Wild Rose Jelly and Wild Honeysuckle Icecream

Thank you to Caitlin Ruth, chef of Deasy's in Ring, for the idea of making honeysuckle ice cream. Rose Jelly and Honeysuckle ice cream must surely represent the culinary equivalent of the Boden Catalogue.

Wild Honeysuckle Ice Cream

500g milk

250g cream

large handfuls of wild honeysuckle flowers

half a vanilla pod or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

6 large egg yolks

100g caster sugar

The night before you make the ice cream, soak the wild honeysuckle in the milk, and also soak some in the cream. The next morning, strain but keep the milk and cream separate.

Heat the milk with the vanilla pod until just below boiling. Beat the egg yolks until creamy. Whisk a little of the hot milk into the egg and then beat in the remaining milk, little by little. Stir in the sugar and then pour into a saucepan and cook on a very low heat, or double boiler, stirring constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon. Don't overheat. When the mixture thickens, stir in the cream and then chill. Churn in an ice cream maker or freeze in a shallow box, stirring every couple of hours as it freezes.

Note: the honeysuckle flavour is subtle, add some pounded honeycomb crumbs if you want to emphasise it.

Wild Rose Jelly

250g pink or red or white rose petals
2 cups sugar
2 lemons
agar seaweed

Make sure you are collecting roses that haven't been sprayed. Carefully remove the petals from the plant and blow off any insects. Place in a large bowl. Add the sugar to the bowl and toss the petals in the sugar, bruising them as you do. When each petal is bruised and covered with sugar, cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave overnight.

The next day, add the lemon juice and 4 cups of water. Dissolve the sugar over a low heat, stirring. Bring to the boil, and simmer for about 15 minutes. Sieve the petals, leaving you with a pink liquid.

Measure the liquid and pour into a saucepan. For each cup of liquid, add one full tablespoon of agar flakes. Bring the mixture to a boil without stirring, then simmer for five minutes, stirring occasionally, until the flakes dissolve. Pour into a jug and set overnight in the fridge.