Bank Holiday Lockdown Gin & Tonic Recipes #StayHome May 6, 2020

You’ve baked banana bread, you know every answer to ALL the Zoom pub quizzes ever held and the annual Spring clean has happened 4 times over. Running out of ideas to entertain yourselves, anyone?

Lockdown life comes with definite highs and lows, it’s been a rollercoaster of emotions for everyone. But if there’s one thing to be celebrating it’s VE Day 75 and the chance for another Friday bank holiday. Like us, you may have over-ordered the gin on your Click & Collect shop so, why not toast 75 years of peace in Europe with some of these ways to pimp your G&T and make things a little more interesting!

 

Pink Raspberry & Lime

Handful of raspberries (frozen ones from your freezer work too!)

50ml Pink gin (Manchester raspberry is ace!)

125ml tonic (Fevertree or locally available brands)

Fresh lime or Pink grapefruit

Loads of Ice

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Muddle the raspberries. Add ice to your glass or cocktail shaker along with the raspberries, gin and tonic. Squeeze in some lime juice and stir or shake for 30 seconds until the drink is mixed and nice and chilled. If you’re feeling really fancy (let’s face it, it’s the little things right now), garnish your drink with fresh raspberries and a slice of pink grapefruit. If you don’t have any pink gin, just use your usual tipple.

 

Rosemary & Lemon

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

50ml gin

125ml tonic

Fresh lemon zest and juice

Ice

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Press the rosemary a little in the glass. Add ice along with the gin, tonic, a long lemon zest and a few squeezes of lemon juice. Stir for 30 secs and leave for a minute until the drink is really chilled and the rosemary has infused.  Run a rosemary spring around the rim of the glass and serve as a garnish skewered through a nice lemon slice.

 

Cucumber, Lime & Basil

Half a lime

Quarter of a cucumber

3 fresh basil leaves

50ml gin

125ml tonic

Ice

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Use a vegetable peeler to make cucumber ribbons and place in a tall glass, adding ice. In another glass or cocktail shaker, add the lime, gin, basil leaves and a few chunks of the cucumber. Muddle these ingredients together and then use a strainer (small tea strainer will do!) to pour into your glass with the cucumber ribbons and ice. Top up with tonic and garnish with a couple of basil leaves.

 

Blueberry & Mint

Handful fresh or frozen blueberries

5 mint leaves

Fresh lime juice

50ml gin

125ml tonic

Ice

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Lightly muddle your blueberries and a few mint leaves in a glass. Add some ice, your chosen gin, tonic, a few squeezes of lime and stir until the flavours have infused and the drink is nice and chilled. Use the mint leaves as your garnish.

 

None of these ingredients to hand? Just pimp up your gin & tonic with any herbs from your garden or whatever you can forage on your daily walk (wild garlic…?) or add a different citrus, grapefruit is delicious! Use frozen fruits as ice cubes, grapes are a good one, or put sliced fruit into ice cube trays and fill with a little water to freeze. If you really want to have some fun, make some boozy ice lollies – just don’t overdo the booze and it will freeze! Strictly for adults only.

And we were joking about the wild garlic….although, these days anything goes.

Enjoy and stay safe xx