As a beekeeper who doesn’t really partake of honey unless I have a cold, I wanted to create an ice cream recipe involving honey. Nik and I came across burnt honey ice cream at Morgensterns Ice Cream Parlour in New York during a very cold February – we followed the queue figuring this place was something special. It was. This is my version. Less vanilla, more herby, but still beautifully flavoured. The sweetness comes from the honey – no sugar involved.

600 ml milk

568 ml double cream

10 fresh thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

250 ml dark runny honey- the stronger the better

6 egg yolks

• Place the milk, double cream and thyme sprigs and bay leaf in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and set aside for 60 minutes to infuse. Strain the milk and discard the herbs

• Place the honey in a small saucepan and heat gently. Bring to the boil and bubble for 5-7 minutes until it has a slight burnt caramel smell. Remove from the heat and immediately place the saucepan in a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside

• Place the eggs yolks in a bowl and whisk in the infused milk slowly until thoroughly combined. Return the mixture to the clean saucepan and cook over a gentle heat, stirring until thickened (don’t boil). Strain the mixture into the honey and stir until well combined. (It may be necessary to warm the mixture gently.) Allow the custard mixture to cool, then cover and chill for 30 minutes.

• Place the chilled mixture in an ice cream machine and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. If you don’t have an ice cream machine, place the custard mixture in a clean enamelled or stainless steel roasting tin and freeze for about 1hr. Stir the ice cream as it begins to set around the edges and return to the freezer (this will take 4–6 hours). Repeat until the ice cream is completely frozen, then transfer to a freezerproof container and return to the freezer