There’s something about honey. I don’t know what it is, but fresh honey isn’t just delicious but it’s also satisfying in a way that few foods seem to be, a certain sense that your body finds it fulfilling, not just tasty. Or maybe that’s just me and my family. 🙂
When the local Colorado-based honey company Rice’s Honey asked me if I was interested in checking out their whipped honey I think I answered within about 90 seconds of receiving the email with an enthusiastic “yes”. We are indeed that enthused about honey, particularly when it’s pure, no preservatives, and local, and Rice’s Honey is know for being raw and unfiltered, all good.
More importantly, the company offers locally harvested honey for a number of different areas of the United States, including Colorado (easy since they’re based in Greeley, Colorado, about 30 min north of Denver), Texas, Washington, Northern and Southern California, Florida, Utah, Great Lakes and more.
Here’s what they sent us to try:
Though there’s some debate in the medical community, many believe that it’s important that you consume honey from bees who lived in your own area, particularly from an allergy perspective. Here’s an explanation from HealthImpactNews:
“… it is clear that some people experience a reduction in pollen allergy symptoms by eating small amounts of honey on a daily basis during the months leading up to allergy season. On the other hand, this strategy does not seem to benefit everyone with pollen allergies. Some people receive a benefit from eating honey that is locally produced and others receive the same benefit from honey that is produced in other locations. Some people do not experience any positive change regardless of the honey type or source they use.”
Rice’s Honey also has different flavors of honey based on the kind of flowers the bees pollinated / consumed, including clover honey, wildflower honey, and an amber honey that sounds delicious but that I still haven’t had a chance to sample. And then there’s that whipped honey:
As the company describes it: “Rice’s Whipped honey is our thick and creamy 100% pure raw and unfiltered whipped honey. With Rice’s Whipped honey, it is so thick and creamy, you have to spread it on while maintaining that great Rice’s Honey taste.” Oh man, it’s really, really good. Sublimely good. Stand in the kitchen like a lunatic and eat it with a spoon good. But no-one’s at all self-conscious in my family when it comes to food!
Anyway, if you just buy honey without paying attention to its origin and ingredients, you’re missing out on one of nature’s perfect food sources (at least in my opinion!) and I strongly encourage you to look for Rice’s Honey products and pick up some that’s local to your region.
Oh, and one warning: Honey turns out to be really dangerous for tiny babies, so it’s recommended that you never feed any honey or products with honey in them to babies younger than 1 year old because, as the FDA explains it, “honey isn’t safe for children less than a year old. It can contain the Clostridium botulinum organism that could cause serious illness or death.”
Disclaimer: Yes, Rice’s Honey sent us a big batch of different honey to taste and we’re enjoying it all, bottle by bottle. 🙂