Eat Cambridge: rhubarb sour

The recent Eat Cambridge festival has left me rich in new food and drink ideas. I'm looking forward to next year's events already although I might have to go a bit easier next year (the three courses of beef at the Pint Shop may have been a step too far).

The main event in The Corn Exchange was great fun. So many fabulous local producers and suppliers. I managed to get my first Pint Shop scotch egg, it was definitely worth waiting for.

I was delighted to have been asked to give a talk on cocktails and I took the chance to sit in on all the talks in the afternoon session I was speaking in. Tim Hayward gave a passionate speech on food trends and I really enjoyed Bev Sedley's talk on sustainable food which gave me a lot to think about. The audience at the Chocolat, Chocolat talk almost revolted when no samples were forthcoming so I was quite relieved I had brought cocktail samples with me.

In fact I had been up early making a big batch of my rhubarb sour cocktail. The things I do for you, Cambridge. I only juice lemons before breakfast for very special people. I wanted to use the talk to describe my fail safe cocktail formula which often gets me out of a tight spot and allows me feel creative and inspired when I'm actually knackered and zombie-like. If you missed my talk (you better have a good excuse) then I suppose I can let you in on the secret:

4 parts alcohol: 2 parts sour: 1 part sweet

That's it. A good example of a classic cocktail that follows this formula is a whiskey sour. There is also a variation:

  2 parts sweet alcohol: 1 part sour

A great classic cocktail which follows this formula is the amaretto sour.

What I love about the formula is that it enables me to use my homemade spirits and simple syrups without having to think too much about creating a brand new cocktail each time. With minimum tasting and tweaking I can produce an extremely tasty cocktail. Some of my most popular combinations are sloe gin, rosehip syrup and lemon juice; blackberry vodka, lemon verbena syrup and lemon juice; blackcurrant vodka, star anise syrup and lemon juice. And then of course, my darling rhubarb: rhubarb vodka (or gin), lemon verbena (or lemon balm) syrup and lemon juice. This is the cocktail that the lucky folk of Eat Cambridge got to taste and they seemed to enjoy it.

I've given away my secret but I hope it inspires you to make a cocktail. It's really not difficult, don't let anyone tell you it is.

rhubarb sour (serves one)

rhubarb vodka or gin 60mL

freshly squeezed lemon juice 30mL

lemon verbena (or lemon balm) infused simple syrup 15mL

3-4 drops rhubarb bitters

Combine all of the ingredients in a large glass or cocktail shaker. Add plenty of ice. Stir until chilled. Strain into a prepared cocktail glass.

Eat Cambridge 2014

There are so many delights to look forward to at this year's Eat Cambridge festival. Personally, I'm thrilled I've managed to score a spot at Ozzy's Food Photography workshop at Alimentum on Sunday 11th May. I also couldn't resist the Steak and Honour plus Jack's Gelato feast at Fitzbillies on Friday 9th May so that's been booked for a few weeks now. Combined with the Street Food Market on Saturday 10th May, next weekend is looking pretty piggy. The best kind of weekend really.

Of course I have my cocktail talk at the main event to get ready for. I've spent this weekend filtering and bottling some delicious infusions that have been maturing in my cellar (or dining room cupboard if you want to get technical). I'm part of a wonderful line up so it's definitely worth stopping by. What can you expect if you take the plunge and come to hear me speak? Well there will be samples. I can hardly talk about cocktails and not give you a taste. I'm going to describe my scientific (think foolproof formula) for making wonderful cocktails, how I try to get the best out of our local ingredients (drinking Cambridge as I like to call it), coping with cocktail emergencies and the best places to get a cocktail in Cambridge (other than at my house). And if that's not enough, did I mention the samples?

See you on the 17th May at the Guildhall.

Spring, Rhubarb, Cocktails and Cambridge

Spring is finally here and this youngish woman's thoughts inevitably turn to rhubarb. Rhubarb vodka is where my vodka infusion adventures began and it's still one of my favourites.

It really couldn't be easier. Chop your rhubarb into small pieces, place in a Kilner jar, add enough sugar to coat the rhubarb and leave to sit overnight.

When you come down the next morning you should have the most beautiful pink liquid coming off the rhubarb.

Simply top up with vodka, gin or rum and leave to infuse for a week or two. Strain out the rhubarb and bottle.

If you listen in to Flavour on Cambridge 105 this weekend you'll hear me talking about my beloved rhubarb vodka and I also have a recipe for a simple cocktail using it. You can also find lots of ideas for cocktails to use your rhubarb vodka in the rhubarb section of my old blog here. I'm going to be giving a talk at this year's Eat Cambridge festival on the 17th May in the Corn Exchange - there are sure to be some rhubarb vodka samples there.