Limoncello Thyme Fizz

Erm, where has the sun gone?

As I write this it is currently raining. And chilly. We should have known, what with this weekend being a bank holiday and all. Mother Nature has once again rained on our long weekend plans.

I don’t really know why I am complaining, because as I have said many times before I am a winter person – so many times in fact you are probably like ‘for goodness sake, shut up about it already’ – but seeing the sun and feeling it on your skin sometimes can be, well, lovely.

And – this is the main thing – it stops everyone else complaining. For a bit, anyway. Yep. I know we are British and therefore obsessed with the weather like no other nation on this planet we call home, but when the sun shines people smile. And are less grumpy. Until it shines for too long. And then they start whinging again.

The poor weather, it can never win, whatever it does is wrong. No wonder it dumps on us so often.

Anyway, in absence of real sunshine, let’s have some liquid sunshine. And let’s sit inside with all the lights on and sunglasses and our feet paddling in the bath and pretend we are on the Amalfi coast instead whilst we sip this. Because that will work, right?

I have to confess to not being the biggest limoncello fan. I tried it once, neat, and well, I think I may have likened it to drinking pungent alcoholic washing up liquid. Not a great comparison. Needless to say the bottle has been languishing in a corner by the freezer in the garage, cultivating its impressive cobweb collection.

However, in this little concoction it serves to help enhance the lemoniness (so not a word) and you don’t really know it is there. Which is probably a bad thing, because, you know, you drink it a bit too quickly and then . . . opps, I feel a little bit giddy. But I am sure all of you will be fine, I am just a super-duper light weight. Sometimes it only takes half a glass of wine and I am anybody’s. But that’s another story.

The flavour of the thyme is subtle. It is not like you are drinking a herb plant. But it just adds a little bit of interest. And a sprig of it looks pretty in the glass. Although if any of your guests are like my Dad, they will ask “why have you put a twig in it?”. It’s not a twig, Dad.

If you can’t get hold of any Sanpellegrino Limonata then you could use lemon squash mixed with carbonated water. You just want something fizzy, lemony and slightly sweet (lemon juice mixed with a simple sugar syrup and carbonated water will also work, depending on how much effort you want to go to).

Now, go and dust off that bottle of limoncello that’s hiding at the back of the cupboard.