This weekend, I made something awesome. Sticky…yes, but getting your hands a little dirty is probably the hardest thing you will have to overcome when it comes to making your own infused honey.
I came across an image of some honey jars with fresh green herbs in them, and they looked so pretty and delicious that I had to try it out myself. To be made as a gift or a tasty accessory in the kitchen, read on to learn how to make your own infused honey!
I went to the grocery store and picked up some ingredients to start the infusion process. When I was choosing, I thought about some different flavor combinations that would hit the taste buds right.
Here is a list of some different ingredients you could use:
Thyme
Sage
Mint
Ginger
Lavender
Peppermint
Vanilla beans
Rosemary
Cinnamon sticks
When it comes to picking out a honey to use, I went with an orange blossom honey. Next time I might try a wildflower honey for a different flavor!
What you need
Honey
Jars (I recycled some old glass spice jars and just peeled off the label. They were the perfect size! Mason jars are a good option too.)
Herbs & spices
Paper & twine to label
I chose to do three different kinds of honey: lavender & vanilla, thyme, and ginger & mint. It’s fun to experiment with different combinations, so get creative and try a few out!
Fill your glass jars with your ingredients. The more you use, the stronger the flavor will be, and the less you use, a more mild flavor will result. I made sure to peel the ginger before placing it in with the mint to achieve more flavor.
Take your honey and pour it over the ingredients in the jars. When the jar is halfway full, give the ingredients a stir with a wooden spoon, then continue filling to the top. Once all of your jars have been filled, cover with a lid and allow the flavors to infuse for at least 5 days. The longer you wait, the more flavorful your honey will be.
I labeled my jars using some twine and brown paper. These little honey jars make for the perfect gift!
Strain the honey with a cheesecloth before use. You can add the honey to hot tea or coffee, mix it in with some homemade granola, or use it to bake and cook with! I love how easy infused honey is to make and how many ways you can use it. My favorite way so far is to drizzle some of the lavender & vanilla honey over some vanilla ice cream…mmm, so good!
Do you have any other flavor suggestions or ways to use infused honey? We would love to hear!
More recipes on the BLDG 25 Blog.
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OooOoo these sound awesome and would be great to use for skin care too since the have the added benefit of fresh herbs. Love! <3
xoxo Annejelina
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We use honey with everything, but one of the more common ones is over creamed wheat. The ginger and mint one would taste AMAZING with that…. I definitely have to try this!
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Oh my goodness I adore honey, I would love to try this with raw honey!
xo, Juliette Laura
http://juliettelaura.blogspot.com
I usually do the same thing but with grated ginger in honey. This makes it very very spicy and delicious!
I made honey with ginger and lemon a few days ago. It´s great remedy for sore throat.
:)
I don’t mean to be a stickler here, but this is actually not a very efficent of safe way to infuse honey. Depending on what your using to infuse the honey, this method could hatbor unsafe bacteria, and also not pull out many of the constituents. To best infuse honey, use a double broiler on the stove top and cook at a low heat till you get the desired level of taste. You’ll also want yo be sure jars are sanatized and dry. This method will remove harmful bacteria and infuse honeys that will last you :)
I love the idea! Mmm maybe some orange peel?
The lavender and vanilla would be so yummy in some tea!
I’m currently infusing some local raw honey with lavender flowers and vanilla bean – can’t wait to try! xx
Thanks your infused honey treat inspired a sci-fi story hehe lol
uh, they are so beautiful thank you for sharing. I bet they make icecream and other deserts and teas really yumilicious.
My wife and I are the keepers. We produce 700 pounds of honey a year and sell at local farmers markets. Its just a hobby for us but the bees are fascinating. I’d suggest using only dry herbs and spices. Honey has a moisture content of less than 17 percent water. Introducing anything with a hires concentration of water will cause the honey to ferment. Never ever heat the honey over 100 and 35 degrees as it will kill all of the beneficial stuff.
I do not know what I did wrong since I did the same with ginger and lemongrass for about 5 days too. But when I went to check today the honey was liquidity and had some white spots that appeared out of nowhere! when it was perfectly fine yesterday; sticky and flavorful (I would check from time to time). Do you think that the lemongrass has anything to do with it? :(
I have to agree with Julie on this. It’s much safer to infuse the honey over low heat. Sanitation is paramount. Keeping the honey under 135 as suggested by another poster is fine for leaving the honey in it’s raw state- but if you really want to be safe and store your infused honey for any length of time, I’d suggest making sure to pasteurize at about 175 degrees. The “benficial stuff” doesn’t mean much to me for my infused honey- but I use it exclusively for beer brewing. Keeping everything sanitary is much more important for my application.
that is such a perfect idea! It would be delicious just on toast! I will be trying it very soon!
Thanks for sharing, Itzi
I got a recipe on another website and used the fresh grated ginger in raw honey and set it in a window sill for 4 weeks now. I did not know it would ferment. When I picked up the jar and rolled it around it hissed a little and some honey leaked out the lid. If still in the early stages of fermentation is it safe to eat? Or did I waste a Whole lot of $? Thanks for any opinions.
do you just put info out there and not read or respond to comments?
I am not trying to be disrespectful of your posting….But this is wrong and there are many misinformed followers responding to your post with untruth or partial truths.
1. honey should never be heated on your stove top, lest you ruin it. It can be warmed to only 104 degrees (temperatures within the hive in the summer can reach up to 104) The heat destroys the nutrient value of honey, change the flavor and darken the color. Pasteurize your honey, you might as well eat refined sugar! 2. Honey in it’s natural state is a anti-bacterial. While putting the raw undried herbs into the honey may have bacteria on it is not necessarily the problem. The problem is you will be upsetting the water balance in the honey which will cause your infused honey to ferment and give bacteria and fungus an environment to grow. As evident from some of the results your followers shared with their posts. Do your own research and if infusing honey, used dried herbs. Don’t take anyone’s word for preparing your food without checking it out yourself. Be careful folks and enjoy your efforts. Don’t eat fermented honey, okay!
Fermented honey is mead. Mead is a delicious beverage if made right. To avoid making mead, I suggest that you add 1 (crushed) Campden tablet per gallon to the infusion 24 hours after you mix it up IF the infusion has become watery. Mix the powder in thoroughly. Then seal it up good, preferably under vacuum to get any oxygen out. The Capden (potassium metabisulphite) will kill any wild yeast or bacteria). The vaccum will eliminate oxygen that could lead to spoilage. Then I think you are safe to let it sit and contenue to infuse for a while longer. Just be sure to refrigerate it and eat it up quick after opening and you should be okay. The lower the ph (more acidic) your infusion, the safer youll bee too.