Mulled wine

With Christmas fast approaching things are getting pretty busy around here, the food still needs to be bought, the presents wrapped and the house decorated, add to that two days of overtime at work and there is very little time to spend cooking!

I did however find time to whip up a pan of mulled wine, a Christmas essential and one of my favourite drinks. Made from red wine, spices and fruits simmered and served hot, this warming drink is perfect for winter.There are endless variations to this, the recipe below is the basic version to which you could add apples, pears, berries or even fruit liqueur, to give it a bit of a kick try adding a good glug of brandy.

Mulled wine recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 75cl bottle of red wine.
• 1 orange, half sliced half studded with 4 or 5 cloves.
• 1 lemon sliced.
  
• 1 cinnamon stick snapped in two.
• 1 tsp ground/powdered ginger.
• A wine glass of water.
• 3 tbsp white sugar or honey.
• As much brandy as you like (optional).

Method:

• Place all the ingredients into a large pan with a lid.
• Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
• Place the lid on the pan and leave on a very low light to simmer (don't boil) for at least 20 minutes.
• Serve.