celebrate the staples ❢ honey

“THE NOTION OF A foodstuff made by plump and beautiful insects, whose furry coats are scented with the lavender and dog roses they have visited, is as romantic as any food could get,” wrote Nigel Slater in a Guardian column, and we couldn’t put it better ourselves. Honey is romantic, precious and a gift from hardworking bees. In fact, it has inspired us to plant a few more seeds for bee-friendly flowers in the garden – phacelia, sunflowers and marigolds. We encourage you to say thanks to the bees and plant some too.

1 HONEY-POACHED PLUMS WITH SAFFRON

Heat together 2 cups water, 2 tablespoons honey, 1 teaspoon saffron threads and the juice of 1 lemon. Bring to a simmer, then lower heat and add 6-10 whole plums. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes until plums are soft. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. These plums make a lovely dessert with labneh or Greek yoghurt, or spooned over ice cream, granola or sponge cake.

2 HONEY & GINGER MADELEINES

Butter and flour a madeleine tin or small muffin tins. Melt 125g butter with 1 heaped tablespoon honey. Use electric beaters to beat together 4 eggs with 2 tablespoons sugar until light and fluffy. Fold in 125g sifted flour, 1 tablespoon ground ginger, the honey and butter mixture and the zest of one lemon, until just combined. Spoon into tins and cook for 7-8 minutes at 200℃.

3 CHILLI & HONEY SESAME BRITTLE

Heat ⅓ cup honey, ⅔ cup white sugar and 1 tablespoon water in a saucepan, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes. Add 1 cup sesame seeds (black or white or a mix) and ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or dried chilli flakes and cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture becomes a beautiful caramel colour. Remove from heat and stir in 1 tablespoon butter. Add ¼ teaspoon of baking powder and stir this in. Pour mixture onto a lined baking tray and leave to set. Once hard, sprinkle with sea salt and extra chilli if desired. Break into pieces and store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place.

4 HONEY, WHISKY & FIG LEAF NO-CHURN ICE CREAM

Toast 2-3 fig leaves (stems removed) in a dry pan until fragrant. Place leaves in a bowl with 500ml double cream and leave to infuse for 3-4 hours. Fig leaves contain an enzyme that can cause cream to curdle slightly; if this starts to happen, give the mixture a whisk and it should come back together. Remove leaves and whip the cream to stiff peaks. In a separate bowl, whisk together 395ml condensed milk, 2 tablespoons whisky, 2 teaspoons runny honey and ½ teaspoon salt. Beat condensed milk mixture into the cream until well combined. Spoon into a loaf tin and freeze for 6-8 hours or until solid.