Oranges feature every bit as regularly as lemons in recipes

the famous French classic bigarade (orange and port) sauce served with duck, for instance, and my own favourite classic English sauce, Cumberland, which features orange and lemon, where the juices and finely shredded zest are combined with port and redcurrant jelly.

CHOCOLATE ORANGE
Pity the poor driver. There’s everyone else getting stuck into their Champagne or mulled wine or gins and tonic, while he or she is having to make the best of a glass of lemonade.

So, believing that he or she deserves better, here’s a gorgeous recipe for Chocolate Orange (on the left), from Ice (otherwise known as Simon Atkinson), an expert on cocktails.

METHOD
In a blender or food processor, blend the ice, ice cream and juice together till smooth.

Then, decorate the insides of the glass with chocolate sauce. To do this, drizzle a little chocolate from the bottle into the bottom of the glass. Then, holding the glass at an angle, squeeze the sauce from the rim to give a vertical line down one side. Turn the glass and repeat until you have about 8 vertical lines.

Pour the orange mixture into the glasses and decorate each one with a few fresh or tinned mandarin segments.

INGREDIENTS
4 good squeezes chocolate sauce (from a squeezy bottle)
14fl oz (400ml) freshly squeezed orange juice
225 ml crushed ice
12 scoops good-quality vanilla ice cream
12 fresh or tinned mandarin orange segments, to decorate