Honey Recipes

  in Blog

June is Bee Awareness month at Oryana. Honeybees and other pollinators continue to face threats to their survival due to pesticides, GMOs, and climate change. To honor bees and the valuable pollinating work they do for us, here are some recipes that include  honey. Support your local bee keeper and buy local honey. Oryana sells honey from several local bee keepers.

Bean and Tomato Salad with Honey Vinaigrette

2 15-oz cans white beans, rinsed
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground pepper to taste
8 oz green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced

  1. Combine the beans, salt, onion, vinegar, honey, oil, and pepper in a large bowl. Stir, cover and refrigerate to marinate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
  2. Cook green beans in a large pot of boiling water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again. Pat dry and add to the marinated beans. Stir in tomatoes and basil. Season with salt and pepper.

Moroccan Carrot Salad
From herbivoracious.com

1 pound carrots
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground paprika
pinch cayenne
2 teaspoons honey
Juice of 2 lemons
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 bunch fresh flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped

  1. Coarsely shred the carrots in a food processor or cut into 1/4″ matchsticks. Place in a bowl and set aside.
  2. In a small skillet, heat the oil, cumin, paprika, and cayenne over low heat, stirring until spices darken and turn fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
  3. Pour the spiced oil over the carrots. Add the honey, lemon juice, and sea salt and toss until carrots are evenly coated.
  4. Just before serving, gently toss with the parsley.

Rhubarb Salad with Goat Cheese and Honey Dressing

From Martha Stewart • Serves 4

3/4 pound rhubarb, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup walnut halves
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (preferably white)
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 bag arugula
1 fennel bulb, cored and thinly sliced crosswise
1/2 cup fresh goat cheese, crumbled

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix rhubarb with honey in a bowl. Spread on a greased, rimmed baking sheet and roast on upper rack until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet. On another rimmed baking sheet, toast walnuts on lower rack until fragrant, 5 minutes. Let cool, then chop.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Add arugula and fennel and toss to combine. Top with rhubarb, walnuts, and goat cheese.

Butternut Squash Soup with Goat  Cheese Croutons
Adapted from Siren Hall • Serves 6

1 large butternut squash,  cut in half length-wise
2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon dried ginger
1 – 2 tablespoons honey
Sea salt and white pepper to taste
2 tablespoons heavy cream or to taste

  1. Heat oven to 375°. Place squash halves on a lightly oiled baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes or until squash is soft when pricked with a knife. Let cool. Scoop out seeds and pulp and discard. Scoop out flesh and reserve in a bowl.
  2. In a large soup pot melt the butter. Add onion and celery and cook until softened, about 8 minutes. Add squash, stock, ginger, and honey and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 30 minutes. Using a hand-held immersion blender, blend soup until smooth. Blend in cream and salt and pepper to taste. Serve with goat cheese croutons.

Goat Cheese Croutons

1/4 cup flour
1 tablespoon soft butter
4 oz soft goat cheese
1 egg white, beaten lightly
Coarse sea salt

  1. In a medium bowl or food processor, combine flour, butter, and goat cheese into a smooth dough. Roll the mixture into a log about as wide as a quarter coin. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap or wax paper and refrigerate until firm.
  2. Preheat oven to 375°. Cut the logs into slices approximately 1/4-inch thick. Brush with the egg white and sprinkle with salt. Place goat cheese coins on a rimmed cookie sheet and bake about 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
  3. Remove from oven, cool, and serve atop butternut squash soup.

Sesame Honey Tempeh
From Eating Well • Serves 4

2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 lb tempeh, chopped into bite-size pieces
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons tamari
2 tablespoons cold water
1 teaspoon cornstarch or arrowroot
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 green onions, sliced
Optional: toasted sesame seeds and cooked brown rice

  1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add tempeh and cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to brown, about 8 minutes.
  2. Combine honey, tamari, water, cornstarch and toasted sesame oil in a small bowl. Add to the pan and cook, stirring, until the sauce has thickened and coats the tempeh, about 1 minute.
  3. Serve over brown rice and sprinkle with green onions and sesame seeds.

Greens with Pear and Chevre

1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon coarsely-ground mustard
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4-oz log fresh chevre
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tablespoon butter 2 pears (Anjou or Bartlett)
3 cups spinach leaves 1 cup baby arugula
1/2 cup dried cherries

  1. Make the dressing by combining the vinegar, mustard and honey in a small food processor or blender and slowly, with the motor running, add the oil to create an emulsion. Set aside when blended.
  2. Slice or form the chevre into 8 medallions (discs) about 1/2 inch thick. Coat each disc completely with bread crumbs, firmly pressing crumbs onto the cheese. In a large non-stick skillet, melt butter over medium heat, then gently add the goat cheese and sauté until golden, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove and drain on paper towels.
  3. Core and chop the pears into bite-sized pieces. Add the spinach, arugula, pears and cranberries to a large bowl and toss with half the dressing. Divide the lettuce mixture onto four serving plates and top each with 2 medallions of goat cheese. Serve with remaining dressing on the side.

No Bake Chocolate Brownies

adapted from Rawtarian.com

1 cup pecans
1 cup pitted dates
5 tablespoons raw cacao (cocoa) powder
4 tablespoons shredded unsweetened coconut
2 tablespoons honey

  1. 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  2. Place pecans in food processor and process until small and crumbly.
  3. Add dates and process again until the mixture sticks together and the dates are well processed.
  4. Add the remaining ingredients and process again until the mixture turns a lovely dark chocolatey brown. Stop processing before it gets too buttery. (There should still be air between the small bits so that you will be able to press them down into your brownie pan.)
  5. Dump the mixture into a brownie dish or small cake pan and press down firmly using your clean hands. Refrigerate to chill an hour or so to firm up. Frost with raw chocolate icing if desired. Store in the refrigerator.

Blintzes Stuffed with Honey-Sweetened Ricotta

4 tablespoons butter, plus more for pan
1/2 cup unbleached flour
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons honey
warmed jam for topping

  1. Melt the butter and let cool slightly. Pour into a blender or food processor and add the flour, salt, sugar, eggs and milk. Process to mix, scrape if necessary and pulse to make sure the batter is well combined. Transfer the batter to a storage container, cover, and refrigerate for at least one hour, or overnight.
  2. Once the batter has chilled, in another medium bowl, stir the ricotta with the honey.
  3. To make the blintzes, heat a ten-inch non-stick or cast iron pan over medium heat. Butter the pan and measure 1/4 cup of batter. Once the butter has melted, pour the batter into the pan, swirling to coat the bottom of the pan evenly. Use a thin rubber spatula to loosen the edges of the blintz as it cooks. Cook for about 4 minutes, until the edges are browned and the top is bubbled. Carefully slide the spatula under the blintz and flip in the pan, cook for just a few seconds before flipping onto a plate or cutting board. Continue until all the batter is used.
  4. On the center of each blintz, place 1/4 cup of sweetened ricotta, then fold in the sides to make a square package. Serve with warmed jam atop each blintz.

Wheat-Free Peanut Butter Cookies

From Judi Mills

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup honey
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup almond flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

  1. Heat oven to 325 degrees.
  2. Cream butter until soft.  Add eggs, peanut butter, vanilla, and honey, and mix thoroughly.
  3. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
  4. Drop rounded teaspoons on greased cookie sheet and flatten with a fork or your fingers. Bake about 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden.