Hokey Pokey Using Honey

Our answer

Nigella's Hokey Pokey (from NIGELLA EXPRESS) is a honeycomb candy. The golden syrup (or corn syrup) is used as it is an invert syrup and helps to stop the sugar mixture from crystallising as it cooks, as well as stopping the candy from becoming too brittle. Honey is similar as it is a mixture of glucose and sucrose and so the runny or liquid form of honey should work in the same way in preventing crystallization.

However honey can have a strong flavour so it will affect the flavour of the Hokey Pokey and may not be to everyone's taste. Also the concentration of sugars can vary between honey batches, so if you were to make the hokey pokey with honey then it would be best to use a sugar thermometer and make sure that the mixture reaches the "had crack" stage (150-154C/300-310F) so that it sets properly. Also note that any Hokey Pokey candy will tend to soften quickly if it is kept in a humid environment. Unfortunately as we have not tested the recipe with honey we cannot guarantee the results.