Editor's June Pick #4: Damson gin photoguide

Editor's note: If you're like me then you need something visual to really sway you, so feast your eyes on the colour of the gin! It looks fantastic and tastes even better. I've been bitten by the homebrewing bug in the past it's so satisfying brewing your own - the world is your lobster. You could add whatever you fancied to the base, from more traditional things like juniper berries to elderflower. rhubarb or cinnamon! The best bit is, even the concoctions that don't taste particularly amazing improve after a couple of glasses - or maybe spritzed?

Not in the back catalogue – the damson gin photos

As I said the thought of creating damson gin really appealed to H so I made sure he had everything to hand – here's the story so far :

Day 1

three ingredients, from the bottom up -

sugar, fruit and gin!

Day 2

a shake and you'll see already the colour

change – not very appealing I grant you but

hold that thought

Day 3

that's more like it – starting to look that

lovely ruby colour – you'll notice there are

two Kilner jars – we've already received an order!

The process was easy and H really enjoyed himself.

Watch this space, I'll keep you posted!

Editor's June Pick #3: Damson Gin

Editor's note: Planning ahead for Christmas? Autumn is the time to harvest your damsons so I give you the complete guide to damson gin. I would say that if you only pick one alcohol inspired adventure to go with then this is the one. Not only is it really interesting to watch it 'percolate' but as ever MiamMiam delivers on flavour in spades. Before the arrival of this and other posts, I couldn't have told you what a damson was but boy was I missing out!

Not in the back catalogue …

… but definitely damsons.

I'm going to mention Christmas – bear with me, there's a valid reason.

I wanted to produce something different from the harvest – it does require a smidge of organisation I'm hoping it's going to be worth it. It certainly got H's attention!

There's a fashion for flavoured spirits these days. Here's my contribution, damson gin – which will be ready for Christmas!

It's not my recipe but, as you'll see, it's easy :

Damson Gin

500g damsons

250g golden caster sugar

1 litre bottle of gin (or vodka if you prefer)

Rinse and pick over the damsons, removing any leaves or stalks, pat dry place in a good quality freezer bag and freeze overnight. The following day bash the bag to break the fruits then tip into a 2 litre Kilner jar or divide between two smaller jars.

Pour in the sugar and the gin and secure with the lid. Shake well. For the following week shake each day until the sugar has dissolved then put it in a cool dark place and leave for 2/3 months.

Line a plastic sleeve with a square of muslin and strain the gin through it. Decant into clean, dry bottles, seal and label. It's ready to drink but will get better over time – it will keep for over a year – very funny!

Next – the story so far, a few photos.

Editor's June Pick #1: A Year Round Treat

Editor's note: First up for June, we have A Winter Treat. Fear not, marbles have not been lost! This works all year round and is a cracking way of adding a little something special to a sunny weekend's entertaining, or a bit of something different to go with your BBQ. Homemade fruit liqueurs always go down a treat. Can be drunk after a couple of days but taste better with age. Why not make two batches - one for now, one for later in Summer! Having sampled the damsons I would absolutely recommend going with those when in season, but you can use whatever fruit takes your fancy.

A winter treat

Damson vodka

*600g damson plums

2 tsps cinnamon

250g soft dark brown sugar

Roast the damson plums, then freeze in two portions :

Pre-heat oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6.

Wash the fruit, remove the stones and place halves in a

deep roasting tray – lined with baking parchment if not

using a foil tray

Add the cinnamon to the sugar and sprinkle

over the fruit

Bake for 30 minutes – check after 20 – fruit

should be soft and cooked.

You could pass through a sieve before freezing if

preferred

I should point out that I am just the help in this recipe. I'm providing the damson element!

I have it on good authority from my Editor (who is my Nephew, Lucas) that the following recipe is the one he uses – once again it's only fair to share!

You will need :

**300g fresh fruit of your choice – or you can

use frozen fruit from the supermarket if this is more

convenient, defrosted

450g sugar

1 pint water

1 bottle of vodka 75cl

a potato masher

sieve

bottles for decanting

large saucepan

Sterilise your bottle, use sterilising tablets or powder.

**Place the fruit, sugar and water in a large saucepan and heat gently until the fruit softens and releases its juices. Cool and then strain through a sieve.

If you've roasted and frozen your fruit as above, then defrost it and strain through a sieve.

Add the sieved syrup to the vodka and water and decant into bottles.

