Beauty and the Bees Honey

BEAUTY AND THE BEES HONEY

Ripe honey made by our gentle bees is spun out of the honeycomb and poured into reusable, recyclable bottles without changing the specific gravity, enzyme content, flavor, color or natural beauty of nature's sweetest gift. All of our honey is produced in Western Washington. It is unprocessed and unpasteurized--as "straight from the honeycomb" as possible to be able to pour it into jars. We work with bees in awe of one of nature's complex societal arrangements. We love to talk about bees and honey and promise to answer every letter we receive about our product. Beauty and the Bees is committed to excellence in both out beekeeping practices and honey production.

USING HONEY

A tablespoon of honey tastes about 60% sweeter than the same amount of sugar, yet it has 20 less calories. When substituting honey for table sugar, use about 3/4 of the amount of honey instead of sugar listed in the recipe. If baking with honey, reduce the oven temperature by 25o. Coating the measuring device with a thin layer of oil makes the honey slide into the bowl with much less work. The addition of honey to food increases sweetness, decreases sour and bitter flavors and decreases the perception of salty taste.

TYPES OF HONEY

Many different flowers produce the nectar that the worker bees collect. Each flower yields a different color of honey with a distinctive flavor. Bees will gather nectar from all the nectar producing blossoms at any given time. Our label tells you where the hive is located and what season the honey was harvested, but not the floral source because most honeys contain a combination. Our bees forage mostly blackberry and fireweed flowers in the Monroe, Washington apiaries and summer garden flowers in the Seattle urban apiary.

CRYSTALLIZED HONEY

All honey will eventually crystallize depending on the floral source - some within days of harvest; others not for years. Crystallized honey is NOT spoiled and can be liquidized without harming the quality or flavor of the honey by placing the closed jar in a 95 - 110o water bath just until it is clear. Honey has very little water in it (<18%) and should be kept in a closed container so that it does not absorb atmospheric water which could cause it to ferment. Fermented honey smells sour and should not be consumed. Honey should ideally be stored at <50o to preserve optimal flavor, color and to retard crystallization.

HONEY COMPOSITION

Honey is composed primarily of glucose and fructose, not sucrose (which is table sugar) When our bodies break down sucrose, the metabolic end product is the precursor for cholesterol. Higher cholesterol levels increase the risk of heart disease.

Honey also has antibacterial properties. The acidity of honey and the enzymes that the bees use to convert the flower nectar to honey will act to kill non-spore forming bacterial cells. Yeast and mold growth is also inhibited because honey is dry and consequently dehydrates the yeast, mold and bacterial cells.