Honey Contents and History

 Honey is as old as written history

A sweet substance manufactured by bees from nectar and stored in the cells of the hive as food. Its flavour varies depending on the season, the species of flowers from which it is derived, and when it is collected from the hive. Honey contains 17-20% water, 76-80% sugar (primarily glucose and fructose), small amounts of pollen and wax, and mineral salts (especially calcium, potassium, magnesium and phosphorus), but practically no vitamins. It is a valuable source of natural unrefined sugars in a form easily assimilated by the body.

Commercial honey is extracted centrifugally from the combs of the hive and then filtered and purified: this is `cast`honey, which is rarer nowadays and does not keep so well, is obtained by crushing the honey combs. Honey is specified as coming from a certain type of flower (for example, heather honey, lavender honey) or from a certain region or country.

A distinction is made between blended honey, which is derived from honeys from different parts of the world, and honey from a single variety of flower or from one country. Honey can be liquid or thick, but the liquid forms usually crystallize with age. The colour varies according to the flowers from which the honey nectar came: alfalfa, rape and clover honeys are white, heather honey is reddish-brown, lavender honey is amber, and acacia and saínfoin honey as straw-coloured.

Naturally, the flavour also depends on the flower source: honey from leguminous plants is relatively neutral, while honey from conifers, buckwheat and heather has a stronger flavour; aromatic plants such as thyme and lime blossom impart a distinctive flavour to the honey.

In ancient times honey was regarded as the food of the gods, a symbol of wealth and happiness used both as a food and as an offering. In the Bible, the Promised Land is described as 'the land of milk and honey'. In the middle Ages honey continued to be regarded as a precious commodity and was used medicinally. As in Greek and Roman times, it was used for confectionery and as a condiment for savoury or sweet dishes, including pork with honey, dormouse en sauce, mead and honey plays a major role in pâtisserie, being used in gingerbread, monnettes, croquets, oriental cakes and various types of confectionery. Grog, eggnog and certain liqueur also contain honey, and it is used instead of saltpetre in pickling brine for fine delicatessen meats. But it also ha a role in cooking meat dishes, particularly in North Africa (couscous, stuffed pigeons, roast lamb, chicken tajines with prunes, mutton tajine), in the United States (Virginia ham), and in China (duck).