Stuck on what to make your guests for New Years Eve? Red Bee’s got the answer! We’re buzzing about a decadent cheese and Prosecco fondue drizzled with honey. Cheese and Honey are a natural pairing, and when you add the bubbly fizz of Prosecco, it becomes the perfect festive New Years eve dish. What could bee more decadent and festive and with the surprise of honey your celebration will be spectacular.
Here at Red Bee we’ve put an Italian twist on it, using Fontina Val D'Aosta and Taleggio cheeses. Our alfalfa honey is fantastic drizzled over this fondue or on your dipping accompaniments; its grassy, mild flavor will play nicely with the light flavor of the Prosecco.
Cheese Fondue with Prosecco Recipe
Serves 2 to 4
Ingredients:
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/4 cups Prosecco or Champagne
1 large shallot, chopped
2 cups coarsely grated Gruyère cheese (about 7 ounces)
1 1/3 cups coarsely grated Fontina Val d’Aosta cheese (about 5 ounces)
1/2 cup diced Taleggio cheese (about 3 ounces)
nutmeg, pinch
white pepper, pinch
Linden or alfalfa honey to drizzle
Crusty baguette
Method:
Stir cornstarch and lemon juice in small bowl until cornstarch dissolves; set aside. Combine Prosecco and shallot in fondue pot or heavy medium saucepan; simmer over medium heat 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat. Add all cheeses and stir to combine. Stir in cornstarch mixture. Return fondue pot to medium heat and stir until cheeses are melted and smooth and fondue thickens and boils, about 12 minutes. Season fondue with nutmeg and white pepper. Place over candle or canned heat burner to keep warm. Serve with crusty bread, shrimp and Prosecco.
Red Bee Events:
JANUARY 4
• New Canaan Nature Center Green Book Club
+ Tuesday, January 16, 2010 at 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Spend an evening with beekeeper Marina Marchese
and New Canaan Green Book Club readers to discuss her book
HONEYBEE Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper
JANUARY 9
• Red Bee Skin Care Workshop
+ Saturday, January 9, 2010 at 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Rossape Sustainable Skin Care Workshop, Weston, CT
Spend a fun Saturday at beekeeper Marina's Red Bee Cottage in Weston, CT and learn the basics on how to make your own skin care
using ingredients from your kitchen.
Reserve your place early-limited space!
JANUARY 16
• Honey Tasting Workshop
+ Sunday, January 16, 2010 at 1:00 till 3:00p
Join us for a Tasting Flight of Seven Artisanal honeys
paired with farm style cheeses and accompaniments with Red Bee's own Marina Marchese
Event held at "The Cottage" at Red Bee Studio, Weston, CT.
For more information about Red Bee and our events, please visit www.redbee.com.
Happy New Year and hope to see you all in 2011!
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Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Cheese Fondue with Prosecco!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Red Bee declares 2011 as the year of Honey!
Honey has been gaining popularity as people are looking for a more natural and sustainable way to sweeten their foods. Honey has been around for thousands of years and was used by the ancient Greeks and Romans as a favorite ingredient. Notably, honey was reserved only for royals and was used by commoners to pay their taxes. With an illustrious history like this, how can we not love this food that never spoils and never needs refrigeration.
Red Bee Honey has resolved that 2011 is the year of honey. Here are a few tips to include honey as part of your own New Year resolution.
· Throw out that plastic squeeze honey bear from your grocer – get yourself some luscious, pure honey.
· Try something new – there are hundreds of varietials of U.S. harvested honeys each from a different nectar source. Buckwheat, Blueberry, Alfalfa, Apple & Pumpkin Blossom are just a few of our current favorites.
· Taste honey like they do in Tuscany. Pour some into your finest wine glass. Admire the color aroma and, of course, the taste. La vita è troppo breve per non mangiare bene! (Life is too short not to eat well.)
· Pair honey with cheeses to experience something totally new. For example, blueberry pairs nicely with a triple crème brie or a buckwheat enhances a strong cheese like stilton. There is no right or wrong- it’s your personal preference!
· Invite your friends over for a honey tasting party. No cooking involved, just serve a few different varietals of honey, artisan cheeses, crackers or breads and serve with your favorite beverages-try champagne and wine. The possibilities are endless. Any of these ideas will guarantee you a sweet New Year.
For more recipes and information about Honey and Red Bee Products visit us at www.redbee.com.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Bee Merry...Bee Bright!
Hello Friends, Honey Lovers and Fellow Beekeepers!
