0:00:02 > 0:00:07- Some of the best British produce is under threat.- It's at the mercy of market forces.- And food fashion.
0:00:07 > 0:00:12- Produce that has been around for centuries... - Could die out within a generation.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15- So together we're on a mission... - To save it.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19We'll give you tips on how to find it, grow it and cook it.
0:00:19 > 0:00:24- And crucially, how to put sensational British produce... - Back on the food map.
0:00:56 > 0:01:02I'm Ainsley Harriott. I'll be championing a great British product that is under grave threat.
0:01:02 > 0:01:05It's been prized since Roman times,
0:01:05 > 0:01:09yet it could slip away from right under our noses - British honey.
0:01:09 > 0:01:13'Bees have been producing honey for around 150 million years
0:01:13 > 0:01:17'and honey has been a vital part of the British diet for centuries.
0:01:17 > 0:01:23'We buy 30,000 tonnes of honey every year, but shockingly, 90% of that is imported,
0:01:23 > 0:01:25'mainly from China and Argentina.
0:01:25 > 0:01:30'In my campaign to revive British honey, I'll don my white suit and head to the front line
0:01:30 > 0:01:34'to meet the hard-working keepers of the amber nectar.'
0:01:34 > 0:01:40There's a great demand for English honey. The big problem is producing it in our current climate.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43'I'll be showing you how you can play your part.'
0:01:43 > 0:01:47This could be your honey, guys. You too could be an urban beekeeper.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52'And in the Revival Kitchen, I'll wow you with three fabulous recipes
0:01:52 > 0:01:55'to show off the delights honey can bring to your dinner plates,
0:01:55 > 0:01:58'including my mouth-watering honey duck breast.'
0:01:58 > 0:02:02Honey is just not honey. There are so many varieties and flavours.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17Hmm!
0:02:17 > 0:02:20It really takes me back, this.
0:02:20 > 0:02:26When I was growing up, South London boy as I am, we had a beekeeper that lived at the top of the road.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30He looked like a Martian when he had all his gear on. We were petrified of him.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33We were intrigued. What is he doing?
0:02:33 > 0:02:37My dad, it's something he introduced to us, he brought it home,
0:02:37 > 0:02:40massive tins, almost as big as paint pots.
0:02:40 > 0:02:46But it just meant that we could slap it on our bread or put it on our cereals or into our drinks.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48And the taste has stayed with me.
0:02:51 > 0:02:57'Honey is one of nature's wonder foods. It's 100% natural and incredibly versatile.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01'But we can't have honey without the honeybee and in recent years,
0:03:01 > 0:03:04'our British buzzers have taken a battering.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08'In the harsh winter of 2008 alone, their population fell by 30%.
0:03:08 > 0:03:13'In a bid to revive the fortunes of the British honeybee, I've come to Sussex University
0:03:13 > 0:03:17'to meet the UK's only Professor of Apiculture
0:03:17 > 0:03:19'to get to the heart of the problem.'
0:03:19 > 0:03:24I want to know what's going wrong with the British honeybee.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27The British honeybee has declined from a million hives
0:03:27 > 0:03:31- 100 years ago to a quarter of a million hives now.- That's dramatic.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35Three-quarters of the honeybee population has just disappeared.
0:03:35 > 0:03:40The biggest reason is there's less flowers in the countryside for bees to forage on
0:03:40 > 0:03:43and we've got certain new honeybee diseases.
0:03:43 > 0:03:48'So the professor and his team have established the British Bee and Honey Restoration Project.
0:03:48 > 0:03:54'Their mission is to reverse the spiralling decline of the British honey industry.'
0:03:54 > 0:03:58If you look to the right, you'll see a real beehive, an observation hive.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02Here we're filming them and here we can see bees which are dancing.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06So these are the forager bees who have been visiting flowers
0:04:06 > 0:04:11and they've been collecting nectar and now they're telling their nest mates.
0:04:11 > 0:04:17I know that this bee, because we've just been decoding some of their dances, has been foraging on ivy
0:04:17 > 0:04:21which is blooming one or two kilometres to the north of here.
