A Naturally Sweet Sundae

The phrase "it's 5 o'clock somewhere" officially has no meaning to me anymore.

Last night I sat down to a long table in a beautiful Mexican courtyard. Strings of white lights overhead, chili peppers hanging on a trellis, bright orange, yellow and blue flags overhead... It looked like a scene straight out of Desperado.

My sister and I giggled excitedly as we looked over the margarita menu. Peach, strawberry, and lime oh my!

And then it hit me.

I can't order a margarita. Did you hear that? I CAN'T order a margarita!

So here it is. Surprise #1 of living without the ingredient that shall not be mentioned: I CAN'T ORDER A MARGARITA.

Nor can I enjoy any of it's equally sweet and satisfying counterparts. My personal drink of choice, gin & tonic, has officially made its way to the black list along with Bailey's Irish Cream and many other lovely liquid concoctions that make me smile and say "yum!"

But here's the thing: this is, in the wise words of Martha, a good thing.

These oh-so-yummy drinks are normally filled with highly processed forms of the ingredient that shall not be mentioned. They also include a long list of other unpronounceable contents that are far more familiar to a chemist than a cook. Thus, I took the high road and ordered a beer.

It tasted like Motel 6 water. Yuck.