Cranberry Infused Gin with grapefruit and star anise
This recipe was originally posted in 2013. Two years on this Cranberry Infused Gin still a firm favourite during the festive period.
Christmas Preparations
Two weeks ago Christmas descended upon Windsor Court. On the Sunday Jon and I took a drive through the countryside to buy our first real Christmas tree as a couple! It has been an annual tradition for my family to buy a real tree and it was one I wanted to share with Jon.
For me, when choosing a tree bigger is better. It needs to be tall, bushy and most of all majestic. Our tree is just that! We’d talked about getting a 6ft tree as our lounge is quite large but Jon had worried it was a bit much – those who know me won’t be surprised we came home with a seven footer…
As well as getting a real tree I made it my mission to make as many handmade decorations as I could. I made robins, reindeer, wreaths, Christmas pudding and gingerbread men with our names embroidered on them especially for our tree.
Our Christmas tree now has so much personality and really represents us as a couple! Homemade Christmas decorations are also a nice present for friends and family: I made personalised gingerbread men for my direct family as well as friends and they’ve been so well received! There are so many other homemade gifts you can make at Christmas, many of them edible!
Homemade Gifts – Cranberry Infused Gin
One of the simplest Christmas gifts however is also one of my favourites – Cranberry Infused Gin! I get my love of gin from my Dad and somehow along the way I managed to convince my best friend just how awesome gin is too and we spend many an evening setting the world to rights with a gin and tonic in hand.
With this in mind I couldn’t think of anything better than a bottle of Christmas Gin flavoured with cranberries, citrus fruit (orange or grapefruit works best) and star anise.
The Recipe
Cranberry Gin with grapefruit and star anise
Give the gift of home infused cranberry gin with grapefruit and star anise this Christmas!
Ingredients
- 500 grams cranberries fresh
- 1 small grapefruit peel only
- 2 star anise
- 750 millilitres gin
Instructions
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Sterilise your bottles by washing them in hot soapy water, rinsing and then placing in an oven on a low heat until completely dry.
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Allow to cool before piercing each individual cranberry and placing in the bottles.
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Add the grapefruit peel and star anise before covering with the gin.
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Seal the bottle and leave to infuse.
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After just a few days you will see the gin go from being perfectly clear to pink and then bright red!
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Serve chilled on ice with high quality tonic water.
Recipe Notes
Please note that whilst the instructions state this takes 24 hours to make, it is best to leave it for at least 48 hours to infuse if you can!
Personally, I think that homemade gifts are the best kind! After all, Christmas is a time for loving and sharing, and what better way to show someone you love them, then by making them something special just for them!
Are you sharing any of your special talents this Christmas in order to put a smile on your friends’ and family’s faces? Are you knitting, sewing or cooking up a storm in your kitchen making homemade gifts? I’d love to hear all about it in the comments! Perhaps your another gin lover and will be making a bottle of Cranberry Infused Gin this Christmas?
Cranberry and cinnamon gin sounds amazing, I actually need to get round to making some cranberry booze this year!
Do it! You won’t regret it 🙂
I love this!!! So gorgeous, so gin-filled! I would be thrilled to give or get this as a gift.
Thanks Kate! I have given it as a gift lots of times and made quite a few people very happy on Christmas morning. This year I have made the bottle all for myself! No sharing!
I don’t ‘get’ gin, at all. But it sounds like you taught your best mate to enjoy it, maybe I need to try harder! 😀
Janie x
Haha the key is that they are all so different Jane. Often people turn their noses up at the spicy, peppery gins and find the much lighter, fresher, citrusy gins more palatable! Tonic water cam be iff putting too. Start off with gin in cocktails and go from there!
Well you know how much I LOVE Gin so this is totally up my street! Festive Mother’s Ruin.
Thanks Claire! It really is tasty too! If only I could have cranberry gin all year round…
This sounds like such a good combination! I often infuse gin so I will need to remember this one!
Do you have any other recommendations? Always looking for ways to jazz up my gin! Keep an eye out over the next few weeks because I have an exciting gin and pine cocktail coming!
This looks so festive! I love cranberries and this is definitely a taste of Christmas.