0:04:21 > 0:04:26By analysing these dances the bees make, we'll be able to say the bees are telling us
0:04:26 > 0:04:32this is where they make their honey from, so to help honeybees, this is what we need more of.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36'Here they're also trying to breed more disease-resistant honeybees,
0:04:36 > 0:04:39'such as the British black bee.'
0:04:39 > 0:04:43There is so much more to the bee than just making honey, isn't there?
0:04:43 > 0:04:49Yeah, if the honeybee didn't make honey, people would still study it as it's such a fascinating animal.
0:04:49 > 0:04:55Nowadays, the pollination that the honeybee does for crops like apples and so on
0:04:55 > 0:04:58is worth a lot more to us than the honey that's produced.
0:04:58 > 0:05:05'That's true, but these tireless workers are responsible for producing their amazing product
0:05:05 > 0:05:08'that I for one can't live or cook without.'
0:05:08 > 0:05:15I'm going to be doing three recipes for you today. The first of them, I'll use Professor Ratnieks' honey.
0:05:15 > 0:05:17It's like a floral honey.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21Each honey has an individuality and a special flavour about it
0:05:21 > 0:05:27and that's what I'm going to try and get across today, incorporating it into my recipes.
0:05:32 > 0:05:37And for the salad base, I've got some pre-washed watercress.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42I like to do watercress in a spinner because it kind of dries it out.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46There's nothing worse than wet lettuce or watercress leaves.
0:05:47 > 0:05:54I've chosen to use Comice pears in this salad which work so well with watercress.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57I cut these into quite sort of thin strips here.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01They don't all have to be perfect, of course,
0:06:01 > 0:06:07because that kind of adds to the different style and texture of the food.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10Season, add a squeeze of lemon juice...
0:06:11 > 0:06:16..followed by a drizzle of olive oil, and work it through the salad.
0:06:16 > 0:06:20I like the idea of using a combination of seedless grapes.
0:06:20 > 0:06:25They're a bit on the large side, so I'll just cut these in half.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29I'll just lay them like that, get that knife into the middle
0:06:29 > 0:06:33and then just slice all the way through like that, carefully.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36You've got all your grapes sliced.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39In we go, into our saucepan.
0:06:40 > 0:06:44And now for the star ingredient, the honey.
0:06:44 > 0:06:50I'm putting in a good, liberal dose which equates to about four tablespoons.
0:06:50 > 0:06:54As soon as that starts bubbling, take it off the heat.
0:06:54 > 0:06:59That allows the grapes to slightly bleed, open up, release some of their juices
0:06:59 > 0:07:03and that creates the perfect dressing to complement the honey.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08Next up, the goat's cheese. They're easier to cook by keeping their rinds on.
0:07:08 > 0:07:14I'll pop that into my oven now at 200 degrees Centigrade, 400 Fahrenheit, Gas Mark 6.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18That is only going in there for two or three minutes, no more than that.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26OK, let's have a look at those grapes now.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31That's lovely. If you can see that,
0:07:31 > 0:07:35the colour of the grapes has just changed ever so slightly there,
0:07:35 > 0:07:38blending itself in with that lovely floral honey.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42It will give it that lovely balance to go along with the goat's cheese.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45Speaking of which, let's get that out.
0:07:47 > 0:07:48Lovely.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55Now I'm just glazing the top of my goat's cheese here
0:07:55 > 0:07:58and that gives it a lovely crust.
0:07:58 > 0:08:04And when the honey hits that, it just gives it a real kind of... Hmm!
0:08:04 > 0:08:07It's just so exciting on the palate.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12I'll just pop that on the top there like that.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18And just sprinkle those round there.
0:08:18 > 0:08:24There you have it - my warm goat's cheese salad with seedless grapes and wild honey dressing.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33Oh, it's so good. First you get the goat's cheese,
0:08:33 > 0:08:37then you get the slight pepperiness of the watercress,
0:08:37 > 0:08:40followed by that lovely, floral honey taste.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43Just a combination that works perfectly.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51'I'm on a mission to revive British honey.
0:08:51 > 0:08:55'What's apparent is buying British isn't always top of our agenda.'
