I have written about how much honey is produced in Spain and how very inventive chefs are when they use honey in their kitchens. I am often surprised at the dishes in which honey turns up. For example, here honey is the ingredient that makes a real tasty difference to the serving of duck breasts with figs. A dish that might be a bit dry were it not for how wonderful duck breast can taste once covered in honey.
This is an inventive recipe I came across in Girona, an area of Spain where chefs try something different and produce new tastes. I am not a fan of mustard or honey, but this meal converted me to the joys of both. It has been a favourite meal ever since.
I live surrounded by orange and lemon groves. In spring the scent from the orange trees fills the valley and local landowners encourage me to take as many oranges as i wish from their trees. But which fruits should we all savour the rest of the year? Last night i enjoyed a lovely pudding using home grown plums. This weekend it will be pears in honey and saffron, a recipe for which follows.
