Honey Peanut Butter Candy

When Mark cooks, he's really good at it. He's known for his excellent breakfast-making skills (and has special cast iron biscuit pans for perfectly browned frozen biscuits). During the holidays, he specializes in a treat I'd never eaten until I moved to Mississippi: corn flake peanut butter candy. Once he perfected his system, he began churning out these chewy-crunchy-gooey bits of deliciousness in mass quantities. This year, he adapted the original recipe to substitute honey for part of the sugar. I'll list both of these, so you can experiment. The honey flavor is very subtle, and makes the final product slightly softer, which I personally enjoyed.

Original Recipe, with Keri Commentary:

Ingredients:
1 cup light corn syrup (aka Karo)
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter (your choice, we use creamy but crunchy would be tasty too!)
6-7 cups corn flakes

Instructions:
Bring corn syrup and sugar to a boil in a saucepan. (Do not overcook this syrup or you will end up with Rock Hard Peanut Butter Candy Suitable for Breaking Teeth.) Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter. Pour over corn flakes (use the biggest bowl you own -- see photo) and stir like the wind. Seriously, they set up fast. With a spoon or two, drop 2-inch servings onto wax paper. You will need A LOT of wax paper. Allow them to cool (or be like me and burn your fingers and/or mouth eating the first ones laid down), then package and give away quickly to avoid eating them all.

Mark's Marvelous Adaptation (with Keri Commentary):

3/4 cup light corn syrup (aka Karo)
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
1 cup peanut butter (your choice, we use creamy but crunchy would be tasty too!)
6-7 cups corn flakes

Bring corn syrup and sugar to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter and honey. Why wait to add the honey? In hopes of preserving more of its helpful qualities! Pour over corn flakes (use the biggest bowl you own or you will have a big mess) and stir as fast as you can. Or get your tall, handsome husband to stir for you. With a spoon or two, drop 2-inch servings onto wax paper. You will need A LOT of wax paper. Allow them to cool (use this time to wash up your kitchen equipment in preparation for Round 2), then package and give away quickly to avoid eating them all.

Repeat. Until the sight of them makes you ill. Then remember someone you forgot to put on the Goody List and make another batch. About March, throw away the odd amount of corn flakes left over that won't make a whole batch and has gone stale.

Bee Sweet,
Keri

Chicken Marinades Using Honey

Over at Sheri's Sweet Life, you can find three quick and easy recipes for marinades, as well as a concise explanation of what makes a marinade work properly. If your default marinade is Italian salad dressing, expand your horizons! Marinades can bring healthier foods to life with zesty flavors.

If you have time, look at her blog and see the beautiful tribute her husband wrote on her birthday. Sweet!

Image of some yummy chicken and healthy veggies via Stir Crazy Restaurant -- a Cambodian restaurant in Massachusetts with some amazing looking dishes!

Mark Featured in MSU Extension Service's Landmarks Magazine

My beekeeper is famous.

Thanks to my job with Extension, we got asked to contribute to an article on beekeeping as part of series on "DIY Food." I thought it was only released as part of their media packet, but they turned it into a magazine story too. It's in the Summer 2010 issue, and it's archived here. He's on page four, in all of his duct-taped glory.

Think you've seen that picture before? You have. Right here. I even got a photo credit!

Bee Pretty,

Keri

Country Woman Magazine Invites Contribution of Healthy Honey Recipes

In the December/January issue of Country Woman magazine (page 64), Food Editor Wendy Stenman issued a call for "Healthy recipes using honey." Recipes can be submitted through the CW Web site or through postal mail. Contributor's Guidelines give more specific information. If your recipe is published you should receive a complimentary copy of the magazine in which your contribution appears. If I had any honey to give away to inspire you to contribute, I would. But I hope you'll give it a try. I'm considering contributing one myself!

Here's a bit of technical trivia: recipes can't be copyrighted. A list of ingredients constitutes facts, not creative expression. Of course, there are ethical and etiquette issues to consider, and it's always advisable to say "adapted from," "based on," or "inspired by" if you haven't invented the recipe from your own culinary genius. You can read more about this copyright issue here and here.

If you have any recipes you want to share here, please post them in the comments!

Bee Healthy!
Keri

Image via Plant Teacher, which includes thorough explanations of honey, propolis, pollen, etc. I can't vouch for the rest of the Web site, however, so explore it with discretion (unless you're keen to learn about plant-based drug-related practices ranging from alternative medicine to well, you know.)

A Peek Inside a Honey Harvest

In this post on Bee House Hives, you can see the process one woman uses to harvest her honey.

It's a sticky business.

Especially when young children are involved!

The Honey Stand in Pine, Arizona

In a previous post, I talked about stopping whenever we travel to get local honey. The good news is that Sarah uploaded her photos today, so I can now share the photos she took for me at The Honey Stand in the small town of Pine, AZ.

The bad news is that the business card on which I wrote down the name of the gentleman pictured got left in the rental car (along with several other souvenirs such as a book for Colston). My memory says Russell but that's highly unlikely. So, friends at The Honey Stand, feel free to tell me!


Mr. Honey Stand was friendly and shared the history of this old gas-station-turned-roadside shop. The original honey salesman would set up only in the summer, and outside. Now the shop operates year-round, indoors, and is well-stocked with all kinds of honey, granola, candy, snacks, jams, jellies, etc. for travelers. He carried a wide variety of flavors of honey stix, and the favorite flavor of those tasting turned out to be amaretto.
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Arizona beekeepers are fortunate to have an outlet for their wares -- The Honey Stand owners are not beekeepers, simply shopkeepers with a passion for sharing the sweet stuff with passers-by. They have an online store on their Web site, so if you know someone who'd like some dark wild pecan honey, mesquite, desert clover, or even more exotic varieties, give The Honey Stand your business.

At least until Prairie Blossom Bee Farm has some to sell. ;-)

For Great Gifts, Buy Local

"Buy Local" is a phrase heard a lot these days, and the holidays are a great time to find all kinds of treats to share with friends and loved ones.

Today at a local arts & crafts festival, some friends of mine were selling gourmet delights under their label "Not Your Granny's Goodies."

I love to bake, but to be honest, festively wrapped, pretty bite-sized treats are not my specialty. So I picked up adorable peanut butter cookie mice as a hostess gift for a dinner party tonight, and a box of turtle mini cheesecakes to give to the people who share their office space with us. I could have slaved for a few hours, spent a bunch of time and money on making something myself, but this allowed me time for other activities, and supported my friends too. Win-win!

Okay, so I bought a homemade marshmallow with salty caramel pretzel goo on the bottom for myself. If you've never had a homemade marshmallow, I highly recommend it. I brought home a couple of treats for Mark, but I may eat them before he does. Win-win-win!

If you live in the Golden Triangle and need some help with your holiday baking, check out Not Your Granny's Goodies. In addition to traditional holiday fare such as fudge and mini pumpkin cheesecake bites, they're available for catering both sweets and savories, including cheddar biscuits. With notice, they can create your heirloom family favorite recipes if you have something you need that's not included in their current list of treats.

If you don't live here, look for local gifts at your farmer's market, holiday bazaars, and shops. You'll be helping people in your community by supporting their business. And if you can't think of the perfect gift for that "hard to buy for" person, buy local honey. Beekeepers need you!