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Where my honey comes from, I wouldn't have a clue.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02I buy a branded label. I'm not sure where it's from. Maybe England.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05I don't think I've ever checked to find out where it's from.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09'I think our apathy towards buying British honey is alarming,
0:09:09 > 0:09:14'but that's just one of the many challenges facing the honey industry.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17'David Bondi runs the UK's largest honey manufacturer.
0:09:17 > 0:09:23'His company bottles over a third of all the honey sold in our shops.'
0:09:23 > 0:09:27The total British honey production is only about 10% of everything
0:09:27 > 0:09:29that we consume in this country,
0:09:29 > 0:09:36so clearly we have to import lots of honey. We buy all the British honey we can. We'd love to buy more.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39Our difficulty has been the limited supply,
0:09:39 > 0:09:44but we work with our beekeeper colleagues to encourage them to produce as much as they can.
0:09:44 > 0:09:48'They're obviously struggling to keep up with the demand,
0:09:48 > 0:09:53'so I've come to Buckinghamshire to meet a leading UK commercial beekeeper to find out why.'
0:09:53 > 0:09:55- Hello, Ged.- Hi, Ainsley.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58I'm looking forward to meeting your bees.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02'Ged has 200 hives spread across the farm
0:10:02 > 0:10:06'and in a good year, he can produce up to 15 tonnes of honey.'
0:10:06 > 0:10:09What's it like being a commercial farmer, Ged?
0:10:09 > 0:10:13Well, it's changed radically from when I started 20 years ago.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17We've got so much more to contend with these days.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21We've got a lot of problems with disease, bee losses over winter.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26We've also got a lot of the good agricultural crops that were grown,
0:10:26 > 0:10:31that were very helpful for beekeepers, have been stopped or greatly reduced.
0:10:31 > 0:10:37So it's more difficult to find good sites where the bees can get a good crop of honey in the summer.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39What about producing honey for you?
0:10:39 > 0:10:43How long would it take for a bee to make a jar of honey?
0:10:43 > 0:10:49For one bee to make a jar of honey, it would travel the equivalent of one-and-a-half times round the world.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53That's why you need something like 50,000 to keep a hive active?
0:10:53 > 0:10:58Yes, the idea is you get an awful lot of bees and they don't have to travel as far.
0:10:58 > 0:11:02They're just going over there to the flower meadows.
0:11:02 > 0:11:08- That's a mixture of clover and bramble. Would you like to try some? - Oh, yeah.- Dig in.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10Yeah, I know. I'm right in there.
0:11:10 > 0:11:14Go on, they'll all be after me now, all the bees.
0:11:14 > 0:11:16I'm in there. Yeah.
0:11:20 > 0:11:26Oh, yeah. You can taste the wildness coming though that. That's definitely there.
0:11:26 > 0:11:28Hmm! Gorgeous.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31- And a bit of wax too! - LAUGHTER
0:11:34 > 0:11:37'So what can we do to help our bee farmers?
0:11:37 > 0:11:43'Planting more bee-friendly flowers would be a start, but we can take it further than that.'
0:11:43 > 0:11:47The thing that the British public can do is simply to buy honey.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50Let's make sure that British honey,
0:11:50 > 0:11:55when it's in the supermarkets, in the farmers' markets, that people buy it.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Very simple. We can all do that.
0:12:00 > 0:12:05Wow! And I'm going to be using this, Ged's honey, for my second recipe.
0:12:11 > 0:12:17The sauce is fairly straightforward. Loads of different flavours going on, notably the honey.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20It really works beautifully with this.
0:12:20 > 0:12:24So I'm talking about four tablespoons of honey.
0:12:24 > 0:12:30I know I just pour things in, but that's the real beauty of being a cook. You kind of measure by eye.
0:12:30 > 0:12:35That's followed by a couple of tablespoons of soy sauce,
0:12:35 > 0:12:38balsamic vinegar and ketchup.
0:12:38 > 0:12:44And to that, add a couple of tablespoons of muscovado sugar and a few cloves.