You can if you wish pour the liqueur through a coffee filter after a week or so to remove any pips or pulp that escaped!

Leave your liqueur alone for three months if you can – i.e. September ready for Christmas – you'll be glad you gave it a chance to mature a little.

You have three fruit options – roasting the damsons as marked * at the beginning or as marked ** fresh fruit of your choice or frozen and then defrosted.

In the interests of quality control there will be a tasting later on in the year and full and frank feedback given!

A post script … I didn't forget the syrup!

I think you'll find this little gem really useful, here's the recipe - it's easy peasy :

Lemon syrup

200g icing sugar, sifted

8 tblsp lemon juice

To make the syrup place the lemon juice and icing sugar into a small saucepan and heat gently so that the sugar dissolves. Set aside to cool.

This will give you 300ml(approx) of syrup.

Sifting the sugar ensures it dissolves evenly, no lumps required!

The syrup deserved to look fancy schmancy – here's what I found :

This was perfect for my Christmas Box idea, the exact size to nestle into the box – 50ml. I paid £19.99 for 12 x 50ml bottles, complete with cork lids, labels and twine, by Maison & White – you won't be surprised to learn that I bought them from Amazon.co.uk. There are all sorts of different shapes and sizes to choose from.

Ta dah!

Your serving choices :

Soft drink, a drop of syrup in a tall glass, top with chilled soda water and just swizzle.

Still soft – drizzle over ice cream, add a square or six of Rocky Road and fresh fruit for an instant dessert.

Spiked – add a generous drop of Limoncello liqueur.

Sparkling and special – for the festive season add a drop in a Champagne flute or a Martini glass, top with Prosecco, swizzle and enjoy.

Sounds like a great plan – any of the above – something for everyone!

A gin update and the final figures!

As the recipe for the damson gin said, shake every day for a week. Day 4 through to day 7 the colour becomes darker and cloudier as the sugar, fruit and alcohol does their thing!

The stash has now been “put to bed” in the cool, dark garage.

Watch this space - later on in the year it will be filtered and then left to settle in time for the Christmas holidays.

Finally the damson harvest figures … I knew it was going to be a good year but this was beyond anything I'd had in previous years. Indeed for the last couple it had been sparse and hardly worth harvesting at all.

I'm glad that I decided to keep a check on how many kilos of fruit I picked. It made sense to bag it in kilos – it made life easier whichever recipe I chose. Thank goodness I have like minded friends who were delighted to receive a small gift – the total came to 28kgs! That total does not include windfalls - I could not keep pace since the weather took over and storms and strong winds won – it would have been more.

I now have a stash of jam, ready to deliver when I can. A freezer full of roasted damsons to use as the mood takes and a supply of Asian plum sauce for stir fries too.

I love it when a plan comes together!

Not in the back catalogue – the damson gin photos

As I said the thought of creating damson gin really appealed to H so I made sure he had everything to hand – here's the story so far :

Day 1

three ingredients, from the bottom up -

sugar, fruit and gin!

Day 2

a shake and you'll see already the colour

change – not very appealing I grant you but

hold that thought

Day 3

that's more like it – starting to look that

lovely ruby colour – you'll notice there are

two Kilner jars – we've already received an order!

The process was easy and H really enjoyed himself.

Watch this space, I'll keep you posted!

Not in the back catalogue …

… but definitely damsons.

I'm going to mention Christmas – bear with me, there's a valid reason.

I wanted to produce something different from the harvest – it does require a smidge of organisation I'm hoping it's going to be worth it. It certainly got H's attention!

There's a fashion for flavoured spirits these days. Here's my contribution, damson gin – which will be ready for Christmas!

It's not my recipe but, as you'll see, it's easy :

Damson Gin

500g damsons

250g golden caster sugar

1 litre bottle of gin (or vodka if you prefer)

Rinse and pick over the damsons, removing any leaves or stalks, pat dry place in a good quality freezer bag and freeze overnight. The following day bash the bag to break the fruits then tip into a 2 litre Kilner jar or divide between two smaller jars.

Pour in the sugar and the gin and secure with the lid. Shake well. For the following week shake each day until the sugar has dissolved then put it in a cool dark place and leave for 2/3 months.

Line a plastic sleeve with a square of muslin and strain the gin through it. Decant into clean, dry bottles, seal and label. It's ready to drink but will get better over time – it will keep for over a year – very funny!

Next – the story so far, a few photos.