Honey

What is Honey?

• Recipes with Honey

Nutritional Breakdown of Honey

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz), about 5 Tbsp.

• Energy 300 kcal 1270 kJ
• Carbohydrates 82.4 g
• Sugars 82.12 g
• Dietary fiber 0.2 g
• Fat 0 g
• Protein 0.3 g
• Water 17.10 g
• Riboflavin (Vit. B2) 0.038 mg 3%
• Niacin (Vit. B3) 0.121 mg 1%
• Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.068 mg 1%
• Vitamin B6 0.024 mg 2%
• Folate (Vit. B9) 2 μg 1%
• Vitamin C 0.5 mg 1%
• Calcium 6 mg 1%
• Iron 0.42 mg 3%
• Magnesium 2 mg 1%
• Phosphorus 4 mg 1%
• Potassium 52 mg 1%
• Sodium 4 mg 0%
• Zinc 0.22 mg 2%

Percentages are relative to US
recommendations for adults.
Source: USDA Nutrient database

Types of Honey

• Comb Honey - Comb honey is honey that comes as it was produced — in the honey bees' wax comb. The comb, as well as the honey, is edible!
• Cut Comb - Cut comb honey is liquid honey that has added chunks of the honey comb in the jar. Also known as liquid-cut comb combination.
• Liquid Honey - Free of visible crystals, liquid honey is extracted from the honey comb by centrifugal force, gravity or straining. Because liquid honey mixes easily into a variety of foods, it's especially convenient for cooking and baking. Most of the honey produced in the United States is sold in the liquid form.
• Naturally Crystallized Honey - Naturally crystallized honey is honey that part of the natural glucose content has spontaneously crystallized from solution as the monohydrate.
• Whipped (or Cremed) Honey - While all honey will crystallize in time, whipped honey (also known as cremed honey or sugared honey) is brought to market in a crystallized state. The crystallization is controlled so that, at room temperature, the honey can be spread like butter. In many countries around the world, whipped honey is preferred to the liquid form.

Varietals of Honey

• Polyfloral: Honey as a result of the nectar of many types of flowers.
• Monofloral: Coming from one nectar source. Each monofloral honey has a distinctive flavor and color due to the different nectar sources. Beekeepers keep monofloral beehives in an area where the bees have access to only one type of flower hopping to enhace the honey with the properties of the single floral source. In practice this is very difficult and sometimes the nectar of other flowers will be incorporated into the mix. 
  Different types of monofloral honey
• Honeydew honey: Instead of taking nectar, bees can take the sweet secretions of aphids or other plant sap-sucking insects; this is referred to as honeydew. Domesticate bees that collect this resource have to be fed protein supplements, as honeydew lacks the protein-rich pollen accompaniment gathered from flowers.

Benefits of Honey

For relief of the irritating sore throat symptoms, try a spoonful of honey to coat your throat. Take a spoonful straight, as often as you need, to relieve the irritation or mix it with warm tea and lemon or citrus fruit juice and warm water. Honey has demonstrated antimicrobial properties as well as antioxidant properties. It contains trace amounts of essential nutrients and minerals beneficial to a thriving person. Futher, it is believed by many homeopaths and holistic nutritionists that consuming local honey each day will help reduce the allergic reaction to pollen as you will be consuming a natraul antidote to the pollen in the honey. Honey has what many other sweeteners do not—health benefits not detriments.

Cooking with Honey

With a little experimentation, honey can replace some if not all the sugar in most recipes. For best results, start with substituting ½ the sugar with honey. Adjust as needed.

When baking with honey, remember the following:

• Reduce any liquid called for by 1/4 cup for each cup of honey used.
• Add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda for each cup of honey used.
• Reduce oven temperature by 25°F to prevent over-browning.

Because of its high fructose content, honey has a higher sweetening "power" than sugar. You use less honey than sugar to achieve the desired sweetness.

Cooking Tips:

• When measuring honey, coat the measuring cup with non-stick cooking spray or vegetable oil before adding the honey. The honey will slide right out.
• A 12-ounce jar of honey equals a standard measuring cup.

Storing Honey

• Store honey at room temperature – your kitchen counter or pantry shelf is ideal.  To avoide crystallization, do not store honey in the refrigerator. Crystallization is the natural process in which liquid in honey becomes solid.
• The shelf life of honey is hard to determine. Honey stored in sealed containers can remain stable for decades and even centuries! However, this is a temperature depend situation; honey will darken and lose its aroma and flavor over time. For practical purposes, you should use your honey within two year max.
• If your honey crystallizes, simply place the honey jar in warm water and stir until the crystals dissolve. Or, place the honey in a microwave-safe container with the lid off and microwave it, stirring every 30 seconds, until the crystals dissolve. Be careful not to boil or scorch the honey.

Note: Honey should not be fed to infants less than one year of age; some pediatricians say two years of age. Please check with your health care professional for advice.