0:12:44 > 0:12:50When that starts to boil down and that clove oil starts to be released into the honey and everything,
0:12:50 > 0:12:52it's got a real pungency.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55And last but not least, some beef stock.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58Let's get some heat under there now. There you go.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01All you want to do is bring that up to the boil.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05Let's slice up that onion, shall we?
0:13:06 > 0:13:12You see this end here where the root is? Because I'm using sliced onions as opposed to just chopping them,
0:13:12 > 0:13:16I want to cut a little wedge out of that either side.
0:13:18 > 0:13:23The idea of removing that root is the onions just separate beautifully.
0:13:23 > 0:13:28If I hadn't taken that out, they'd be all glued together.
0:13:28 > 0:13:32Add some butter and oil to the pan, followed by the onions.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38While that's sorting itself out, we can get on with preparing the meat.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41This is what they'll go with - lovely duck breast.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45What we want to do is just score that skin.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48Ducks are waterproof and their skin's like that,
0:13:48 > 0:13:52so you need to score the skin a bit to release some of that fat.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58Let's get our pan on now. The pan's cold, as you can see.
0:13:58 > 0:14:03A lot of chefs will say, "Put it into a hot pan, so it sears straight away."
0:14:03 > 0:14:06I'm not sure if it really matters.
0:14:06 > 0:14:12I think you can put it straight into a cold pan and we'll let that render down to release some of that fat.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15I think cabbage works wonderfully well with duck.
0:14:15 > 0:14:17Cabbage in my house is a big thing.
0:14:17 > 0:14:24Sometimes I cook it down with carrots and bacon and ginger and chilli, one of my dad's favourites.
0:14:24 > 0:14:26- SIZZLING - Hey! Can you hear that duck?
0:14:26 > 0:14:31That duck is just kind of starting to release its fats now.
0:14:31 > 0:14:33Give the cabbage a quick wash
0:14:33 > 0:14:36and pop it in with your onions.
0:14:36 > 0:14:43You don't need to put a lid on it. There's a real attractiveness about watching your food cooking sometimes
0:14:43 > 0:14:49and just seeing it steam and starting to relax a bit. It's enjoyment. You do get hot, though!
0:14:49 > 0:14:52I'll turn those duck over.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54Just look at that. Crispy there.
0:14:56 > 0:14:59I'm just going to pour off that excess fat.
0:14:59 > 0:15:04Carefully do this, guys. They do move around the pan there a little bit.
0:15:04 > 0:15:10That doesn't need to go to waste. It makes the most wonderful roast tatties or rostis.
0:15:10 > 0:15:12I'll do a few of those later.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14Duck fat is really good for that.
0:15:14 > 0:15:20Pop that into an oven, 200 degrees Centigrade, 400 Fahrenheit, Gas Mark 6 again.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24For that thickness, no more than six to eight minutes.
0:15:24 > 0:15:26It'll just be beyond pink then.
0:15:26 > 0:15:30If you want it deadly pink, four, five minutes, no more than that.
0:15:30 > 0:15:36If you like it well-done, which is a shame because duck doesn't need to be eaten well-done...
0:15:36 > 0:15:41I won't even tell you how long you've got to cook it for. There you go.
0:15:41 > 0:15:46So, back to the cabbage... I've lowered the heat, so it begins to cook down.
0:15:46 > 0:15:51Ears are a fabulous thing when you're cooking. My mum always used to say, "Grab the steam."
0:15:51 > 0:15:56She'd grab the steam and smell. That will tell you a lot. But it's the sound of stuff.
0:15:56 > 0:16:03You can tell that something has reduced down, it's drying out, so we need a bit of water in there.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08That's it now, look. That's cooked down really, really lovely.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14So at this stage, in with my crispy bits of bacon.
0:16:15 > 0:16:19Add a splash of cream and stir well.
0:16:19 > 0:16:21I'm going to take my duck out now.
0:16:21 > 0:16:26For that final minute, all I'm going to do is take some of Ged's honey
0:16:26 > 0:16:31and just drizzle on top of that. Look at that.
0:16:31 > 0:16:36It's just going to give it that lovely sheen. Beautiful.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39Pop that back in for another minute.
