Sluttishly Easy: Hendrick's Glow in the Dark Jelly

So excited am I at the prospect of Hendrick's Gin rolling into town this weekend in their very own Carriage of Curiousities, I got in touch with them and pestered them for further treats. The lovely wobbly folk at Bompas and Parr invented this glow in the dark jelly recipe, I'm not that much of a jelly genius. You really should go down to the carriage and try out the real thing, but it's well worth attempting to make yourself too.

A GLOW IN THE DARK HENDRICK’S GIN Jelly (500ml) serves 4

With jelly half the fun lies in the spectacle. Make sure you use an interesting mould and unmould the jelly using the technique outlined below. A gently wobbling pudding makes any table more exciting, especially if it is glowing. Do as the Victorians did and put jellies down the centre of the table and enjoy the sight of them wobbling away throughout the entire meal!

For the jelly you'll need:

• 200ml Hendrick’s Gin
• 200ml Indian tonic water
• 100ml Water
• 100g Caster sugar
• 8 Leaves gelatine (at least double that directed by packet)

For the raspberry coulis you'll need:

• 55g Raspberries
• 1⁄2 Lemon, juice only
• 5g Icing sugar

For the glow you'll just need a simple backlight.

To make the jelly (do so several days prior to serving):

• Combine the Hendrick’s Gin and indian tonic water in a large measuring jug and set aside.
• Cut the leaf gelatine into fine pieces and place in a heat-proof bowl with enough water to submerse. Leave until soft (roughly 5 minutes).
• When the gelatine has softened, melt it (still in heat proof bowl) over a pan of simmering water. At the same time melt the caster sugar in 100ml of water.
• Add the caster sugar solution to the melted gelatine mix. Then combine this with the Hendrick’s Gin/tonic water jug and stir.
• Now wait - maybe two or three days. For every day your jelly is in the fridge it will grow structurally stronger.
  
• When anticipation gets the better of you, polish your best plate and prepare the coulis.

To make the coulis:

• To make the coulis, place the raspberries, lemon juice and icing sugar into a food processor until smooth.
  
• Strain the coulis into a small jug. To serve, anoint the jelly with the coulis.

Presentation

Unmould the jelly by briefly immersing in a bowl of hot water and inverting over your chosen plate. Note: Silver plates are always most effective for presentation.

Wet the surface of the presentation plate before unmoulding the jelly onto it. If the jelly is not in the right place you will be able to slide it into position.

For maximum effect turn off all lights to achieve total darkness. Switch on your blacklight and serve the glowing jelly to thrilled diners.

So why does the jelly glow? The quinine in the tonic water is UV-active. When the blacklight is switched on it will fluoresce beautifully.

Thanks so much to Bompas and Parr for letting us use the recipe! Our heart is shaped like a rabbit jelly mould today.