The most popular question this time of year is: What do bees do in the winter? Lots of people have all sorts of different ideas about what they might do: “Do you bring the bees inside? Do you put a little heater in the hive?” The idea of bees cuddling around a tiny space heater is adorable, but that would not be the truth. Actually, they cluster in the warmest part of the hive-closest to the sun-with their queen in the center. As the bees cluster around her, they shiver constantly to keep her, and themselves warm. On less chilly days, the bees will crawl over to the honeycombs where they have stored their winter honey and take a bit to feed themselves and the queen. In this way, they keep warm during the winter months and make their honey last through winter and survive into the spring.
Keep your antennae out for a special New Years Eve recipe pairing cheese, champagne, and of course, honey!
Merry, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all!
From all of us at Red Bee Apiary.
Friday, November 19, 2010
YAHOOOO Second Act: Marina Marchese
I wanted to share with you...a YAHOO video called
Second Act: Real stories celebrating life, passion and reinvention-enjoy!
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Me? The Red Queen.......
Last summer I had the great pleasure to sit down with James Beard Award–winning food writer Rowan Jacobsen here at Red Bee Apiary for a tasting flight of more than 25 honeys. For those of you who are not familiar with Rowan, he is a food writer and author of five books including Fruitless Fall: The Collapse of the Honey Bee and the Coming Agricultural Crisis which addresses the disappearing honeybee syndrome. In his new book American Terroir: Savoring the Flavors of our Woods, Waters, and Fields, Rowan explains the French concept of Terroir or "Taste of Place" for the best of local foods found here in America.
Fresh off the plane from my recent trip to the Honey Festival in Montalcino, I found the advanced reading copy in my heaping pile of mail. With memories of Tuscan honey still fresh on my tongue, I dived into Rowan's new book to find a hilarious recount of his visit with me and our honey tasting experience together which begins on page 90. Rowan refers to me as "The Red Queen" and takes the reader along the ride for an intimate look into my private vault of honeys, nectar source by nectar source. In detail we discuss each of the honeys by their aromas, colors and flavor profiles, just as it was fine wine. Our two day honey binge practically left him in a honey-induced coma. It is a rare event for me to stumble upon someone who will actually entertain my passion for single-origin honeys and Rowan lived to tell the story. If you are a locavore and foodie, American Terroir will satisfy your hunger!
Red Bee Honey Tasting Events
SEPTEMBER 28, 2010
Le Pain Quotidien Speaker Series
Mineral Springs location, Central Park, NYC at 6:30 pm
OCTOBER 16, 2010
First Annual Connecticut Cheese & Wine Festival
Hopkins Vineyard
25 Hopkins Rd in New Preston, CT
Red Bee Honey signature Tasting Table
Saturday October 16, 2010 from 11 am to 5 pm
NOVEMBER 9
Honey and Cheese school
+ Tuesday, November 9, 2010 at 7-9 pm
Fairfield Cheese Shop
2090 Post Road Fairfield, CT 203.292.8194
info@fairfieldcheese.com
Honeys and artisanal cheeses with complementary wines from Harry's Wine and Liquor.
NOVEMBER 10
Heavenly Honey and Artisanal Cheeses
+ Wednesday, November 10, 2010 at 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Artisanal Premium Cheese Center, Manhattan, NY
483 Tenth Avenue, New York, NY 10018
Join beekeeper and author of Honeybee: Lessons from an
Accidental Beekeeper, Marina Marchese, owner of Red Bee
Honey and Fromagere Erin Hedley for an enlightening
evening of discovery with delectable pairings of
artisanal honeys and artisanal cheeses with complementary wines.
NOVEMBER 15
How Sweet it is: Honey & Cheese
+ Monday, November 15, 2010 at 6:30 am - 8:00 pm
Murray's Cheese
254 Bleecker St.(between 6th & 7th Ave.)
New York, NY 10014 RSVP:212.243.3289
We'll be pairing Red Bee single varietal American
honeys with the finest farmhouse cheeses.
