EAT MORE HONEY.

Hokitika Guardian, 15 May 1923, Page 4

EAT MORE HONEY.

(Contributed by AH- John Murdoch, Ross). Over 2000 years ago, Virgil began one of his poems by mentioning ‘‘Heaven born honey, the gift of the air.” Whether or not it is a secretion of the plant, or is it a product of the air gathered by the plant, vre do not know, but in commerce we accept the definition given in the N./. Sale of Food and Drug Act that: —“Honey shall he the nectar or saccharine exudations of plants, gathered and stored hv the honey bee.”

From different kinds ol plants we get different colours and flavours of honey. Honey gathered from lucerne and blackbci'rv gives us a lovely, clean, while honey and that from manuka and (lax a dark thick honey, so sticky that it is usually melted to obtain the honey.

The absence of vitamines from our present day highly flavoured food stuffs is the cause of much ol the lnaluuiiition which is evident amongst out school children. Honey has already gone through the first step of digestion, the sucrose being changed to dextrose and levulose, thus lessening the tax upon the digestive system, this being of especial value for children and invalids.

In the North Island of New Zealand at certain seasons of the year when the puke-puke or the rhododendron is blooming, a uoetu is gathered which in its unripe state is poisonous, but when ripened in the hive it. is ~iiite lit lor human consumption. When wo read of certain Alaoris in the Notth Island having been poisoned by eating honey, we can readily imagine them having fallen a free containing a "ihl hive of bee-. After such strenuous exertion and on an empty stomach they can wdl sing, "By golly, I saipui the honor, ’ hiit after a gorge ot honey they felt like the fri-hman the first time lie went to sea. He was afraid he might fall overboard hut he was not manv hours ai sea before he wished he v.ould. A doctor's statement that this poisoning nia v possibly be due to some excess of formic acid is based upon an old supposition that honey contains

formic acid. This has never been \cm

tied hv chemists and it is now considered doubt fill by the best authorities that honey contains even a trace of formic acid. A fen years ago, a lady in Hokitika told me the children would not cat hoe.cv. I was -howti a benzine tin with a hunt ! inches ot honey b'it in the

bottom of if. There was id I one inch of water on the top with a black .nark all muni! the tin just above the honey. Fermentation had set in and I advised the lady to get a hole dug deep enough so that the bees would not smell it. otherwise it would kill all ihe l.ees for miles around ! Recently the Department's ( hemist rep ii'led that the black colour ol the honey submitted is due to tainmle of iron, and has been produced by the interaction of tannic acid contained in the Icmey with iron from iho container. Win n the lid ol the container was examined it was noted that certain minute areas were not completely covered by tin and that the iron underneath was exposed, thus enabling the tannic acid present to.lorm tannatc of iron, which is black, and lorms tim basis of common ink. Iloiiev is hygroscopic, the tin had liven in use for about a year, moisture had been drawn from the air, owing to ilie lid not being airtight with the resell that it fermented and was unfit tor lood. f have often been asked wlnu I considered the best container for honey. I should answer, for use in the home, glass jars with a screw lop, the only di a whack to glass being the liability to breakage and the extn; cost. In a dry climate, for quick sale honey is made up ill lib blocks like butler, but this form ol package is not suit.iMe here unless tor quick sale. I may he prejudiced against tin ns a container, except in hulk and then ii bought: by the housewife she will be wise to transfer the honey into airtight jars when il will keep for years. Ai v fancy, for our climate from a utility point of view, is the 21b parchment pail of honey always on the table. These pails arc clean, light, not easily broken and when empty can he washed in (old wiuer and can he used again for holding certain kinds of jam. in commencing this article I headed it, "Eat More Honey.” You wonder wli v!

Do you know that here in Westlam we have one of the finest districts ii the Dominion, bar none, where we cai produce as line n grained honey a they can in California ? Do you know that in New Zealam we are producing more honey than w can consume ?

Do you know that on the l.ondo market ottr only competitor for qunlit is California? Do you know that every tin of hone exported from New Zealand lias t pass the Cuvornment grader at Hi port from which it is shipped?

D.i you know that every man an woman who uses honey daily lias

clearer and healthier complexion than those who don’t? Do you realise that in Honey there is a delicious every day food which you are thoughtlessly neglecting, which you should ho enjoying, which should lie a staple food and not a luxury? Do you know that honey daily used by children keeps them regular, and builds lionnie bairns? Do you know that honey contains medicinal properties and is used Jargoly in the manufacture of cough medicines ?

During the sugar shortage a few years ago a little girl of 19 years whr was suffering from disfiguring blotches on her face and body was put on a honey diet instead of sugar. In a few mouths her skin healed up and remained so until she again started taking sugar, when the old trouble broke out again. A certain lady who was engaged milking cows found her hands covered with a red rash and considerably swollen. She was advised to try a honey diet with the result that the rash vanished. Honey H usually associated with bread and lumey, but many helpful honey hints can be given as to how to utilise its delicate, delicious finvou” in cookery. Try these recipes:— HONEY BREAD. Two cups honey, -1 cups flour, 1 teaspoon soda, 1 teaspoons aniseed, 2 teaspoon ginger, 2 egg yolks, .} cup brown sugar. Sift the flour with the spices and soda and add the other ingredients. Put the dough into shallow buitered pans to the depth of about an inch and hake in a hot oven. BETTER HONEY CAKE. It cups honey, .3 cup butter, 3 egg yolks, 5 cups flour, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon' salt, 1} teaspoons. of soda, 2 teaspoons water, wlutcs of 3 eggs. Rub together the honey and butter, add 1 ho unbeaten yolks and beat thoroughly. Add the flour sifted with the cinnamon and the salt, then the soda dissolved in the water. Rent the mixture thoroughly atul add the well beaten whites of eggs. Bake in shallow tins and cover with frosting. ORANGE FROSTING FOR BETTER HONEY CAKE. Grate the rind of 1 orange, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon orange juice, 1 egg yolk, icing sugar. Mix all ingredients but the sugar and allow the mixture to stand for an hour.

Strain and add icing sugar until the frosting is sufficiently thick to spread on cake.' HONEY COOKIES. Two-thirds cup of honey, two-thirds cup sugar, 2'- cups of flour, t teaspoon soda, I.J teaspoons cinnamon, 1 /teaspoon cloves, 1 teaspoon allspice, 2 ounces finely chopped orange peel. Sift together the flour, spices ami soda, then add the other ingredients. Knead thoroughly, roll out thin and cut with a biscuit cutter. These cookies are very hard.