Sluttishly Easy: Christmas Pudding Vodka

If you're stuck for Xmas present ideas for a boozehound, this home-macerated Christmas Pudding Vodka could be just the ticket. It takes a week to develop the flavours, so you'll need to get a move on to have it ready for the 25th. Luckily there's almost zero effort on your part though, no cooking, just a bit of slicing and stirring.

If you strain it into a sterilised bottle it'll keep for several months, or you could just be lazy and put it straight back into the original bottle and keep it in the fridge for a couple of weeks. I think this would taste lovely served long with orange or cranberry juice. And don't ditch the boozy raisins after straining, they're great on ice cream!

Xmas Pudding Vodka


You'll need:

• 350ml vodka
• 100g brown sugar
• 1 orange, sliced
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 50g almonds, chopped
• 50g sultanas
• 50g raisins
• 6 cloves
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 vanilla pod, split open (put in the pod and the seeds)
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Make it!

• Put the whole lot in a large plastic tub, give it a stir and cover it with a lid.
• Leave to macerate for at least a week, stirring every day.
• Strain into a bottle through a fine sieve, ideally lined with some muslin or very strong kitchen roll.