For this one, we must nod to Charles Dickens. In A Christmas Carol, Scrooge’s clerk Bob Cratchit makes a warm, festive drink:
“Turning up his cuffs – as if, poor fellow, they were capable of being made any more shabby – [he] compounded some hot mixture in a jug with gin and lemons and stirred it round and round and put it on the hob to simmer.”
The Recipe
Serving: 1
Ingredients
- 500ml Fifty Pounds Gin
- 500ml Cream sherry
- Dark brown sugar to taste
- Peel and juice of 1 lemon (or more if you prefer)
- Peel and juice of 1 orange
- 1 pineapple, peeled, cored, and sliced
- 3 cloves
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- Pinch of ground nutmeg
How to make or shake it
Place the Fifty Pounds and all other ingredients in a medium-sized pan. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 30 minutes. Taste, and add more brown sugar and/or lemon juice to suit your preference.
Pour the mixture into a punch bowl, if you have one, or a jug or if you fancy a teapot. Serve warm.
