hearts or stickers with a big rectangle cut out of the middle. This was totally normal and the thing, right? Everyone used a shoe box!

With how much my craftiness is lacking, I don’t even know what I’d do today with pinterest and the crafty competition. Like… tell me what valentine’s boxes look like these days. Are they still shoe boxes? Heck, they are probably Louboutin shoe boxes. Do they have magic powers? They probably accept your valentine and spit some conversation hearts back out at you or something. Are the boxes huge, like a moving box? I still have a zillion of those.

They are probably bubbles that can transport you and your valentine to space and back.

Ahhhh pinterest you stress me out.

• 1/2 cup sugar
• a pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped

• crushed ice
• 1 1/2 ounces simple syrup, or more if you want it sweeter!
• a few drops of bitters
• 2 blood orange slices
• 6 ounces blood orange juice
• 1 1/2 ounces bourbon
• 2 ounces club soda
• extra blood orange slices for garnish
• fresh herbs for garnish