HONEYBEE book signing to follow
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Saturday, August 28, 2010
Honey Cake Recipe
Need a Honey Cake recipe for next weeks Jewish New Year festivities? This traditional recipe will insure your New Year will be a Sweet one! Wednesday 9/1 is the last day to order your bottle of Red Bee Buckwheat honey for delivery before the holiday! Visit our honey pages at www.redbee.com
Majestic and Moist Honey Cake
Adapted from Marcy Goldman’s Treasure of Jewish Holiday Baking
Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup Red Bee Buckwheat honey
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup warm coffee or strong tea
1/2 cup fresh orange juice 1/4 cup rye or whiskey
1/2 cup slivered or sliced almonds (optional)
Method:
Fits in three loaf pans, two 9-inch square or round cake pans, one 9 or 10 inch tube or bundt cake pan, or one 9 by 13 inch sheet cake. I made mine in two full-size loaf pans plus two miniature ones.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously grease pan(s) with non-stick cooking spray. For tube or angel food pans, line the bottom with lightly greased parchment paper, cut to fit.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and allspice. Make a well in the center, and add oil, honey, white sugar, brown sugars, eggs, vanilla, coffee or tea, orange juice and rye or whiskey, if using. (If you measure your oil before the honey, it will be easier to get all of the honey out.)
Using a strong wire whisk or in an electric mixer on slow speed, stir together well to make a thick, well-blended batter, making sure that no ingredients are stuck to the bottom.
Spoon batter into prepared pan(s). Sprinkle top of cake(s) evenly with almonds, if using. Place cake pan(s) on two baking sheets, stacked together (this will ensure the cakes bake properly with the bottom baking faster than the cake interior and top).
Bake until cake tests done, that is, it springs back when you gently touch the cake center. For angel and tube cake pans, this will take 60 to 75 minutes, loaf cakes, about 45 to 55 minutes. For sheet style cakes, baking time is 40 to 45 minutes.
Let cake stand fifteen minutes before removing from pan. Drizzle a bit more honey over each slice as you serve! Enjoy!!!
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Tuesday, August 17, 2010
"Local" means my Back Yard Garden
Red Bee® Cool Cucumber Soup Recipe
Ingredients:
6 freshly picked cucumbers, rinsed and dried
2 cloves of fresh garden garlic
16 oz. plain Greek yogurt
6 sprigs of fresh spearmint
6 sprigs of fresh parsley
2 cherry tomatoes and mint leaves for garnish.
Method:
1. Remove skin from half of each cucumber, this gives a lovely green color to your soup.
Slice in half length wise and remove seeds with spoon.
2. Chop into 2 inch pieces and place in food processor. Add garlic, yogurt and herbs. Process until fine texture and blended well.
3. Pour into stainless or glass dish and cover. Chill in refrigerator for 2 hours or more until flavors marinate.
4. Serve in bowls add quartered cherry tomatoes, and mint leaves for garnish.
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Monday, July 26, 2010
July just melted away!
I cannot believe July just melted away right before my eyes! I don't just mean weather-wise. We experienced temperatures here in the NE reaching one hundred degrees with humidity that made my beeswax candles droop. The month was a blurr of honey tastings and book talks enough to make anyone's hair get the frizzies.
I want to personally thank all of those who came out to the New York Public Library to hear me discuss my book HONEYBEE and answer the question of the year..."What made you become a beekeeper?" I enjoyed answering all your insightful bee questions. A big thank you to my agent for coming out even with her arm still in a sling and my assistant Suzanne for taking care of sales!
Have you been to the New Amsterdam Market in Manhattan? We got our first taste of art meets food at this truly European style outdoor market last Saturday. If you have not been down there, it is an absolute must for artisanal food lovers. Check out the paper table cloths and chalkboards, these were perfect for doodling honeybees and tasting notes while expressing my creative style. This was our first signature honey tasting table at the market, it was clear that shoppers loved Red Bee Honey when we left empty handed at 4 pm! Stay tuned for future dates.
If you thought honey only came in those silly plastic squeeze bears and always should taste the same, you'll be delighted to learn about Single-Origin Honey by nectar sources and that all honey is not created equal. August 1st is your last chance to attend our infamous Honey Tastings Workshop @ Red Bee Apiary. Tour, talk and tastings begin at 1:00 pm till 2:30 pm. Please reserve your seat on the events page on our web site at www.redbee.com or click on Honey Tasting Workshop above.
I had the honor to present an educational Honey Tasting for a group of very intrigued producers at the Food Network. My assistant and publicist report that not one looked at their hand held throughout my one hour honey talk. Our visit ended with a walk through the hustle bustle at Kitchen Stadium. Talk about busy bees! This photo is me showing two of the bravest producers inside my top bar hive. The bees were very well behaved and presented us with an award winning super full of honey. Of course, they got to taste it making it a memorable trip to Red Bee Apiary.
