OT needing ice cream experts

There is a difference in "sweetness" depending on what the bees "feed"
on. G Found that out when I made a batch of mead with Buckwheat honey.
That stuff went so fast it wasn't funny. And used every single bit of
sugar in the honey. I ended up having to add more honey to get the stuff
to finish off and be drinkable. Orange honey is a lot sweeter. BG
And yes different flowers produce way different tasting honey flavors.
Clover is sort of a "general all purpose" in many places. Around here we
get "desert" honey, and if we are lucky might find mesquite honey.

BTW, last time I was in KFC I discovered that they don't have honey for
the biscuits any longer, it is "Honey flavored syrup". or some such. sigh.

Pati, in Phx
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks

Debra wrote:


Oh dear, that's just awful. I don't care at all for the processed
honey sold in grocery stores as it lacks the bite of raw honey. I buy
my honey direct from a bee keeper at a local flea market. He has all
kinds of variety throughout the year which can only be gotten by bees
producing it from natural nectar sources through the growing season.
My preference is for clover honey, but I'll take whatever he has
available.
Debra in VA
See my quilts at
http://community.webshots.com/user/debplayshere

Thought someone here might like the following recipe:
From: Ice Cream, by Mable and Gar Hoffman, published by HPBooks

Frozen Kir Spritzer
In a small saucepan combine:
2 cups dry white wine
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs lemon juice.
Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves. Cool to room temp. and add
1/2 cup créme de cassis
Pour into loaf pan or several undivided ice cube trays. Place in
freezer until almost firm. (1-3 hours)
Break into pieces. Spoon into a large chilled bowl, or chilled food
processor bowl and beat with mixer or metal blade until fine grained. Do
not let it thaw.
Return to pan and freeze until almost firm. (1-3 hours) scoop frozen
mixture into 5-6 tall glasses. Fill glasses with chilled club soda or
lemon-lime soda.

Does sound nice and cool...........

Or this one--(Same source)
Wine Slush
Combine in a small saucepan:
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 tsp. grated orange zest
Stir over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Simmer without stirring
for 5 minutes.
Pour through a fine strainer to remove orange peel. and cool to room
temperature.
Stir in:
1 cup Burgundy wine
1 cup orange juice
1/4 cup lemon juice.
Pour into ice cream maker canister and process.
(Can also be done in the pan, freezer, break up, etc. method)
Serve slushy. Makes 3-4 cups.


Enjoy

Pati, in Phx ( a very warm Phoenix---)
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks

Pati Cook wrote:

There are even drinks of various sorts. G Bloody Mary Frappé anyone?
And the toppings!!!! Wonderful ways to create heavenly indulgence. BG

Pati, in Phx
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks

Buckwheat honey makes just amazing (and really really strong) mead.
Try avocado honey sometime. It is not my favorite for eating, but it
is most excellent for mead, actually methoglin since I find that you
want to add a bit of herb (linden or elderflowers are my prefered in
this) because sometimes avaocado honey is prone to that sharpish
metallic tang that some hives produce. Linden especially takes that
out. IMHO, YMMV

Been here? http://www.gotmead.com/index.php

Alas, honey prices are going to skyrocket because of all the hives
dying off. The mites and whatnot from China have just about wiped out
any wild bees that were left, hurt the population of kept bees, and
now we are getting large numbers of inexplicable domesticated hive die
offs. It is not going to be a good year for honey. If they can't
figure this die off thing out it might be a bad several years for
honey.

NightMist
Used to have a beekeeper I bartered with, but he joined AA and got all
wierd on me.


On Sun, 17 Jun 2007 21:16:45 GMT, Pati Cook
wrote:

There is a difference in "sweetness" depending on what the bees "feed"
on. G Found that out when I made a batch of mead with Buckwheat honey.
That stuff went so fast it wasn't funny. And used every single bit of
sugar in the honey. I ended up having to add more honey to get the stuff
to finish off and be drinkable. Orange honey is a lot sweeter. BG
And yes different flowers produce way different tasting honey flavors.
Clover is sort of a "general all purpose" in many places. Around here we
get "desert" honey, and if we are lucky might find mesquite honey.

BTW, last time I was in KFC I discovered that they don't have honey for
the biscuits any longer, it is "Honey flavored syrup". or some such. sigh.

