Creamed Honey

When I think about how worried I was before the first time I tried to make whatever you want to call this – whipped honey, spun honey, I call it creamed honey – let me assure you, This is not hard to do. There are a couple of key steps that make this a success so let me cover those right here:

1. You will need an area that is not heated to store the seeded honey in jars. I have used both an unheated storage area and my garage, both successfully. Ideal temperature is around 50F to 57F.

2. You will also need a seed starter. There are several options on the market from a dry powder option to actual creamed honey. I have only used actual creamed honey and started with one I found at a grocery store. Once I had mine, however, I didn’t have to buy any more because I used mine.

3. The containers you want to pour the seeded honey in. There is no middle step in this process, no weeks in between when you make the creamed honey and when you bottle it. The raw honey is mixed with the seed, then it is poured into the final containers. If you are planning to make this for gifts, then collect the containers you plan to use and have them clean, on hand and ready to be used.

How to Make Creamed Honey

The basic ratio is one part seed, or finished creamed honey, to 10 parts raw strained honey. Select a wonderful seeded honey to start because the raw strained honey will copy those crystals.

Pour the room temperature raw honey in a bowl; add the room temperature seed honey, then slowly mix it. When I started, I would carefully mix by hand, which is fine for small quantities. This time, I mixed it with a beater on low until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes or so. Don’t beat on high or you will end up with huge air bubbles in the mixture.

Pour into containers. Add lids. I lined a cardboard box with plastic, added the containers, then stored in the cool area to set.

Since I used a beater on low to mix the honey and seed, the creamed honey had tiny bubbles. I could have left the mixture in the bowl overnight, scooped the froth with bubbles off, then poured the mixture into the containers.

The 2 oz. containers set within a day. The larger 6 oz. containers set within a couple of days. In general, it should take a week to 10 days for the honey to fully set so I left them for the full time.

If you don’t like how they turned out, place the mixture in a glass jar in a pan of hot water off the heat source and let it melt back to liquid honey.

Store creamed honey in a cool area, not close to heat such as the stove or in a window. For most people, it doesn’t last long so they don’t have to worry about storage.

Charlotte Ekker Wiggins is a beekeeper, gardener and sometimes cook. Published by El Dorado Springs Sun once in print and online with author’s permission. Copyright 2017, all rights reserved. This column may not be reprinted, republished or otherwise distributed without author’s permission. Contact Charlotte at gardeningcharlotte@gmail.com.

MEET CREAMED HONEY – This is creamed honey, honey turned into a non-sticky butter-like spread.

DON’T WORRY ABOUT BUBBLES – If you use a beater, the finished cream honey will have bubbles so mix on the lowest setting you can. If mixing by hand, go slow and you shouldn’t have any bubbles. (Photos by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins).