Photo by Kim Lightbody
If, at any time, you have toyed with the idea of becoming a beekeeper — be it an actual ambition or just romantic daydream — this book is for you. On the other hand, if all you want is a book full of recipes that have you scuttling off into the kitchen, then this book is also for you! I can’t say exactly I have any apiarist aspirations but I am captivated by the wonderful mystery of bees and bee culture (moreover much interested to learn “how to garden for the bees”); and I can say emphatically that I belong in the second category!
Amy Newsome trained as a horticulturalist at Kew Gardens, is a gardener, a beekeeper and a foodwriter: this lovely book combines these passions gleefully. And although honey is the unifying factor in this project, the recipes are enormously varied. Nor is honey often a major ingredient: it plays its part, but never overplays it. This isn’t a book about how to get through as much honey as possible as you cook: it is more of an inspirational introduction to so many possibilities. My enthusiastic selection can’t quite convey the great range on offer, but I hope it gives a glimpse. I adore that there is a crumpet recipe here, which goes by the title of “Crumpets — an Adventure!”: can there be any better topping on a thickly buttered crumpet than honey? From this, I need to tell you about the Griddled Green Mustard Salad with Smoked Almonds; the simply beautiful Charred Radicchio and Pickled Carrot Salad with Sesame-Seared Tuna; Garlic Fermented Honey and Miso Sourdough; Ginger Roasted Carrots with Chilli and Chives; Smoked Duck with Smashed Cucumber and Slapped Noodles; Goat Biryani (which can also be made with lamb) with Jackfruit and Lime Leaf Rice; Preserved Lemon Focaccia; and Honey Hong Shao Rou, Shao Rou being a gorgeous Chinese dish of sweet and soy-glazed cubes of pork bell. I’m with Newsome when she exhorts the reader to “embrace the wobbly fat — it’s utterly delicious.” Though she does suggest that vegetarians use aubergine/eggplant in place of the pork.
While the cocktails and drinks, in particular the Bergamot Bee’s Knees and the Tepache Bourbon Sour, most certainly have my attention, it is the sweetest of treats I just have to sing about now: yes to Saffron and Apricot Honey Buns; the gorgeous Honeycomb Bread; the Orange, Yogurt and Cardamom Loaf Cake (with a honey-orange glaze); the aromatically honeyed Custard Tart; three divine-sounding granitas, including a Campari, Watermelon and mint one; and (as I see I have really wittered on today) finally the recipe I have actually, and with great excitement, chosen to share with you, the Honey on Toast Ice Cream. Think a combo of brown bread ice cream (a favourite of my paternal grandmother) and honey ice cream — and no-churn into the bargain. What are you waiting for?
Honey: Recipes from a Beekeeper’s Kitchen by Amy Newsome (Quadrille, £27 RRP) is out now.
Photography: Kim Lightbody.