More: Honeybee Book Dates:
Brick Walk Farmers Market, Fairfield, CT on Saturday, July 31st at 9 am-2 pm
FreshFarm Market, Bethesda, MD on Saturday, August 7th at 9 am-1pm
Sweet and Spicy Grilling Sauce
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 10 minutes
Method:- 2 Tablespoons peanut oil
- 2 small shallots, peeled and minced (about 3 Tablespoons)
- 4 cloves minced fresh garlic
- 1/4 cup grated fresh ginger
- 1 cup dry sherry
- 2/3 cup Buckwheat honey
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 Tablespoons hoisin sauce
Heat oil in a medium saucepan; add shallots and garlic; cook over low heat for 5 minutes, until softened. Add ginger and cook for 1 minute more, stirring frequently. Add honey and sherry and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 3 minutes. Combine the soy, water and cornstarch in a small bowl; add to pan with hoisin sauce. Cook and stir for several minutes more until slightly thickened. Remove half of the sauce to a small bowl and set aside. Brush remaining sauce over pork ribs, beef skewers or chicken during grilling last 5 minutes of grilling. Place reserved bowl of sauce on the table to drizzle over the cooked meat.
Monday, June 07, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Blooming and Buzzing!
Our gardens are blooming and the bees are buzzing! It's finally June at Red Bee® and is it just me, or is everyone crazy for honey? Now more than ever, people are paying attention to where their food comes from and now...even their honey. Did you know that honeybees are responsible for pollinating 100 different fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, spices? My personal favorites that I could not live without are coffee, chocolate and the cotton for my blue jeans. Beekeepers nurture natures greatest pollinators while providing local honey at their source. They are the rising rock stars of today's green movement. We find ourselves here at Red Bee Apiary are busier than ever, educating the public on honey and beekeeping. People are reading labels too! They understand that what you put on your body is as important as what you put in it. With that said, our Rossape sustainable skin care products are getting attention too. Could bees and honey possibly be getting a little bit of respect?
So if your interested in learning more about the health benefits and the culinary delights of honey, join us at one of our workshops here at Red Bee Apiary. There are a few coveted seats left for our next Seven Flight Honey Tasting Workshop on Sunday, June 20th at 1:00 pm till 3:00 pm. Reserve your seat on our web site.
Learn how honeybees make this liquid gold we call honey, how location and nectar source determines a honeys color and flavor and how is harvested and extracted from the comb. Beekeeper and Honey Sommelier, Marina Marchese will show us how to taste and evaluate honey using the Honey Sommelier tasting guide in her new book HONEYBEE Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper.
Read: What Fairfield Green Food Guide says about our Honey Tasting Events!
If you can't make our formal events, our Honey Tasting and Bottling Kitchen is opened 12:00 noon till 4:00 pm seven days a week by appointment only. Honey lovers are invited to join us for a Tasting Flight of any seven honeys of your choice with accompaniments locally produced bread and goat or brie cheeses for $5.00 per person. Groups of six or more could reserve our veranda overlooking the apiary and gardens.
Red Bee® JUNE EVENTS
SATURDAYS •••••••
Farmers Markets have officially begun and Red Bee Honey can be found at the New Canaan and Fairfield Brick Walk markets.
JUNE 3
Ocean County Library Stafford Branch • 129 N. Main Street, Manahawkin, NJ 08050
Honeybee Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper Book Talk
JUNE 5
Sculpture Barn Art Center • Preservation Celebration • 3 Millltown Road RT39, New Fairfield, CT
Honey, Cheese and Wine Tasting
June 12
Centennial Bee Day Party • Brooklyn Botanical Gardens
Honey Tasting and Honeybee book signing
JUNE 20
Seven Flight Honey Tasting
at Red Bee Apiary
JUNE 25
Artisanal Cheese Center • Honey, Cheese and Wine
Beekeeper and Honey Sommelier Marina Marchese and Affineur Erin Hedley
Here is one of our favorite recipes It is so easy and elegant...
Honey Figs with Goat Cheese and Pecans Recipe
Goat cheese or Chèvre cheese is cheese made from goat's milk (chèvre is French for goat). In regions where domesticated goats are kept, many kinds of goat's milk cheeses are produced.
Caprino is a Italian goat's milk cheese and Castelo Branco is a Portuguese goat's milk cheese. So don’t be afraid to experiment.
