For years I
thought I didn’t like honey—too sweet, cloying. But a couple of years ago,
something changed. I had a case of the flu or that dreaded flu-that-is-not-the-flu,
and coffee just tasted awful to me. So I began to drink tea, and then, because
I heard it was better for you, I moved on to green tea. But it needed
something, so I began to add a scant teaspoon of honey every morning. Voila! I
had found my drink of choice. Now I start every day with a mug of green tea
sweetened with honey.
We’ve all heard
and seen the dire warnings about bees disappearing form our planet and
subsequently taking with them many of the foods we love, foods that they pollinate.
For some reason, coffee and avocados come to mind, but there are many others.
So I’m a fervent opponent of toxic pesticides that kill bees and a proponent of
planting bee-friendly gardens. Bee-friendly plants include daisies, marigolds,
zinnias, crocus, hyacinth, foxglove, hosta, and many others. You can find lists
and directions for a bee garden online.
But there’s
another concern about honey. Most of what we buy in the grocery has been
adulterated—mixed with other substances to change the color, flavor, thickness—and
above all, the cost. So when you think you’re buying honey, you may be buying
mostly corn syrup, a cheap imitation which has none of honey’s healthful or
medicinal powers—or its pure taste.
You can buy
pasteurized honey, filtered honey, raw honey. Filtered takes out the bits of
pollen and beeswax that maybe found in raw honey; pasteurization sterilizes it
but may well remove some of the natural benefits. I prefer the raw, mostly because
I trust it to be purer and less adulterated. Best choice? Buy at a farmers’
market from a beekeeper.
They say it’s best
to buy honey that is produced within 30 miles or something of your home,
because it contains antidotes to local allergens. When I can’t get to a farmers’
market or when they don’t have honey, I try to buy Texas honey and avoid some
that I suspect come from China. I looked on the label of the jar currently in
my cupboard, and the only warning was that you should not give honey to infants
under a year of age.
Raw honey
sometimes crystallizes. Just remove the cap and set the jar in a pan of really
hot water. It will go back to being liquid. If honey doesn’t crystallize, it’s
probably been adulterated.
Did your
grandmother ever put a teaspoon of honey in a cup of hot tea to soothe a cough
or a sore throat (with maybe also a teaspoon of bourbon)? Honey has lots of
medicinal uses as well as cooking uses. We find it frequently in marinades
(often to balance soy sauce) and in salad dressings. Honey mustard is a classic
dressing. But have you ever thought of using honey to create appetizers? It
pairs well with cheese and fruit both.
A young friend who
occasionally comes for happy hour taught me to put a drop of honey on a hunk of
blue cheese served on a cracker or an apple slice or whatever. Here are some
other ways to use honey for appetizers:
--bake pear slices with butter until just
barely soft, top with goat cheese and drizzle with honey
--stuff figs with cream cheese softened
with port, peppercorns, and honey, and bake briefly
--grill peach halves, top with a basil
leaf and a drizzle of honey
--mix equal parts of a good blue cheese
and cream cheese and serve with honey
--bake a block of good feta in a dish
brushed with olive oil; top the cheese with more olive oil and a drizzle of
honey; bake until top of cheese is caramelized; sprinkle with fresh thyme, and
drizzle a bit more honey if you wish
--bake a wedge of brie; drizzle with
honey, and use wedges of apples and pear to dip into the molten cheese
--fry thick slices of firm banana in olive
oil until lightly browned on each side; remove from skillet and top each slice
with a drop of honey and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
Of course, you
need a good crisp white wine with these nibbles.
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