How better to celebrate the World Gin Day than to break out my 4-week old raspberry & lemon gin infusion and have it with tonic? Perfect drink for the day and weather. Had a lazy day sunbathing, reading and drinking in the garden. B-L-I-S-S.

It wouldn't be nice of me to just torment people with my nice tall glass of refreshing summer goodness, so I've decided to share some infusion recipes I love. They are really easy to make however, the challenge is being patient enough for the drinks to age a bit.

Here are 7 recipes I think you will absolutely love:

Raspberry & Lemon Gin

1 bottle of gin

400g fresh raspberries

1 peeled lemons

Juice & zest of 1 lemon

3 spoons sugar

Pop everything into a glass jar, seal and store for 4 weeks, shaking everyday for the first week until the sugar is fully dissolved.

Pineapple & Mint Vodka

1 bottle of vodka

1 very ripe pineapple

2 sprigs of mint

Peel and chop the pineapple into medium chunks, place in a jar with the mint and pour the vodka in.

Seal tight, give the jar a gentle shake and store in a dry place or in a fridge/freezer(vodka can't get frozen in the freezer).

Mango & Vanilla Rum

3 Mangos - peeled and slices

3 cups vodka

1 vanilla bean

2 spoons sugar

Cut open the vanilla bean and put in a jar with the mangos and vodka and infuse for 3 weeks.

Strain and filter using a muslin cloth. Eat the mangoes or make mango sorbet.

Bottle the liquor, add the sugar and age for another 3 weeks for the flavours to mellow.

Coffee Tequila

Replace rum with tequila and follow the same recipe as my Rumfee here.

Spicy Bourbon

Half a bottle of bourbon

1 cinnamon stick

10 whole allspice berries

Zest of 1 orange

20 grams of dried plum/currants

Combine all ingredients together in a jar, seal tight and shake well.

Let age for 2 weeks then filter and bottle.

You can definitely drink it at this point or let the filtered drink rest for another week.

Limoncello

1 bottle of Vodka (the higher the proof, the better)

10 lemons

1 cup sugar

Cut the lemons in half and juice them. You won't be needing the juice for this recipe.

Place the lemons, vodka ad sugar in a jar, making sure the lemons are totally submerged. Seal the jar tight and store in a cool, dry place.

Shake the jar gently daily. After a week, the infusion is ready to be filtered, bottled and enjoyed.

Plum Rum( or Prum, as I call it)

10 small/medium plums (peeled and sliced)

1 bottle of rum

4 spoons sugar

Place the ingredients in a jar, seal and store. Shake once a week and leave to infuse for 4-6 weeks.

I tend to either serve the infused fruits with the liquor or make a sorbet out of them. I also don't stress about straining and filtering because the drinks get drunk up in a matter of days so it really doesn't matter. However, if you plan on storing for a long time then you should filter as residues can change the flavour and colour of the liquor over time.

Now go forth and breathe life into those bottles of liquor you have sitting in your cabinet, or go get some and start infusing. It is healthy (anything with fruits is healthy, don't argue!) and fun.

xxx