Servings: 6
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
1cup pecans, finely chopped
3/4 cup of wildflower honey
6 oz log of goat cheese
12 fresh figs Calimyrna or black missions, halved
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
Methods:
Place the finely chopped pecans in a shallow dish. Season with salt and pepper. Roll the goat cheese log in the pecans to evenly coat. Refrigerate log until firm. To serve, cut evenly into rounds. Divide figs evenly between 6 dessert plates. Top figs with a round of pecan crusted goat cheese. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of honey over each serving. Serve immediately.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Honey, not just for your Tea
Honey and tea has been a staple for as long as we could remember. Grandmother's swore that it would ease symptoms related to colds and flues. The latest buzz is that local honey helps seasonal allergies and our customer swear by this. They stop by daily, specifically to purchase our local honey.
Here at Red Bee Apiary, we use honey on just about everything and there is no food that has escaped the drizzle of our liquid gold, from home baked breads to a sweetener for our morning coffee. YES, I said coffee. Who ever thought honey could be the perfect "green" sweetener for your morning Joe? It's full of minerals and vitamins that you won't find in processed sweeteners.
To help you explore the possibilities of coffee and honey, we are hosting a Coffee Roasting Workshop here in our gardens at Red Bee Apiary and posting three of our favorite honey recipes below. Coffee and Honey are the perfect accompaniments for home baked breads. We will be serving up all three of these tasty honey spreads with locally made Wave Hill breads and the freshly roasted coffee at the workshop.
Please join us for a Coffee Roasting Workshop with Peter and Junalyn Duveen of the Siberian Pipeline Coffee Company in NY. Learn how to roast your own coffee beans for a much fresher, robust flavor. Find out about pan-roasted coffee, and automatic roasting machines, and taste the result--freshly brewed coffee with delicious locally made Wave Hill Bread and Red Bee Honeys! Each guest will receive one sample sized bag of coffee beans.
Red Bee's Coffee Roasting Workshop
RECIPES:
Coffee Creamed Honey
Makes 1 cup
- 9 oz. creamed honey
- 1 Tablespoon instant coffee
- 1 teaspoon hot water
In small bowl, bring creamed honey to room temperature. Combine instant coffee and hot water. Add to creamed honey. Stir in quickly but do not blend completely, leaving some swirls of coffee. Chill until ready to serve. Makes 8 2-Tablespoon servings.
Chocolate Honey Hazelnut Spread (Nutella)Makes 1-1/4 cups
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup ground skinned roasted hazelnuts
- 1 teaspoon raw cocoa powder
Cream honey and butter; add hazelnuts and stir until smooth. Serve spread at room temperature; store in refrigerator, tightly covered. Cream honey and butter; add hazelnuts and stir until smooth. Serve spread at room temperature; store in refrigerator, tightly covered. * Roast hazelnuts on flat pan at 325°F for 15 minutes or until skins blister and nuts are lightly browned. Cool slightly; rub between palms of hands or with clean towel to remove skins. Grind in blender or food processor until fine but not pasty.
Whipped Honey Cinnamon Butter
Makes 1 cup
- 1/2 cup (6 oz.) whipped or creamed honey
- 1/4 lb. (1 stick) butter, softened
- 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
In a medium bowl, mix together honey and butter. Spoon into jars with tight-fitting lids. Store in refrigerator.
Monday, April 05, 2010
Spring has arrived, Let the festivities begin!
Spring is a season for new beginnings and we are awfully excited about this upcoming bee season. Our garlic is popping up, arugula sprouts are peeking at the sun and our baby chickies are arriving soon to meet their new flock. It is going to be filled with many new fun and educational events. This year we were asked to host our first honey tasting and pairing workshop here in our apiary garden by Analiese Palik founder of Fairfield Green Food Guide and your invited! Join us for a Tasting Flight of Seven Artisanal honeys on May 18th. We have invited local producers of breads and cheeses to join us. Look for the listing on the CT Bites web site then follow the link to our web site to RSVP and pre-pay for your spot. This will be a wonderful gathering of community to celebrate artisanal producers and local agriculture.
How Sweet it is: Honey & Cheese
Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at 6:30 am - 8:00 pm
Murray's Cheese
254 Bleecker St.(between 6th & 7th Ave.)
New York, NY 10014 RSVP:212.243.3289
I will be teaming up with Louise Geller mail order manager at Murray's
to pair Red Bee single varietal American
honeys with the finest farmhouse cheeses.
HONEYBEE book signing to follow
Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 6:00-9:00 pm
Come experience our signature honey tasting table
at The Westport Inn, benefiting CLASP Homes, Inc.
To order tickets please call 203.226.7895 ext. 144
This week I am off to sign copies of my book HONEYBEE Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper for the Orange Blossom Beekeepers Association in Orlando, Florida. I look forward to meeting all the people who make sure our nations honeybees are pollinating our oranges, avocados and litchi nuts.
