Are you a fan of the Great British Bake-Off? Do you find it a struggle to not rush to the oven every evening, mind awash with all the sugary treats you have planned? Then read on for some festive inspiration that combines the best of baking with our favourite beverage. Check out the Think Gin Club’s best Christmas gin baking recipes.

1. Gin and Tea Christmas Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 kg dried mixed fruit
• 75 g (3oz) stoned & chopped dates
• 6 tbsp loose leaf Earl Grey tea
• 100ml gin
• 200g (7oz) softened, unsalted butter
• 200g (7oz) dark brown sugar
• 1 tbsp treacle
• 4 medium eggs, beaten
• 250g plain flour
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 75g walnut pieces

Instructions:

To prepare this pinnacle of British tastes, first pour the dried fruit and dates into a large non-metallic bowl. Then stir 2 tbsp of tea leaves into 200ml of hot water before pouring this over the fruit together with the gin. Stir the mixture, and then cover with clingfilm before leaving to soak overnight at room temperature.

Preheat your oven to 140°C (120°C fan), mark 1. Then grease and line the base and sides of a 20.5cm round deep cake tin with baking parchment, making sure it reaches 2 cm over the edges. At this point, wrap a double layer of baking parchment around the outside of the tin and secure with string.

Beat the butter, sugar and treacle in a large bowl with a whisk until the mixture is light and fluffy. Now gradually beat in the eggs too. If the mixture looks like it could curdle, you can beat in 1 tbsp flour. Afterwards, mix in the flour with a large metal spoon, along with the remaining tea leaves, spices, soaked fruits and walnuts. Scrape the mixture into your prepared tin and level the surface.

Finally, bake the mixture for three and a half hours, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Then cool the mixture in a tin for half an hour before taking it out of the tin while taking care to keep the parchment around the cake. You can then leave your masterpiece to cool on a wire rack, before tucking in and enjoying the fruits of your labour!

2. GINgerbread Man

Ingredients:

• 350g plain flour
• 1tsp bicarb
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1sp cinnamon
• 115g butter
• 175g brown sugar
• 1 medium egg
• 4 tbsp syrup
• 10ml of your favourite gin

Instructions:

This one isn’t for the kids. Inspire a bit of childish laughter in the adults among you with this grown-up spin on a classic children’s treat. It’s also much easier to make than the rather complex cake we were making before. The recipe below shows you how to make a single, lonely GINgerbread man, so if you plan on entertaining then you may want to get some more ingredients.

Simply mix the flour, bicarbonate soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, butter and brown sugar all together until you get a delightful bread-crumb consistency. At this point, you add the egg, syrup and gin into the mixture one by one, taking care to properly knead the results after each turn.

Once you’re sure it’s properly mixed, roll out your GINgerbread person and cut him into shape before baking at 170° for 12-15 mins. When he’s done, take him out and enjoy with a warm drink this Christmas.

3. Brockman’s Baked Camembert

Ingredients:

• 1 whole Camembert in a wooden box
• Sprig of thyme
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• Half a tablespoon of Brockmans Gin
• Pepper, freshly ground
• 100g fresh blackberries
• 1 tablespoon of water
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar
• Freshly ground pepper

Instructions:

Fresh from the mind of veteran food blogger Jane Arschavir, this delightful dish is simple but delicious, and is the perfect treat for a winter’s afternoon this holiday season. To start with, pre-heat your oven to 200° and unwrap the Camembert, placing it in the wooden box.

Cut a circle out of the top of the cheese rind and scatter a crushed clove of garlic, a hefty number of thyme leaves and a grind or two of black pepper. Carefully add your gin into the mixture before replacing the lid. Then loosely cover the Camembert in foil and put it in the oven to bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the result is wobbly in the middle.

Meanwhile, as your Camembert is baking you can put 100g of fresh blackberries in a saucepan. Add the water and sugar to this and cook on a low heat, stirring until the blackberries have softened and start collapsing. Here you add the balsamic vinegar and black pepper, at which point you can taste and add more seasoning or sugar if you so wish. Once cooked, pour the mixture into a small dish.

Now you carefully remove it from the oven and place the cheese in the wooden box on a platter, before garnishing with a couple of sprigs of thyme and serving the end result with your warm blackberry sauce and crusty bread. The next, and most important, step is to enjoy!

Sign Up to the Think Gin Club for Gin-Related Recipes and Gifts

These are just a few of our favourite gin-related baking recipes. If you want more great gin concoctions, then join the Think Gin Club today. We deliver the finest craft gins directly to your doorstep, along with a selection of complementary gifts, fun facts and cocktail recipes for you to try.