Oh, Honey!

Honey caught our eye this month. Why did it take this long? Maybe it’s because the bounties of summer are long gone at the farmers market, and the golden containers now have a real chance to take center stage. Maybe it’s the golden color and rich sweetness that works so well with fall and winter cooking. (Think of drizzling over baked acorn squash.)

Whatever the reason, fully three honey producers offer their wares at our local farmer’s market. And a quick trip around the net reveals that two of these are county Vice Presidents of the Maryland State Beekeepers Association: Matt Redman for Kent and Mark Emerson for Queen Anne’s.

How to best use honey? Unlike sugar, honey has a distinctive flavor and ounce for ounce is sweeter. The best recipes use that flavor to an advantage. You’ll find that honey is often balanced with heat, citrus or vinegar. Click here for our recipe page, featuring just a few of the recipes offered up by the National Honey Board:

• Hanukkah Rack of Lamb
• Honey Barbecue Sauce
• Honey-Chipotle Sauce/Dressing
• Thai Honey Peanut Sauce
• Honey & Ginger Marinated Flank Steak
• Korean-style Beef

Honey can last decades, even centuries, in airtight containers. (But think of the shelf-life as a couple of years.) The health benefits are still unclear, but doctors do say that a spoonful of honey may be even more effective than cough syrup. Here are some tips and recipes for the oldest sweetener known to mankind:

♦ Lighter honey is milder tasting; darker is richer. Darker tends to have a higher mineral content and antioxidant potential.

♦ Substituting honey for granulated sugar calls for some experimenting. The Honey Board recommends only substituting honey for half the sugar.

♦ Baking with Honey:

- Use pure honey for up to half the granulated sweetener in a recipe.

- Reduce oven temperature by 25°F to prevent over-browning.

- For each cup of honey used:

Reduce any liquid called for by 1/4 cup.

Add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda.

-Honey is sweeter than sugar. This means you can use less honey than sugar to achieve the desired sweetness.

♦ Love this tip: When measuring honey, coat the measuring cup with non-stick cooking spray or vegetable oil before measuring. The honey will slide right out.

♦ A 12-ounce jar of honey equals a standard measuring cup.

♦ Store honey at room temperature – on your counter or pantry shelf – not in the refrigerator.  

♦ Don’t give honey to kids under the age of one, I don’t know why, but they say don’t.