One last announcement, Nyack, NY will be putting on their 40th Earth Day celebration. Kicking off this week of festivities is a brunch honoring five local woman of leadership and vision. I was invited to be the keynote speaker for this celebration. Needless to say, I was flattered even to be considered a speaker for an event of this caliber. Other activities include music, crafts, beekeeping education, (I will also present a beekeeping workshop) and even a beekeepers ball. This all begins on April 17th. More info can be found on the events pages of our web site. www.redbee.com
Hoping your April is filled with good food and community to share it with.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Natural Remedies using Raw, Local Honey
The healing properties of honey have earned it a reputation as one the purest and most natural remedies. Honey has been used for centuries to treat a wide range of medical problems, including wounds, burns, and scrapes. When honey is used for wounds, inflammation, swelling, and pain are quickly reduced, and healing occurs rapidly with minimal scarring tissue.
Raw honey is a living food with unadulterated health benefits. The pH of honey is commonly between 3.4 and 6.1; the average is 3.9. This relatively acidic pH level and honey’s moisture-absorbing qualities prevent the growth of many bacteria responsible for infection. They also keep honey from spoiling. Honey is a predigested sweetener that is easily assimilated by the body, and it is an excellent energizer that can be used to enhance athletic performance and relieve low blood sugar. Honey supplies two stages of energy. The glucose in honey is absorbed by the body quickly and gives an immediate energy boost. The fructose is absorbed more slowly, providing sustained energy. Raw honey still in the comb contains the most bee pollen and is high in vitamin C; it is excellent for your immune system. Raw honey has been proven to kill E. coli, staph, P. aeruinosa, and H. pylori, which causes many stomach ulcers. The enzyme glucose oxidase in honey makes honey a natural preservative and can create hydrogen peroxide to form an antimicrobial barrier. Honey has antiseptic, antibiotic, antifungal, and antibacterial properties, and it contains antioxidants.
Honey is an all-round healing elixir, which can promote health and general well-being. I take at least a spoonful of honey on a daily basis, whether as a sweetener in drinks, spread on toast or sinfully by the spoonful. Cinnamon with honey is a natural match and these together help blood pressure.
Honey Cleanser:
Give yourself a daily boost with this cleansing tonic: mix a spoonful or two of honey and the juice of half a lemon into a cup of hot water and drink each morning before breakfast.
The Energy Provider: Next time you exercise take a spoonful of honey beforehand. Easily absorbed by the body, honey is a source of natural unrefined sugars and carbohydrates, which are, providing an instant energy boost with long-lasting effects. For this reason, many athletes take honey during training sessions.
Coughs and Colds:
Honey is a natural remedy for the relief of the symptoms of colds, coughs, sore throats and flu. For a sore throat, take it on its own or gargle with a mixture of two tablespoons of set honey, four tablespoons of cider vinegar and a pinch of salt. It coats your throat instantly making it feel better. This is the reason many singers use honey to protect their voices. A traditional drink made from hot water, lemon juice and honey will help to soothe cold and flu symptoms. Adding a little eucalyptus oil or root ginger will help to ease congestion and, to help enhance sleep, try a drop of whiskey in the mixture.
Cuts and Burns:
Honey used as an ointment can help to keep external wounds, such as cuts and minor burns, clean and free from infection and minimize scaring. By absorbing the moisture around the wound, honey, a mild antiseptic can help to prevent the growth of bacteria. Dry, flaky, skin? Honey wills sooth your skin by adding moisture. Honey has been used as a healing aid centuries and it continues to be used today in products for skin and hair care. Because of the hydroscopic qualities of honey, it absorbs water and causes the skin to hold moisture.
A Digestive Healer:
It was the Romans who first discovered the beneficial effects of honey on digestive disorders when they would prescribe honey as a mild laxative. Honey has also been used as a treatment for upset stomachs, gas, indigestion, diarrhea, stomach ulcers and constipation. The principle behind these theories is that honey is believed to help destroy certain bacteria in the gut by acting as a preserving agent. Honeys properties
Chronic sinus:
Honeycomb or crude liquid honey ingested can alleviate sinus infections. Mixed with a fine grained salt in warm water and poured through the sinuses using a neti pot is an ancient Ayurvedic technique. Neti, which literally means nasal cleansing with water in Sanskrit, where the practitioner uses a neti pot to perform the irrigation is a common practice in India and South Asia.
"Excerpted with permission from
Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper
by C. Marina Marchese,
published by Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, 2009."
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