May is probably my favourite time of year in the UK. After a usually grey early Spring, the sun finally throws out real warmth, and the world responds with an abundance of fresh green growth. Radishes, peas and broad beans spring up in the vegetable patch, the herbaceous borders seem to fill out over night, and every country lane is lined with the froth of cow parsley and red campion. It’s the kind of weather that reminds me of taking long bike rides as a child, and the joy of playing out late in the lengthening days.

It’s also the time of year when I notice my eating habits changing. Gone are the soups and stews of winter, to be replaced by all of the wonderful produce emerging from the garden. Over the last few weeks we’ve enjoyed rhubarb, asparagus, pea shoots, new potatoes and the first broad beans, not to mention wild garlic foraged from the nearby woods. And as the gastronomic joys of Spring fill up our plates, it seems only right that our glasses should also reflect the season. While bourbon and whisky cocktails might be the perfect thing with which to curl up beside an open fire, they don’t really pair well with watching swallows flitting across the sky. For that something infinitely fresher is required.

And so we move to this evening’s cocktail.

Allow me if you will to talk posset for a moment. The mere mention of the word speaks of the culinary history of the British Isles and conjures up images of Medieval taverns and drinking halls. Its origins can be traced all the way back to 14th century cookbooks when it constituted a drink of hot milk curdled with wine or ale, and was considered to be a remedy for the flu (‘Mmm, delicious’, I hear you thinking). Over time it evolved to include spices, fruit juices and eggs, and even crushed biscuits, but died out in popularity after the Victorian period. However in recent years it has made a comeback – not as a drink, but as a pudding, in which double cream is set with citrus juice (usually lemon) to create a light and summery dessert.

With this cocktail I’ve taken inspiration from the flavours of the modern pud, but taken it back to its boozy roots. The result is a creamy, slightly sweet yet citrusy drink, that could easily serve to round off a light meal. The addition of the lemon curd might seem unusual but it’s an accessible ingredient that gives this cocktail a wonderfully silky texture as well as extra depth of flavour. The addition of egg white or aquafabe (chickpea water) should give your cocktail a wonderfully foamy top, but be sure not to use an extra fresh egg (as I did on photo day!) as the proteins in the white will not have developed sufficiently to aerate effectively.

Ingredients

40ml Gin

1 level tsp Lemon Curd

15 ml Elderflower Liqueur

20ml Lemon Juice

15ml Chamomile Syrup (recipe below)

1 egg white or a splash of aquafaba (optional)

For Chamomile Syrup: Make a simple syrup by gently heating half a cup of sugar with half a cup of water, until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and add a heaped teaspoon of dried chamomile flowers. Allow to cool, strain into a clean container and store in the fridge until ready to use.

Method

1. Add all of the ingredients to a shaker, and shake over ice until well chilled. Strain into a coupe and enjoy!