0:16:39 > 0:16:43Now what we're going to do is just pass off our sauce.
0:16:47 > 0:16:52It smells of cloves, the honey, it's slightly caramelised.
0:16:52 > 0:16:56OK, let's take those beautiful honey ducks out.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00You can see I'm carving it.
0:17:00 > 0:17:04It just presents so much better than just having that lump there.
0:17:04 > 0:17:10It's not chicken. This is duck. It demands respect, as my old head chef Malcolm used to say.
0:17:10 > 0:17:14- JAMAICAN ACCENT: - "Respect the duck." He wasn't from Jamaica!
0:17:19 > 0:17:23And there you have it, guys. Look at that.
0:17:23 > 0:17:25Gorgeous. Honey-glazed duck...
0:17:25 > 0:17:30I should say Ged's honey-glazed duck with rosti potatoes and creamed cabbage and bacon.
0:17:32 > 0:17:34I've just got to try that.
0:17:34 > 0:17:36Oh...
0:17:37 > 0:17:42Honey just works so well with savoury because it brings out the natural flavours.
0:17:42 > 0:17:46I can taste the duck beautifully. It's gone into the sauce
0:17:46 > 0:17:50and the cloves, so you get that spicy taste, followed by that honey.
0:17:50 > 0:17:57Ged's honey is wonderful. Honey is just not honey. There are so many different varieties and flavours.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00If you can find out what works with your cooking, you're in for a real treat.
0:18:05 > 0:18:11In this country, we're consuming far more honey than our bees and commercial farmers can produce.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16So it's up to us Brits to step into the breach.
0:18:18 > 0:18:24One misconception is that you need wide open spaces in order to keep beehives.
0:18:24 > 0:18:30You can produce local honey without breaking the bank and you don't need a massive field to do it in.
0:18:31 > 0:18:36'In fact, within reason, you can set up a beehive anywhere, even on top of a roof,
0:18:36 > 0:18:40'which is what this amateur keeper in East London has done.
0:18:42 > 0:18:48'Mel took up this hobby six months ago and she, along with 25,000 other amateurs up and down the country,
0:18:48 > 0:18:52'are filling the honey void by producing their own.'
0:18:52 > 0:18:56It seems to be the perfect location to keep bees, isn't it?
0:18:56 > 0:18:59Yeah, in the city not everybody has a garden.
0:18:59 > 0:19:01I've only got a really small space.
0:19:01 > 0:19:07I was thinking about where I could keep my bees out of harm's way, but with access to plants and flowers.
0:19:07 > 0:19:12Did you expect it to be as exciting as this, being a beekeeper?
0:19:12 > 0:19:16I had no idea how great it was going to be, to be honest.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19There have been lots of surprises, some good, some bad,
0:19:19 > 0:19:25but it's really fascinating watching the bees, seeing how they work, then tasting the honey.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30So you can see, with the sun glistening, the uncapped stores,
0:19:30 > 0:19:35and the ones here are capped stores, so the honey is underneath that.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37That's what we'll take a sample of.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41- We're going to scrape that off, are we?- Yes.- That's fantastic.
0:19:41 > 0:19:46You can see it oozing out and the bees are feeding on it.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50Wow! Do you have this on your toast in the morning, Mel?
0:19:50 > 0:19:55- Yes, I'm a big fan of honey. - So am I. We love it in our house.
0:19:55 > 0:20:00- Great.- I'm going to pop this back. - Yeah. Look, this is just perfect.
0:20:00 > 0:20:05This could be your honey, guys. You too could be an urban beekeeper.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08Come on, you go back, guys. Go on, back you go.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11Go and join your friends. That's it.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14'Keeping bees as a hobby requires dedication and training,
0:20:14 > 0:20:18'but it's becoming the backbone of the British honey industry.
0:20:18 > 0:20:24'In fact, it's estimated that 99% of known keepers are amateurs just like Mel.'
0:20:24 > 0:20:30- I can't wait to have a taste of this honey. You don't mind if I pop my finger in there?- No, go for it.
0:20:32 > 0:20:34Oh, yeah, that's good.
