Blue Bee Bar

@raincoaster Sounds like a delicious gimlet. I’ve got a secret trick for making honey more soluble in cocktails and less “mouthy” #Chemistry

March 26, 2012 7:59 am via Twitter for BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite

@mattstacheband

Matt Stache

@raincoaster heat 1 cup of water. dissolve 1.5 cups cane sugar + 0.5 cups honey. Use half as much as normal bar syrup (since it’s 2x sweet)

March 27, 2012 7:35 am via Twitter for BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite

@mattstacheband

Matt Stache

@raincoaster The addition of sugar and water to the honey bar syrup makes it dissolve more readily in cocktails w/out solidifying #science!

March 27, 2012 7:37 am via Twitter for BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite

@mattstacheband

Matt Stache

@raincoaster Absolutely! Also, try adding 2 vanilla beans to a bottle of vodka for 2wks. Pour off 1/2 cup then add 1/2 cup “honey syrup”

March 27, 2012 2:49 pm via Twitter for BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite

@mattstacheband

Matt Stache

@raincoaster That is, remove 1/2 cup from the bottle and add 1/2 cup syrup to the bottle. Haha. Not 1:1 vodka and syrup.

March 27, 2012 2:52 pm via Twitter for BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite

@mattstacheband

Matt Stache

@raincoaster Exactly. Less is more. Mixing the resultant liqueur 1:1 w/ coconut water yields an amazing beverage. Dangerously tasty.

March 27, 2012 2:56 pm via Twitter for BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite

@mattstacheband

Matt Stache

Cheers!

Suck on this, Skyscrapers! Gyeongbok Palace by Laszlo Ilyes

Prepare to be gobsmacked by this gentleman of the road, a mere street food vendor in the humble Namdaemun Market in Seoul, Korea. In only a couple of minutes he spins a hunk of chilled honey into 16,000 delicious candy threads, then rolls and stuffs them to form individual desserts. While he calls this an ancient Korean delicacy, it’s really nothing more or less than a dressed up version of that staple known as Dragon’s Beard in any Chinatown, or Cotton Candy in any county fair.

I’d tip big for a snack served with a side of this fresh charm.

Is there anything in the house more soothing, more satisfying, more sustaining to body and soul than honey?

Honey is magical – a viscous, sweet essence with a thousand year shelf life and a thousand uses, including topical anti-bacterial application.

Ancient Egyptian doctors used honey to treat skin disorders. Medical doctors today have discovered that honey applied topically can defeat drug resistant strains of bacteria MRSA. In contact with bodily tissues honey forms a thin layer of hydrogen peroxide.

An aficionado of the offbeat medical fact, Mr. Henry has been repeating this one to friends and acquaintances for days – one more reason his broad popularity is unassailable.

In conjunction with honey’s low oxygen content, the peroxide slowly but effectively combats infection. Might this be a reason why hot water, lemon and honey – the traditional home remedy for a sore throat – genuinely works?

When preparing a vinaigrette, Mr. Henry likes to add a smidgeon of honey permitting him to employ more acidic elements like red wine vinegar or lemon juice.

A touch of honey works wonders in a conch ceviche, too, as Honey Ryder might have known.

Honey’s astringent sweetness modulates sourness as well as saltiness.

All in all a bit of honey helps awaken the taste buds and balance the vinaigrette’s other flavors. The same holds true for marinades.

In the morning nothing placates the annoyance of having to abandon one’s bed (oh bed! greatest invention of mankind!) like a bowl of plain yogurt with a tablespoon of White Gold, a pure untreated Canadian honey that has been the Henry household favorite for years.

Not everyone sees honey as the essence of purity, however. Unbeknownst to Mr. Henry until he read this article in Slate, among the vegan community a bitter fight rages over whether or not eating honey is cruel and exploitative to bees.

When angry vegans square off to really duke it out, Mr. Henry wonders about their choice of weapons. Cream puffs are definitely out. (No dairy permitted.) Likewise for leather batons. Things could get ugly in a hurry.

It’s too bad they can’t use honey on the abrasions.