Newsletter – Grow Your Own Garnish
Newsletter – Friday 3rd April
Happy Friday Team!
So here we are! The end of another week. How are we all doing? Surviving with a smile I hope?
And today it’s Chocolate Mousse Day! Hooray! As if we need another excuse for whipping up some deliciously indulgent puds! As always I’ve got a few recipes with a boozy twist to share with you.
Also, I thought all things considered, I should share a few gardening tips with you. For those of us lucky enough to have gardens, we’ve now got a little more time to spend on them. I don’t know about you but I’ve been busy planting up some easy bits, fruit and vegetables and I’m shortly going to put up a lot of herbs. Food is one thing, but I’m also thinking garnish! So stick with me and I’ll give you some top tips for keeping your drinks full of flavour.
So first up! Chocolate Mousse! Chocolate mousse is such an easy thing to put together and it’s also incredibly easy to make some boozy versions. As usual, I’ve been busy scouring the internet for the finest recipes and once again the internet has not disappointed!
First up, a simple but effective recipe care of Food So Good Mall. Why do I like this recipe? Well it’s get something a little extra to offer with coffee, but it’s also quick, with a 4 minute prep time. So, what are you waiting for?
https://foodsogoodmall.com/recipe/201308chocolate-rum-mousse-html/
With the above recipe, what rum you use is going to make a difference to how the mousse comes out and I’d say it’s a great opportunity to experiment with some flavoured rums to give the taste a tone of extra flavour. Here at G&R, we’ve got three that would certainly give your mousse some extra vavavoom…or you could pair these with your chocolate mousse for a real taste sensation:
Rum Java Cacao’Mon: RumJava Caco’Mon is infused with Java’Mon coffee chocolate blend for 30 days, then cacao nibs are added. The spirit is packed with flavours of freshly roasted coffee beans, smooth rum sweetness and rich, bittersweet dark chocolate.
Buy Rum Java here
Blue Monkey Banana Rum: A delightful rum with the undertone of banana distilled from sugar cane sourced from the Caribbean.
Buy Blue Monkey Banana
Unconventional Distillery Time Machine Vanilla and Toffee – Well, how’s that for a title?! Using technology to rapidly age the rum, the newly distilled rum is turned into the equivalent of an 8 year barrel aged rum in 6 days.
Buy Unconventional here
Also, I found something for you gin drinkers out there. I must confess, I’m a big fan of rum with chocolate but there is certainly a place for gin. And, if you fancy something a little more complex and no doubt rewarding, here is a fantastic recipe from I Love Gin that includes marshmallow and a recommends a floral gin.
https://www.ilovegin.com/easy-gin-chocolate-mousse/
And it’s only fair that I recommend some floral gins for you too!
Agnes Arber Premium Gin: The savoury, earthy notes of juniper, coriander and angelica are complemented by the warm and spicy tones of cassia. Sweet acidic flavours of lemon, orange and grapefruit combine with a twist of liquorice.
Buy Agnes Arber here
Empress Gin: An impossibly lush and vivid indigo blue, with a stunning secret to reveal, with the addition of tonc, this beautiful gin is transformed from its breathtaking indigo to a soft pink gin.
Empress Gin
Glendalough Rose Gin: Wild Rose from the Wicklow mountains, large fragrant Heritage Roses and the ancient prized Damask Rose make up this rose gin. All of which come together to make a naturally pink and very floral gin.
Buy Glendalough Gin
Now then, all this time at home has got me firmly fixated on the garden. I’ve been planting up various fruits and veg to bolster the cupboards and it got me thinking about what garnish I could produce for myself to keep my drinks fresh and flavoursome. Now, I wanted to suggest something that could benefit all of you out there, so rather than go straight into gardening, I thought a few windowsill plants for those of you who don’t have outdoor space, so get yourself a few pots together and get growing.
Mint – Mint is a great plant. It’s a crazy grower, smells fantastic and goes in a wide range of gins, especially those of the berry variety.
Sweet Basil – Sweet basil is a great little herb. It goes well with berry flavours and also lends itself to more herbaceous gins as well as cooking.
Rosemary – Now, I’m a fiend for garlic and rosemary roasties on a Sunday. However, rosemary has really come into its own as a garnish, especially with grapefruit.
Strawberries – Strawberries are relatively easy to grow and although they are mostly know for being grown outdoors on farms, they can easily be grown inside. Just keep it in a sunny spot and keep the soil damp.
So off you go! Get growing and with a little bit of patience, you can be sorted for summer. Hope you all have a good week. Stay safe and see you next Friday.
Big love, Bernie and G&R