0:20:34 > 0:20:39- You like it?- It's the wildflowers. Probably all those flowers from Victoria Park.
0:20:39 > 0:20:44- Well done, you.- Well done, the bees.- Well done, the bees.
0:20:44 > 0:20:50'Without hobbyist beekeepers, we could never buy locally produced honeys, especially urban ones,
0:20:50 > 0:20:55'but sadly, you'll never find them on your supermarket shelves.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59'However, if you visit your local farmers' markets or honey shops,
0:20:59 > 0:21:03'like this one in South London, you'll be in for a real treat.'
0:21:03 > 0:21:07Wow! I've never seen so many British honeys.
0:21:07 > 0:21:14I get frustrated in the supermarket because it's all imported stuff, but you've got a fabulous selection.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17Those are 20 different British varieties.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21The most local that we have is Wandsworth honey. Try that.
0:21:22 > 0:21:29And is it easier to produce sort of urban honey than what it is like out in the wild?
0:21:29 > 0:21:35Yes, in the city, there is such an abundance of flowers in parks, cemeteries and people's back gardens.
0:21:35 > 0:21:40The bees don't have to fly very far and the diversity is fantastic.
0:21:40 > 0:21:47How much of your honey comes from local people? You're encouraging people to have their own beehives.
0:21:47 > 0:21:52A lot of these honeys will come in from hobbyist beekeepers all around the country.
0:21:52 > 0:21:55They might come in with one bucket, 30 little jars of honey.
0:21:55 > 0:22:02We've got some West Sussex honey that we got from a chap. We've got some honey from the Hampstead Heath area.
0:22:02 > 0:22:08- Again not much of it, but we're supporting them and it's a nice way of...- Keeping urban honey alive.- Yes.
0:22:08 > 0:22:14It's encouraging people to take up beekeeping, it's helping to sponsor their hobby.
0:22:14 > 0:22:19It was a pleasure talking to you and it's nice to know people like you are supporting the locals,
0:22:19 > 0:22:25just to keep the buzz alive, metaphorically speaking, because that's what we've all got to do.
0:22:25 > 0:22:31We've been eating honey for thousands of years and I think you can almost call it a superfood.
0:22:31 > 0:22:37In its raw, unprocessed state, it's rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants
0:22:37 > 0:22:42and many people swear by local honey as a natural antidote for hay fever.
0:22:42 > 0:22:47If you're feeling under the weather, there's nothing better than a home-made hot toddy.
0:22:47 > 0:22:53I've got some grated ginger, some cloves and lemon which I've sliced and also squeezed into some water.
0:22:53 > 0:22:57I'll strain some of that off. Don't worry about bits of ginger in there.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00That really helps to clear your "nozzies".
0:23:00 > 0:23:04And then a spoonful of honey.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07That will take the old...
0:23:09 > 0:23:13Take? Clears everything, I should say. Absolutely delicious.
0:23:13 > 0:23:17When it comes to cooking with honey, there are many wonderful flavours,
0:23:17 > 0:23:21but I've selected this wildflower variety for my final recipe.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28Figs are one of my favourite fruits.
0:23:28 > 0:23:34I like this recipe because of the idea of nestling them inside a beautiful sweet pastry tart
0:23:34 > 0:23:41with a base of ground almonds and a wonderful reduction of wildflower honey spread on to the figs.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45All that hard work the bees have done hasn't gone to waste.
0:23:45 > 0:23:47First, we'll prepare the pastry.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50I'll get that butter...
0:23:50 > 0:23:54Add plain flour, icing sugar and butter to a blender.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02I prefer to pulse it instead of just leaving my machine running. Let me show you.
0:24:02 > 0:24:07Be careful. It's got a very sharp blade. Look at that. It's like fine breadcrumbs.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10To bind the mixture, add beaten egg.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16And then blitz again until the mixture starts to stick together
0:24:16 > 0:24:19and can be rolled into a ball.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24After chilling for 15 minutes, roll out on to a floured surface.
0:24:27 > 0:24:32There really is something about making a tart. It's so satisfying. It's almost like making bread.
