I have many fond memories of Rita and Audrey in Corrie drinking gin and tonics

She passed away at the age of 95 with a gin and tonic beside her bed. A G and T is technically a cocktail as it contains two ingredients. It was created by officers of the Presidency Armies, the military force of the East India Company which operated on the Indian subcontinent, an area where malaria was a persistent problem. A Scottish doctor called George Cleghorn found that quinine could be used to treat the disease. Quinine on its own is incredibly bitter and the resourceful officers added sugar, lime and gin to the mix and the gin and tonic was born.

The iconic drink has come a long way since then. I have fond memories of Rita and Audrey in Coronation Street drinking gin and tonic, without ice, in Paris goblets in the Rovers Return. The thought of it now without the addition of ice is unthinkable. Gin itself has enjoyed a resurgence in the past few years with many now being produced in Northern Ireland. Last year I got into the gin making business myself in collaboration with Basalt Distillery in Bushmills. Experimenting with the botanicals was a great experience. Gin is a spirit and has to have juniper to flavour it. The other addition is coriander which gives it an added spicy citrus element. I wanted my gin to have local flavours in it and in particular, gorse or the whin bush. At certain times of the year the vibrant canary yellow flowers of this plant have a distinct coconut smell. I was instructed to pick 200g of the said flowers to experiment with. Thirty minutes later, with a lot of scrapes from the vicious thorns, I thought I must have picked enough. I duly weighed them and found my labour had resulted in 30g. It took a lot of time to pick enough for a batch but was worth it. The gin also has elderflower, lemon verbena and meadowsweet added – plants that I use in my cooking.

While a gin and tonic is a refreshing drink they also make for good ingredients in cooking. Gin and food pairing is now a trend in the same way we match food and wine. Gin goes particularly well with charcuterie. In the first recipe I’ve added a recipe for pumpkin seed crackers, apple and gin mayonnaise and apples marinated in gin for a great snack to have with a gin and tonic. There’s a bit of work in the crackers but they are so worth it.

For something sweet I’ve added a recipe for a gin and tonic cake – much like a lemon drizzle but with the added oomph of the iconic cocktail. Its basically a lemon sponge that’s soaked in a gin and tonic and lemon syrup while warm. When it’s a cool and gin and tonic icing is spooned over the top. Something I’m sure Mary Edith would have approved of.

Cheers!