At the pub, we serve this fantastic but sadly neglected dessert in a glass with a spout coming out of the bottom, so you can drink the liquid first and eat the set part at the top afterwards. The lemonade can be made in advance — I use a traditional lemonade recipe by the chef John Thackery, who wrote The Art of Cookery in 1758.

Serves 4

For the lemonade
1 litre water
250g granulated or caster sugar
Juice of 3 lemons
Zest of 1 lemon

For the syllabub
180ml lemonade (see above)
90ml sweet sherry
120ml skimmed milk
30ml whipping cream
2 sprigs of thyme
½ stick of cinnamon

First, make the lemonade: bring the water and sugar to the boil in a saucepan, then remove from the heat. Once the liquid has cooled, add the lemon juice and zest, then chill.

Next, make the syllabub. Strain the lemonade through a fine sieve and pour 180ml into a measuring jug. Add all the other ingredients, stir and chill for 2-3 hours. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve, pour into a Kisag whipped-cream maker (from www.cookware-uk.co.uk; you will also need two nitrous-oxide gas canisters) and put in the refrigerator.

Discharge the mix into syllabub glasses, allow to separate, then serve straight away.

Alternatively, whizz the mixture with a handheld electric whisk for 3-5 minutes until thick and frothy before serving.

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