Coleman Leeann - Honey crafting : from delicious honey butter to a healing salve, projects for your home straight from the hive

Avon, Massachusetts

For the FLOWERS, the BEES, the HONEY, and the WAX.

For the CRAFTERS, the KEEPERS, the CHEFS, and the DREAMERS.

INTRODUCTION

All of the Sweetness, None of the Sting

What is more glorious than honey? And what is more miraculous than the bees that make it?

On a warm day, the bees fly in and out of their hive. They flit from flower to flower, making our crops grow tall and our flowerbeds blossom lushly. Their affable buzzing is a genial and comforting background noise, the hum of a job done well.

Inside the hive, the bees are producing two of our dearest resources: honey and beeswax.

Honey is an ancient treasure, one that has been coveted and fought over since the days of cave people. Beeswax is as treasured and valuable to us as silk from a silkworma building block for our decorations and adornments. For as long as we have walked the earth, humankind has sought out the hive to reap the versatile wax and delectable syrup within.

In modern times, we are incredibly fortunate. These days, honey can be as near to us as our pantries, and busy hives can sit as close as our backyards. From the sprawling fields of the Midwest to the rooftops of New York City, enthusiastic beekeepers are discovering the delight of caring for their own busy colonies. With this providential surge of local hives comes a wealth of honey and beeswax to enjoy.

Honey Crafting will show you how to truly relish the fruits of the hive. In this book youll find beeswax lanterns and candles that will paint the night with a honeyed, comforting glow. Youll find ornaments that could grace a wall or tree with a unique, natural embellishment, more striking and understated than glitter or gold.

Youll learn how to access the extraordinary health and beauty benefits of the hive as you craft honey soaps, moisturizing lip balms, and exfoliating facial scrubs. In Honey Crafting youll find the key to making thick nourishing salves and syrups that will help to heal everything from sunburn to the common cold.

More nutritious than sugar, more versatile than maple syrup, honey is a staple of the kitchen. The recipes youll find in this book take honey to new heights. Included are dramatic infusions with chili and ginger, savory glazes for tender meats and caramelized vegetables, and sweet honey pastries that will have you licking your fingertips.

All these crafts will bring you back to the hive. When you see the glow of a beeswax candle, touch a lip balm to your mouth, or taste the thick elixir of honey on your tongue, youll be instantly transported. Even in the dead of winter, youll be able to feel the sun warming your skin, hear the industrious buzz of winged creatures at work, and see the outline of a honeybee against a brilliant blue sky as it flies from the hive to your doorstep.