by Daphne Lambert
Strawberry moon
Strawberry moon was the name given by the Native American Algonquin Tribe to the June moon marking the peak of the strawberry season.
serves 2
12 - 15 medium strawberries
50 ml vodka
pinch freshly chopped thyme
handfull crushed ice
sparkling water
Blitz the strawberries, vodka & thyme together.
If the strawberries lack sweetness you may want to add a teaspoon of honey.
Place the crushed ice into 2 glasses and pour over the strawberry mix.
Top up with sparkling water.
Nettle gimlet
The classic gimlet is 50:50 gin and lime juice and nothing else. Seems like a good idea to use nettles instead as they are so abundant and I like the addition of tonic water.
serves 2
50 ml nettle syrup
50 ml gin
crushed
ice tonic water
Mix nettle syrup and gin together, pour over crushed ice and top up with tonic water.
Solstice spritz
Chamomile, lavender and rose are all linked to the summer solstice. Many of our herbal plant allies reach their peak around the solstice.
Harvest St. John’s Wort , chamomile, lavender, mugwort, meadowsweet, sage, mint, elder and roses to make a tincture or dry them ready to use later in the year.
serves 2 (alcohol free)
150 ml chamomile infusion. (either make an infusion from fresh flowers or pour 150ml boiling water over 2 chamomile teabags.)
50 ml rose syrup50 ml raspberry puree (simply sieve a dozen or so raspberries)
crushed ice
sparkling water
thyme sprigs
raspberries
Mix together the chamomile infusion, rose syrup and raspberry puree.
Divide the crushed ice between 2 glasses and pour over the chamomile mix.
Top up with sparkling water.
Finish with a lavender and raspberry flourish.
Rose syrup
200g old fashioned rose petals
300g sugar
600ml water
juice of one lemon
Put rose petals in a large bowl and pour over the lemon juice, add the sugar, mix well & leave overnight.
Boil the water & pour over the mixture & leave for a further 12 hours.
Strain through a fine sieve or muslin, gently bring to the boil.
Remove from heat & pour into warm sterilised bottles.
Seal and store in fridge.
Nettle syrup
350ml sugar
500ml water
1 well packed litre nettle tops
juice of 1 lemon
Gently heat the sugar and water to make a syrup.
Bring to the boil, tip in the nettles, pushing them under the syrup with a wooden spoon.
Bring back to the boil and immediately remove from the heat. Tip in the lemon juice.
Cool, strain and bottle.
Store in the fridge.