Two of your five a day!

I've been in the midst of decorating, trying to sell the house, failing to buy a house, buying a different one, moving out and having to wait until the new house ( not our house yet, don't want to tempt fate) is ready! So with all that stress and spending on the credit card what can a girl do. In short, have a Gin and tonic.

I love a good G&T, it seems to make the world right, and with a hint of lime, cucumber and a little elderflower liqueur ( maybe a little overkill for G&T purists, but I can't get enough of the stuff) it makes you feel summery, even if in mid July you have to wade across a river to the car in the mornings. Just to clarify, if my manager is reading this, I don't have Gin and Tonic before work!

This probably isn't your kosher way of making a G&T but it was bloody good and frankly I don't care.

Gin - 1 bottle :-) I recently had 6 o'clock gin, which was very nice. Try to get a really interesting gin as it's flavour will shine through.
Tonic - again try and get one that's got a bit about it, apparently Fever Tree is good stuff.
Elderflower liqueur - optional
1 lime
A few slices of cucumber
Lots of ice

Put a load of ice into a shaker, you don't generally use a shaker but it makes you look cooler!
Cut a few slices of cucumber and chuck into the shaker, halve a lime, squeeze it in and throw it in too. Pour in a measure and a half of gin and just under a measure of elderflower liqueur. Shake, look cool!
Strain into a glass with lots of ice, a fresh slice of cucumber and lime and top with tonic water. If it's a bit strong, you've got it just right! In case of emergency add more Gin.

Humble Harvest

I went out into the fields this weekend with the intention of gathering armfuls of sloes from the hedgerows but the above picture is the sum total of our sloe harvest after two days foraging. Last year the bushes were heaving with them and I managed to turn over a kilo of sloes into two and a half litres of sloe gin, but this year the bushes were barren and the only ones we could see were either waist deep in nettles or just too high to reach. I am now regretting demolishing last years gin over a period of a couple of months as I have no sweet liqueur to see me through the winter. 



I did however spot lots of rose hips so I am going to attempt to make some rose hip syrup to drizzle on pancakes or stir into thick greek yoghurt. It means I have to go out into the hedgerows again at the weekend but if the weather is as nice as it was last weekend it won't be much of a hardship.