FOOD TVHeston returns to his childhood

Heston Blumenthal uses fairytales as the edible inspiration for his latest Feast

Heston Blumenthal is the first to admit that he loves cooking ‘edible extremes’, as he likes to call them. Bloodsucking eels, dormice, snail porridge… Hmm, we’re not sure we’d call them edible at all, Heston!

"I do sometimes wonder if I push things too far," chuckles Heston, who’s currently creating jaw-dropping dishes in the C4 series, Heston’s Feasts. "I love getting a reaction from the celebrity diners I cook for, but this series I’m trying the extreme stuff out on myself first. I’m taking the hits so they don’t have to."

Any examples? "Leeches fed on goose blood. They were once in fashion and I was going to serve them up as part of a Gothic Feast, but even after frying them in parsley and garlic they were horrible."

Celebrity diners including Fay Ripley and presenter Jenni Falconer join Heston this week as he explores the Regency period, drawing inspiration from the fairytales of the time.

"I wanted to recreate that sense of wonder you have as a child when you first hear stories like Snow White and Hansel and Gretel," explains Heston. "Jack and the Beanstalk was probably my favourite fairytale as a boy, which inspired me to make the starter of beans – which were actually chicken testicles."

Unsurprisingly, reaction is mixed. "Jenni Falconer was fine until she found out what they were," he grins.

But it’s his dessert – a huge Hansel and Gretel house, that’s a triumph. Every part, from the chocolate drainpipes to ice-cream window boxes to shortbread slate roof tiles is edible.

"My daughter watched the episode and said, 'Where’s my roof?'" grins Heston, who suggests users try his slightly less ambitious Banbury Cakes recipe.

"Honestly, this is my dream show; being able to create food like this. I’m like a kid in a sweet shop."

FOOD TVRecipe

Full Recipe: Heston's Millionaire shortbread