Honey. Yummy Honey.
Honey? The Quick answers.
How long does Honey keep? Ages, absolutely ages. Not very
precise, Honey can stay edible for years. It is a legal requirement
that we
put best before dates on containerised food products. Most Beekeepers
will label it as best before 18 months from jarring.
The Honey has set, can I still eat it? Yes. All pure untreated Honey
sets within 6 weeks to 6 months. If you've got a jar over 6 months old
your not eating enough.
It is possble to return the Honey to a runny consistency. Two methods
1) zap it in a microwave(without lid!) for 10 seconds, no more. Leave
to cool. Repeat until runny. 2) Boil a pan of water. Place the
opened Honey jar in the pan, make sure no water gets into the jar.
Leave until the Honey is clear and runny again.
How many kinds of Honey are there? Loads. Here's the shortlist,
Borage, Blossom, Heather, Chestnut, Spring, Lavender, Rose, Acacia,
Manuka.
Broadly there are four ways in which Honey is produced for sale to the
public.
A) On the comb, literally as it is in the Bee hive.
B) Clear or Runny Honey. This is usually Honey created from Summer
flowering plants but is very dependent on the local flora.
C) Set or Creamed Honey. Often made from Honey collected in Spring.
This Honey undergoes the addiotnal process of being 'stirred' by the
Beekeeper to ensure an eveness of texture and help prevent it from
setting too soon.
D) Heather Honey. One on its own. This Honey has a jelly like
consistency and as such is very difficult to harvest.
Honey? What is it?
Honey is that
deliciously sweet gooey stuff you get in jars that
shines a delightful golden colour when catching the sunlight. That's
most people's immediate idea of Honey. However, there is a
wide variety of Honey depending on the local flora from which it is
created. This affects consistency, texture, colour and of course
flavour.
Honey starts as nectar in the base of flowers. This nectar serves no
other purpose than to attract pollinators such as Honey Bees. The
foraging Honey Bees transport the collected nectar to the Hive where it
is passed to 'House' Bees. These House Bees pack the nectar in
the comb they have built and then evaporate the excess moisture from
the nectar. When the water content falls between 17%-20% the comb
is sealed and the content is now Honey.
The Honey Bee will create great stores of Honey which are the
carbohydrate supplies for the colony when there are no flowers to
harvest nectar from.
Honey as you most often see it in the shops is the final product of the
Beekeeper.
A Beekeeper will nurture their colonies to produce excess quantities of
Honey. Often way beyond the requirements of the Honey Bee
colony. The Beekeeper extracts the Honey from the comb using a
centrifuge, although in the case of Heather Honey it has been crushed
out using a Honey Press. The collected Honey is left to settle. If
the Honey is to be sold as Clear/Runny Honey it is jarred up. If the Honey is to
be Set/Creamed it is stirred severel times until the right consistency is
attained. That's it, but it can be hard work.
The benefits of eating Honey are numerous. If you enjoy it then it's
got to be good for you, in moderation of course.
It is a natural sweetener having a high Fructose content. This means
you need less of it to produce the same degree of sweetness than
obtained from refined sugars.
Honey has benefial qualities if you suffer form Hay Fever. It helps
alert the body to pollen in a way the body doesn't normally react
adversely too.
It has natural antibiotic properties.
Recent studies have shown Honey conatins agents that will help us fight
MRSA and possibly other so called Super Bugs.
It tastes great with a wide range of foods cheese, meats, bread,
cereal, yoghurt and of course cakes.