If there’s one taste that epitomises the British summertime then it must be that of a perfectly ripe strawberry, bursting with sun-sweetened juice.

Some of my earliest memories are of going strawberry picking at our local farm and of the sheer delight of finding the fruit, red and gleaming beneath trefoil leaves. We would fill our bellies as much as our baskets and return to the farm, red lipped and happy, paying our dues at the honesty box.

Now that I have my own garden I grow strawberries at home, but still make an annual trip to a Pick Your Own. Reconnecting with these childhood memories is so important – and of course I would like my little one to make memories of her own.

In my mind the best way to eat strawberries is the simplest – if not fresh and sun-warmed from the plant then with just a drizzle of cream – but for those of you who also grow your own strawberries (or for those who’ve simply forgotten a punnet at the back of the fridge) this is the perfect way to use up fruits that are a little past their peak – still beautifully fragrant and sweet but perhaps a little too soft to enjoy as fresh fruit.

In this recipe I’ve combined strawberries with rhubarb, one of my all-time favourite ingredients. It’s a pairing that works beautifully with gin to create a summery drink that will see you through the season.

Ingredients

30ml gin

10ml Aperol

25ml rhubarb syrup*

25ml strawberry puree**

10ml lemon juice

Soda water

 *For the rhubarb syrup (enough for several drinks)

250ml water

2 stalks of rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1cm slices.

4 tbsp caster sugar

A sprig of sweet cicely***

**For the strawberry purée (enough for several drinks)

Six over-ripe strawberries

***Rather than just using sugar I partially sweetened the rhubarb syrup with sweet cicely, a herb that adds natural sweetness and a slight aniseed note. If you can’t obtain this or prefer not to use it simply add an extra two teaspoons of sugar.

Method

1. To make the rhubarb syrup wash the rhubarb and cut into 1cm lengths. Add to a small saucepan with the sugar, water and sweet cicely and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the liquid has reduced to about two thirds of the original quantity. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. When cooled pass the syrup through a fine sieve or cheesecloth and store in the fridge until you are ready to use it (it will keep for a couple of days).
2. To make the strawberry puree use a stick blender or a liquidiser to blend the strawberries to a mush. Pass through a fine sieve, using the back of a ladle to push the mixture through and set aside until you are ready to use it – ideally within a  few hours.
3. When you are ready to make your cocktail gather your ingredients together. Add all of the ingredients to a jug and stir to combine. Divide the mixture between two glasses filled with ice, top with soda water and serve.