Author: DrBeekeeper

Posted on by

A flying visit to Kew Gardens….

The Hive
The Hive is surrounded by a beautiful range of wildflowers and grasses… perfectly suited to pollinating bees

This summer DrBeekeeper visited a fantastic new installation called ‘The Hive’ by Wolfgang Buttress at Kew Gardens, London.

The Hive is constructed of thousands of pieces of aluminium trussed together to form a lattice or honeycomb effect. It really is awe- inspiring to look at!

A view from below looking up at the metal structure
A view from below looking up at the metal structure

Now here’s the clever bit… the structure is fitted with speakers and LED lights which respond to the energy levels in a real, active hive on the Kew site. The light and sound patterns change in line with surges in activity in the parent hive.  The installation encapsulates all the senses associated with being a real bee in a working hive. The Hive is set in a garden of wildflowers and grasses, which deserve appreciation on their own.

A must see for anyone interested in beekeeping and botanical art.

Find out more at:
http://www.kew.org/visit-kew-gardens/explore/attractions/hive

Posted on by

DrBeekeeper’s Rice, Date and Honey Pudding

This simple but delicious recipe is sweetened naturally with DrBeekeeper honey and dates. A perfect way to end a long day of fasting, but equally great as a simple desert that can be enjoyed at any time!

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 60 minutes

Serves 4 – 6

Ingredients

  • 500ml water
  • 130 g pudding rice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 50 g finely cut pitted dates
  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind (optional)
  • Cream (optional)
  • cinnamon (to taste)
  • nutmeg (to taste)
  • 570ml/1 pint milk
  • 55ml/2fl oz single cream
  • Seeds scraped from 1 vanilla pod or ½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
  • 4 eggs, yolks only
  • 2 level tsp cornflour
  • 5 tbsp honey

Method

  1. Preheat Oven to: 160 degrees Celsius. Bring the water to the boil and add the rice and salt and cook until the rice tender. Drain the rice if necessary, and place it in a shallow oven-proof baking dish. Sprinkle with the dates.
  2. In a clean saucepan heat the milk, cream and vanilla seeds to simmering point over a low heat. Beat the honey, cornflour and egg yolks together with a balloon whisk. Add the hot milk on to the beaten eggs and mix well with the balloon whisk. Stir in the lemon rind, cinnamon and nutmeg and pour over the rice and dates.
  3. Bake the pudding for about 60 minutes, or until set.
  4. Serve slightly warm or cool, with cream if desired.

We’d love to hear from you with your favourite honey themed recipes – please send them here!

Posted on by

DrBeekeeper’s Moroccan Semolina and Honey Porridge

It’s Ramadan and with people fasting as long as 17 hours a day, without food or drink, DrBeekeeper would like to share some great Ramadan Recipes!

This simple Moroccan semolina porridge is easy to prepare and can be served as a healthy desert or be enjoyed as part of a nutritious breakfast. The soup will thicken when it cools, but when reheating, just add a little water or milk to thin it to your preferred consistency.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves 4 – 6

Ingredients

  • 1 liter of water
  • 150 g coarse semolina
  • 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • 1 litre milk
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 star anise seeds, or to taste
  • 2 tablespoons honey, or to taste

Method

  1. Bring the water to a boil and stir in the semolina and salt. Simmer gently, stirring frequently, for 10 to 15 minutes, until the semolina is tender and the mixture is quite thick.
  2. Stir in the milk, butter and star anise seeds. Bring back to a simmer, and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the soup reaches a consistency you like. Then stir in the honey. Serve warm.

We’d love to hear from you with your favourite honey themed recipes – please send them here!

Posted on by

Organic Honey – A sweet success for Cuba

Have a look at this great article in the Guardian that I wanted to share:

Organic honey is a sweet success for Cuba as other bee populations suffer

I had no idea that organic honey was such an important export industry for Cuba.  Incredibly all of the honey produced in Cuba is certified organic.  This is due to the absence of pesticides – the government was simply unable to afford to buy pesticides… DrBeekeeper would love to try this honey and will keep you posted!

