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June has arrived in a blur of train tickets, suitcases, book signings and half-finished cups of coffee. The publication of our fifth cookbook, Honey & Co Daily, has brought with it the strangest combination of feelings: delight, gratitude, nerves, excitement, exhaustion and, on occasion, mild panic. When you imagine it from afar, a book tour sounds wonderfully glamorous, but in reality it involves early alarms, missed trains, unfamiliar hotel rooms and the constant worry that you have forgotten something important – and that no one will show up.
Even so, this has also been one of the most rewarding experiences. We spend so much time writing recipes and stories, and hoping they will find their way into people’s homes, lives and kitchens. Getting to meet the people who let this book in, to learn which recipes have become family favourites, and to chat with them about a new way with quince or aubergines (there is always one) feels like an incredible gift every single time.
Travel has also reminded us of something that sits at the heart of our new book: namely, that joy is often found in the smallest moments. A bag of cherries bought from a station-side market. The first coffee of the morning before a long and hectic day. A bowl of something simple and nourishing eaten on our own sofa after a week on the road. These are not grand occasions, but they are the moments that sustain us. The recipes in Honey & Co Daily were written with exactly that spirit in mind: these are not recipes for a special meal, but rather dishes that make ordinary days feel just a little brighter.
With the summer season upon us and all that incredible seasonal produce finally available again, it could not be easier to treat yourself to a joyous, delicious moment. Asparagus at its peak, for instance, needs nothing more than a good, punchy dressing, though it can also be turned in minutes into a deliciously light stew. Broad beans, too, always bring their easy joy to the table (see José Pizarro’s broad bean and mint tortilla with manchego crust, pictured top), while good tomatoes are back and are finally tasty enough to eat on their own, though they also offer near endless options for effortless summery meals. For a traditional way with summer cherries, meanwhile, a clafoutis simply cannot be beaten – though once you’ve had your fill of that, you could then try other, much more unexpected preparations.
Wherever June finds you – travelling, working, celebrating, or simply just trying to get dinner on the table – we hope there are moments of similar unexpected joy along the way.
Our week in food
Have cake, eat it | Pam from the Ballymaloe Cookery School in County Cork, Ireland, introduced us to barmbrack, an Irish loaf cake that’s richly studded with tea-soaked dried fruit. It’s as good as it sounds – better, actually. We brought two loaves back home with us, from the Cupcake Bloke bakery in Dublin, and ate them just as Pam showed us to: topped with a layer of butter so thick that you leave teeth marks.
There’s no smoke … | Also packed into our bag back from Ireland was some smoked salmon from the Woodcock Smokery in Skibereen, which is quite simply the best we’ve ever had. We can’t wait to try the rest of their offering, though that may necessitate another trip …
Sea-ing is believing | A trip to Margate had us finally believing all the hype we’d heard: Sargasso is as magical as everyone says and Madre Margate is just as good, but our absolute highlight was the delicious food and warm hospitality at Cantina Caruso, an offshoot of Bottega Caruso and a place we’d go to twice a week if it were closer. Luckily, they sell bottles of their homemade tomato sauce for poor non-locals to take home with them, for a repeat taste of seaside sunshine.
Grill masters | Books, the Welsh countryside and American soul food: what more can you ask for in life? The Hay festival gave us all three: burgers and barbecue from the legendary Beefy Boys, whose new book is a must for every smoke and meat enthusiast, as well as for delicious, thoughtful, low’n’slow barbecue advice. Greasy finger marks all over the pages are inevitable, as is the wholly worth-it result.
