Gift your loved one something great
What could be nicer and a better way to show your love than a gorgeous dinner cooked by your own fair hands specially for the love in your life?
And to make things even sweeter, we have chosen three pretty simple, yet gorgeous recipes all made with honey.
What’s for dinner, honey?
We’ve started with delicious goat cheese croquettes with honey and toasted almonds that were inspired by Waiheke Island’s Casita Miro restaurant. The recipe is for four people – it makes 12 balls – but the truth of the matter is, we can gooble them up between the pair of us, no worries. The restaurant also served them elegantly on a bed of nicely dressed rocket. At our house, they are eaten too quickly for this.
Next, is a really handy honey lemon garlic chicken recipe that will become a staple and then for dessert, a super-easy and very yummy banana and coconut ice-cream with honey. This is always a crowd pleaser and you’ll love it.
These are our Valentine’s Day recipes with honey to share. As always, the recipes are all a bit of a mix and match of things adapted from here and there over the years but I do try to acknowledge their original provenance where I can remember. I do hope you enjoy.
Valentine’s Day recipes with honey
Goat Cheese Croquettes with Honey and Toasted Almonds
Ingredients
- 220 grams soft goat cheese, roughly chopped
- 60 grams cream cheese, slightly softened
- 1 egg, whisked
- 1½ cups breadcrumbs
- 2 cups of rice bran or grapeseed oil
To serve - 2 tablespoons good-quality runny honey
- ½ cup flaked almonds, lightly toasted
Directions
- Put the cheeses in a small bowl and mash to a firm, smooth paste. Put in the fridge to firm up for about 20 minutes.
- Roll the cheese into 12 small balls and chill again for half an hour.
- Dip the balls in the whisked egg, then roll in the breadcrumbs until well coated and chill again for at least half an hour.
- Heat the oil until a small piece of bread pops up to the surface and goes brown in about 20 seconds. Fry balls for a few minutes until golden.
- Drain well on paper towels and serve drizzled with honey and sprinkled with the toasted flaked almonds.
If you’re a bit pressed for time for this recipe, you could try our goat cheese dips and spreads with honey or our ‘instant gourmet’ cheese and raw honeycomb platter.
Honey Lemon Garlic Chicken
A chicken dinner filled with zesty and sweet flavours, this is a winner.
Ingredients
- Ikg bone in, skin on chicken thighs
- Salt
- 1/2 cup honey
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 2 heaped tablespoons minced garlic
- 6 whole garlic cloves, peeled
- Lemon slices and zest to garnish
- Spring onions to garnish
Directions
- Preheat oven to 180°C.
- Whisk together the honey, lemon juice, soy sauce, vinegar and minced garlic. Pour about 1/4 cup of the sauce over the seasoned chicken (or just enough to coat each thigh evenly in the sauce.
- Sear the chicken skin side down over medium high heat In an oven-proof dish until golden – about 5 minutes. Turn and repeat on the other side. Drain most of the excess oil from the pan, leaving about 1 tablespoon.
- Arrange chicken skin-side up in the pan, add the whole garlic cloves, pour half of the remaining sauce over each thigh (about 1-2 tablespoons per thigh) and bake for 40-45 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear. The skin should be crispy and sticky.
- While the chicken is baking, pour the remaining sauce into a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and stir occasionally, lifting the pot off of the heat when the sauce bubbles up to the rim, until the sauce has reduced and thickened slightly (about 6 minutes).
- Serve the chicken by pouring over remaining sauce, lemon zest, lemon slices and spring onions.
Banana and Coconut Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2 ripe bananas, peeled, chopped and frozen in a plastic bag
- ½ cup coconut milk – you can use frozen coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla
- flaked coconut for garnish
Directions
- Let the bananas thaw for about 5 minutes and then put them in a food processor.
- Add the coconut milk, honey and vanilla and puree until well combined and creamy.
- If you have used frozen coconut milk, you can garnish and serve immediately, or you can return the ice-cream to the freezer in a dish lined with baking paper until you’re ready to serve.
Valentine’s Day recipes with honey that can’t bee bettered.
If you feel you just can’t do the Valentine’s day cooking thing, you could always get a lovely beeswax candle as a gift: candles always work.
PREMIUM RAW MANUKA HONEY
RAW NZ NATIVE HONEY
CANDLES