Posted on by

DrBeekeeper’s Beekeeping Diary: February 2016

Beekeeping Diary this February…

DrBeekeeper English Wildflower Honey with Gift Jute Bag

It seems as if our real winter finally arrived earlier this month although things seem to be warming up again.  However, it’s probably going to be too cold to open the hives for the rest of this month.  Some beekeepers will feed the bees at time but we don’t touch them as they should have enough of their own supplies.   In the next few weeks we’ll be preparing to get out with our bees again with all our beekeeping equipment prepared and ready to go!  This weekend why not try DrBeekeeper’s Honey Roast Lamb – makes a delicious meal!

If you’re interested in starting beekeeping, please visit our guide to getting started.

Coming up this month

  • DrBeekeeper’s Honey Roast Lamb Recipe
  • Organic Honey – A sweet success for Cuba
Posted on by

DrBeekeeper’s Honey Porridge Recipe

At this time of year there is nothing better than a bowl of warm comforting porridge to start the day.  DrBeekeeper’s sweetener of choice has to be honey! You can easily buy your porridge oats ready mixed and ready to go, but why not experiment with different combinations of grains to create the ultimate winter warmer. DrBeekeeper will be trying out Nigel Slater’s Toasted Spelt and Barley Porridge this weekend.  Check out the recipe here…

We’d love to hear from you with your favourite honey themed recipes – please send them here!

Posted on by

DrBeekeeper’s Beekeeping Diary: January 2016

Beekeeping Diary this January…

The last few weeks have been extremely cold in England.  As the temperature drops, beekeeper’s stress levels go up as we worry about the hive and hope the bees are doing OK.  At DrBeekeeper, we always leave the bees plenty of their own honey to enjoy through the winter (we don’t feed our bees sugar!).  This month, whilst we go through this chilly period, we’ll be sharing a delicious porridge recipe as well as learning about the Natural Beekeeping Trust.  In this cold weather, wrap up warm and enjoy a cup of honey-sweetened tea!

If you’re interested in starting beekeeping, please visit our guide to getting started.

Coming up this month

  • DrBeekeeper’s Honey Porridge Recipe
  • Natural Beekeeping Trust
Posted on by

DrBeekeeper’s New Year Honey Cake

As we approach 2016, DrBeekeeper wishes all readers a very prosperous new-year. Why not consider bringing in the New Year with a slice of Honey Cake. Lekach, or honey cake in English, is a honey-sweetened cake. It is one of the foods traditionally eaten at the Jewish new-year holiday of Rosh Hashanah, in hopes of ensuring a sweet year ahead…

Ingredients

  • 225g unsalted butter
  • 250g clear honey (plus extra to glaze)
  • 70g dark muscovado sugar
  • 300g self raising flour
  • ½ teaspoon of baking powder
  • 3 eggs, beaten

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 160C / 140C fan assisted. Grease and line a 20cm round cake tin.
  2. Cut the butter into pieces and drop into a saucepan with the honey and sugar. Melt slowly over a low heat. When the mixture is completely liquid increase the heat under the pan and allow to boil for no more than 1 or 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to cool fully.
  3. Whisk the eggs and then mix into the honey and cooled sugar mixture.
  4. Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl and pour in both the beaten eggs and the honey and sugar mixture. Continue to beat until the mixture is smooth.
  5. Pour the cake mixture into the pre-lined tin and bake for around 1 hour, until the cake is well-risen and golden brown. A metal skewer or knife inserted into the centre of the cake should come out clean.
  6. Brush a little honey over the cake to glaze and leave the cake to cool. Once cool, serve and enjoy!

We’d love to hear from you with your favourite honey themed recipes – please send them here!

Posted on by

Honey Home Remedies

Dr Beekeeper's Cinnamon & Turmeric Honey Infusion
Dr Beekeeper’s Cinnamon & Turmeric Honey Infusion

Honey is great for relieving the symptoms of a cold and a spoonful of honey mixed with hot water, lemon and ginger is an essential home remedy.

Why not try adding a spoon of our unique DrBeekeeper Cinnamon and Turmeric Herbal Infused Honey for an extra special winter pick-me-up. Turmeric is a rhizome belonging to zingiberaceae family. It is a yellow colored herb with great medicinal properties. Traditional Chinese medicine and the Ayurvedic medicine use turmeric extensively. The antibacterial and anti-viral action of turmeric makes it a great remedy to treat coughs and cold naturally.
Find out using turmeric for a cough more here!