0:24:32 > 0:24:36You know how much I love bread with honey, so the idea of making a tart,
0:24:36 > 0:24:40the combination of the two, just for me is perfect.
0:24:42 > 0:24:47200 degrees Centigrade, 400 Fahrenheit, Gas Mark 6 if you've got an old-style gas oven.
0:24:47 > 0:24:51And after baking for 15 minutes, glaze the pastry cases
0:24:51 > 0:24:56with the leftover beaten egg and cook again for a further ten minutes.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00Meanwhile, I can get on with my orange and honey glaze.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03This is a really, really good little tip.
0:25:03 > 0:25:10That's my tablespoon there, my measuring tablespoon, and if you put a little bit of oil on that...
0:25:10 > 0:25:12Just a touch of oil.
0:25:13 > 0:25:18..what that will do is protect your spoon, so your honey won't stick to it.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22Three tablespoons of honey.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26Look at that, just flies off the spoon.
0:25:29 > 0:25:35To the honey, add a few knobs of butter and some freshly squeezed orange juice.
0:25:35 > 0:25:40If you've got loads of mates coming round for a bit of an adult supper,
0:25:40 > 0:25:44then why not use just a little bit of orange juice...
0:25:44 > 0:25:47and a little bit of orange liqueur?
0:25:48 > 0:25:50Perfect.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55So whilst that's heating up, I can prepare my figs.
0:25:55 > 0:26:01I've just cut the top off there and I want to cut these into six, but don't cut all the way through.
0:26:01 > 0:26:06So a little bit of control here. Turn that around and one half of it, cut into three.
0:26:06 > 0:26:10Follow the knife almost all the way down,
0:26:10 > 0:26:14then you can just open that up like a little flower. Can you see that?
0:26:14 > 0:26:17I wish you were here now.
0:26:17 > 0:26:23I can just smell that honey. It's coming alive now. It's beginning to release its lovely aromas.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27Next, line the pastry cases with some ground almonds.
0:26:27 > 0:26:33I'm just using the back of a spoon to push it into the corners, so it soaks up all that lovely juice.
0:26:33 > 0:26:39Then it doesn't seep through into your pastry. You don't want soggy pastry. Soggy pastry is awful.
0:26:39 > 0:26:46We're just going to pick that up now and just sit that inside our pastry case.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49That's quite syrupy now.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52There you go. Just spoon that around like that.
0:26:52 > 0:26:58You've got the ground almonds on the base there to soak up any of these juices,
0:26:58 > 0:27:01but try and get most of that on top of your figs.
0:27:01 > 0:27:07It's interesting that in this country we don't tend to eat that many figs, do we?
0:27:07 > 0:27:09But it's such a gorgeous fruit.
0:27:09 > 0:27:15If I wanted to use something alternative, I might use something like a damson or a bit of peach.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20And pop those back into the oven for a further 10 to 15 minutes.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23Now...
0:27:24 > 0:27:28Look at that, the juice has just started to come out and...
0:27:29 > 0:27:34The honey just kind of rises up into your nostrils. Just gorgeous.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39And for the finishing touches, I'm adding a dollop of creme fraiche,
0:27:39 > 0:27:45a touch of orange zest and finally, a drizzle of my scrumptious honey glaze. Hmm!
0:27:47 > 0:27:50Just a few more drops around there.
0:27:50 > 0:27:55There you have it - my caramelised fig and wild honey tart.
0:27:56 > 0:27:58Oh!
0:28:06 > 0:28:12This is great. I can taste the wildflower honey really coming through in the figs.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16When you add something that has got that lovely floral kind of taste,
0:28:16 > 0:28:20it just heightens the whole thing. It really, really is stunning.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23It's been stunning, my journey.
0:28:23 > 0:28:28I have been so excited about meeting these people who care passionately about honey
0:28:28 > 0:28:30and the revival of British honey.
0:28:30 > 0:28:36Unless we do something about it collectively, guys, it will just disappear,
0:28:36 > 0:28:39so let's all of us get behind the Great British Honey Revival.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51Subtitles by Subtext for Red Bee Media Ltd