Recipes & Food Styling

Red Carpet-Ready Oscar Night Mocktails! 

One of my favorite spots in the world – the Wausau Center Mall – was closed and demolished last year. I was devastated. The mall opened in 1983, when I was 16. For the first time ever, I could shop at Braun’s, Foxmoor, and even The Limited without begging my dad to drive me to Minneapolis! There was a fabulous parade downtown to celebrate the grand opening of the mall. At Christmas time, everyone gave mall gift certificates. I remember everything I bought with the gift certificate that my mom and dad gave me. Wool angora sweaters, pinstripe “baggy” jeans and boat shoes! 

The mall was filled with food stands. There was pizza, Chinese, and that amazing smoothie stand Orange Julius! We were ecstatic experiencing it all.

I always like to make a fun treat for Oscar Night, and on this first Oscar Night since the mall came down, I made these Orange Julius smoothies, with a modern twist: Peaches and fresh spearmint! Here is the easy recipe:    

Peach-Spearmint Orange Julius 

Makes 6 servings

1 small bag frozen sliced peaches

1 bunch fresh spearmint 

2 cups fresh orange juice

3 cups coconut milk

2 tablespoons honey

1 orange, for garnish  

In a blender, combine all ingredients until smooth and well blended. Reserve some spearmint for garnish.