The appetisers are ready, decked out in your finest and most attractive china, wooden cheese boards and slate platters. The mains are lovingly resting in the kitchen – all prepped and perfectly planned, with different elements lined up together, just waiting for that final toss of the salad, the sauté of the pasta and the bubbling of the bake dish. Just before the doorbell rings and the first lot of guests arrive, I realise that yet again, I have ignored the cocktails/mocktails section of the menu and theres absolutely nothing to whet my guests’ appetite with, until they decide they are ready to hit the bar.
After this debacle has ensued more than a few times, I have started making a conscious effort to provide a light and refreshing beverage to be served on arrival, and which can also be spiked into a yummy little cocktail – killing two birds with one stone. This cucumber lemonade is just the trick that I have up my sleeve this time around. It can be made unto a day or two earlier as well, and spiked with some gin or vodka, for a kick.
