A menu with gin for the most gourmets

The gin and tonic is a classic drink that, like an elegant suit, never goes out of style. Gin lovers know that this drink is much more than a liquor and, due to the new boom of the gin and tonic, many kinds of gins have appeared, making it a great ingredient for modern cuisine. Today, we want to teach you how to prepare a gin menu that will surprise your guests.

Although surely you know gin as an ingredient to make cocktails, what you don’t know is that it is a highly appreciated ingredient in modern cuisine. This liqueur, due to its preparation based on botanical ingredients, has many natural properties. Juniper berries provide antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, it is diuretic and relieves stomach pain, while helping to improve digestion.

With all these properties and thanks to the new gins on the market, which are made with new and exotic aromas and flavours, it has become a very versatile ingredient. Gin is perfect for preparing all kinds of dishes, whether meat, fish, sauces and even tasty desserts. 

If you are passionate about gin or if someone gave you a bottle of gin and you want to use it differently, below you will find a complete menu with gin recipes that will delight and surprise all your guests.

Noodles with cream, prawns and gin sauce

Ingredients for a portion of two people

– 125 g of tagliatelle.

– 12 raw and peeled prawns.

– 200 ml of cooking cream.

– 2 tablespoons of gin.

– 1 clove of garlic.

– 1 cheese in portions.

– 30 g of onion.

– 1 pinch of chopped parsley.

– 1 pinch of black pepper.

– 3 drops of Tabasco.

– 1 pinch of salt.

This is a perfect recipe to open your gin menu. If you’re wondering what gin to buy for this sauce, the answer is: any, as a good, cheap bottle of gin will suffice. In addition, since the recipe requires a small amount, it will be suitable for everyone, even people who do not drink.

To start, chop the garlic clove, the 30 g of onion and the parsley. While you chop the ingredients, you can put the noodles in a pot with plenty of water and boil them until they are al dente; try not to make them too soft. Once boiled, drain them and let them cool.

We continue putting olive oil in a frying pan and frying the vegetables that we have chopped. After about 30 seconds, when the vegetables begin to colour, add the peeled prawns, cut into two pieces. When the prawns begin to colour, add the gin and continue frying for about 2 or 3 minutes until the alcohol evaporates completely. 

When the sofrito mixture begins to take on a caramel consistency, we must add the cream and stir everything together. Next, we add the salt, the pepper and the cheese in portions. Let cook over high heat for about two or three minutes, until the cheese has completely melted.

To finish, pour the noodles into the sauce, mix well and serve. If you want, you can garnish the plate with a little fresh parsley or you can sprinkle some grated cheese on top.

Fruit soup with gin granita

Although it can be a side dish, the truth is that this soup works best as a dessert. After a consistent plate of tagliatelle with cream, it is best to combine with this fresh dish, in which you will enjoy the contrast between the botanical bitterness of the gin and the natural sweetness of the fruit.

Ingredients

For the fruit soup

– 200 cl of orange juice.

– Rosemary honey.

– Fruits to taste.

This recipe can be made with any fruit, so you must choose a fruit that you like or that your guests like.

Ingredients for the gin granita

– 70 cl of gin.

– 70 cl of tonic.

We started with the fruit soup. To do this, first melt the rosemary honey together with the orange juice. This process is very simple, since you only have to add the honey little by little into the juice and keep stirring. As soon as it is well mixed, we must add the fruit, which will be well peeled, chopped and without bones. 

Let the mixture rest in the fridge for a couple of hours so that the fruit soaks up the juice and honey, and vice versa.

For the granita, we mix the gin and tonic, as if we were preparing a gin and tonic, although without adding ice. We put the mixture in the freezer and wait until it freezes. To make the granita, we will only have to scrape the ice with a grater or a knife. 

Take the fruits out of the fridge and put each portion in a deep plate, water each plate with the juice and honey, so that there is a liquid base, like in a soup. This liquid contains all the juices and aromas of the fruits, as well as the sweetness of rosemary honey and the slight acidity of orange juice. At the end, place the gin snow on top and ready to serve.

gin cake

The sponge cake is a very versatile cake, since it can be made from almost anything: yogurt, fruit, vegetables and, of course, with liqueurs. Due to its components and its slightly bitter taste, gin is also a versatile ingredient, which goes very well in both savory and sweet recipes. 

Ingredients

– 200 grams of flour.

– 8 gr of chemical yeast.

– 180 grams of sugar.

– 25 ml of extra virgin olive oil.

– 50 ml of gin.

– 1 natural yogurt.

– Zest of a lemon.

Ingredients for icing and decoration

– Juice of 1 lemon.

– 120 gr. of icing sugar.

– Fresh raspberries.

– Peppermint leaves.

To start, you must preheat the oven to 180 degrees. While it heats up, let’s go with the cake batter. To do this, with a rod mixer or a manual mixer, mix the sugar with the eggs until it begins to whiten. Yogurt, lemon zest, gin and oil are added, all without stopping beating. Finally, add the flour and yeast, slowly and sifting with a strainer. To integrate it, you can use a spatula or your hands.

Next, grease a mold with butter and flour and pour the mixture. When it is inside, hit it a few times on the counter so that the dough settles inside. Bake for about 40 or 45 minutes, until a fork inserted into the dough comes out clean. When ready, take it out of the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before unmolding. 

While the cake cools, we beat the lemon juice with the icing sugar, when the juice takes on a whitish color and some consistency, we pour it over the cake and decorate with strawberries, raspberries or any other red fruit. Ready to serve.