I have wanted to try a honey pie for ages ever since I saw it in the four and twenty blackbirds recipe book. I used some borage honey from the London honey company and some borage flowers from maddocks farm organics. borage flowers are such a beautiful colour and they have a slight cucumber taste so I added some mint into the pasty to go with it. it was really great and my partner ate most of it with some ice cream I had made. the salt on the top really adds to the flavour. I love the four and twenty blackbirds pie book its has such great recipes in it, I have baked several pies from it.

adapted from four and twenty blackbirds pie book

Ingredients
1¼ c. unbleached all-purpose flour
½ tsp. kosher salt
1½ tsp. granulated sugar

mint leaves (about 6)
¼ lb. (1 stick) cold, unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
½ c. ice water
2 tbsp. cider vinegar
½ c. ice

1. Stir the flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Add the butter pieces and coat with the flour mixture using a bench scraper or spatula. cut the mint with some scissors into small pieces.

2. With a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture, working quickly until mostly pea-size pieces of butter remain (a few larger pieces are okay; be careful not to over blend).

3. Combine the water, cider vinegar, and ice in a bowl or large measuring cup.

4. Sprinkle 2 tbsp. of the ice water mixture over the flour mixture, and mix and cut it in with a bench scraper or spatula until it is fully incorporated.

5. Add more of the ice water mixture, 1 to 2 tbsp. at a time, using the bench scraper or your hands (or both) to mix until the dough comes together in a ball, with some dry bits remaining.

6. Squeeze and pinch with your fingertips to bring the dough together, sprinkling dry bits with small drops of the ice water mixture, if necessary, to combine. Shape dough into a flat disc.

7. Flour a flat surface, then roll out dough into a 12- to 13-inch circle. Carefully place dough in 9-inch pie pan, trim hanging edges, and crimp. Wrap pan in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight, to give crust time to mellow. (Wrapped tightly, the dough can be refrigerated for 3 days or frozen for 1 month.)

For the filling

Ingredients
¼ lb. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
¾ c. granulated sugar
1 tbsp. white cornmeal
½ tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. vanilla paste
¾ c. borage  honey
3 lg. eggs
½ c. heavy cream
2 tsp. white vinegar
1 to 2 tsp. flake sea salt, for finishing

hand full or borage flowers (optional)

1. Have ready the frozen or refrigerated pastry-lined 9-inch pie pan.

2. Position a rack in the centre of the oven and preheat the oven to 375°.

3. In a medium bowl, stir the melted butter, sugar, cornmeal, salt, and vanilla paste.

4. Stir in the honey and the eggs one at a time, followed by the heavy cream and vinegar. and flowers is using.

5. Remove the pie shell from the refrigerator or freezer, place on a rimmed baking sheet, and strain the filling through a fine-mesh sieve directly into the pie shell (or strain it into a separate bowl and then pour it into the shell).

6. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 45-50 minutes, rotating 180 degrees when the edges start to set, 30-35 minutes through baking.

7. The pie is finished when the edges are set and puffed up high and the centre is no longer liquid but looks set like gelatine and is golden brown on top.

8. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack, 2-3 hours.

9. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and some borage flowers (if using) and bee pollen

10. Reheat or serve at room temperature. (The pie will keep for 4 days in the refrigerator or at room temperature for 2 days.)