Pati, in Phx
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks

Debra wrote:


Oh dear, that's just awful. I don't care at all for the processed
honey sold in grocery stores as it lacks the bite of raw honey. I buy
my honey direct from a bee keeper at a local flea market. He has all
kinds of variety throughout the year which can only be gotten by bees
producing it from natural nectar sources through the growing season.
My preference is for clover honey, but I'll take whatever he has
available.
Debra in VA
See my quilts at
http://community.webshots.com/user/debplayshere

--
Come to the dark side.
We have cookies.

not only honey prices will go up if you lose a substantial percentage of the
bee hives and wild bees. all fruits and vegetables with flowers need
pollenating by those little busy bees.
consider if those had to be pollenated by the farmers by hand to get the
produce needed for the market.
how many farm workers would be needed then?? (rhetorical)
paying them will be astronomical when you consider the time it takes to do
all that miniature work. increases the workforce and the cost to buy.
bees are an essential part of farming, wild or domestic.

we had bee mites come into nz a few yrs back and took ages and ages to rid
the country of them. the cost never did go back down completely, as once the
market pays high prices the cost of living just goes up and thats the end of
story, for the most part. sigh...
being an island is why they are sooooo very strict when entering this
country on bringing in any food, plants, meats etc. heck i thot honey from a
restaurant was ok but i had it taken from me on arrival.

nearing the shortest day of the yr here and tho it was cold last night, down
to 4C in some places in auckland, i heard, tis still a lovely sunny day
today. i've got the deck door and curtains wide open and not a breath of
wind, not bad for a winter day with temp about 16C/61F.
cheers,
jeanne
jeanne


--
Vote B'fly for President '08
san-fran at ihug dot co dot nz
nzlstar on webshots

"NightMist" wrote in message
...

Buckwheat honey makes just amazing (and really really strong) mead.
Try avocado honey sometime. It is not my favorite for eating, but it
is most excellent for mead, actually methoglin since I find that you
want to add a bit of herb (linden or elderflowers are my prefered in
this) because sometimes avaocado honey is prone to that sharpish
metallic tang that some hives produce. Linden especially takes that
out. IMHO, YMMV

Been here? http://www.gotmead.com/index.php

Alas, honey prices are going to skyrocket because of all the hives
dying off. The mites and whatnot from China have just about wiped out
any wild bees that were left, hurt the population of kept bees, and
now we are getting large numbers of inexplicable domesticated hive die
offs. It is not going to be a good year for honey. If they can't
figure this die off thing out it might be a bad several years for
honey.

NightMist
Used to have a beekeeper I bartered with, but he joined AA and got all
wierd on me.


On Sun, 17 Jun 2007 21:16:45 GMT, Pati Cook
wrote:

There is a difference in "sweetness" depending on what the bees "feed"
on. G Found that out when I made a batch of mead with Buckwheat honey.
That stuff went so fast it wasn't funny. And used every single bit of
sugar in the honey. I ended up having to add more honey to get the stuff
to finish off and be drinkable. Orange honey is a lot sweeter. BG
And yes different flowers produce way different tasting honey flavors.
Clover is sort of a "general all purpose" in many places. Around here we
get "desert" honey, and if we are lucky might find mesquite honey.

BTW, last time I was in KFC I discovered that they don't have honey for
the biscuits any longer, it is "Honey flavored syrup". or some such.
sigh.

Pati, in Phx
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks

Debra wrote:


Oh dear, that's just awful. I don't care at all for the processed
honey sold in grocery stores as it lacks the bite of raw honey. I buy
my honey direct from a bee keeper at a local flea market. He has all
kinds of variety throughout the year which can only be gotten by bees
producing it from natural nectar sources through the growing season.
My preference is for clover honey, but I'll take whatever he has
available.
Debra in VA
See my quilts at
http://community.webshots.com/user/debplayshere

--
Come to the dark side.
We have cookies.

Thanks for the website. Looks like fun. G
That batch of mead that started with 20 pounds of buckwheat honey was
certainly potent. (And yes, it was technically a methleglin, with
spices/herbs addedG)
I usually add a mix of cinnamon stick, cloves, and such to the basic
mead recipe. Have also used star anise in some.

The very first batch of mead I ever made was back in the SCA dark
ages--very early '70s. Had no source for wine yeast so used a partial
package of older baking yeast. G Flavored with raisins, a banana (the
esters that are released do interesting things to the fermentation rate)
and spices. End results were "interesting", but it did get consumed. Of
course, as Rick has said, that was also in the days of "mead aging in
the car on the way to the event" so what could you expect. VVBG

Best batch was one that was able to sit for a long, long time. Had
people trying to lick out the bottle. And got told to never let anyone
consume much of it at one sitting. It did go down nice and smooth. G
But then if you tried to stand up--------- that was a whole 'nother story.

I do hope the experts figure out why the bee hive die offs are
happening. Not only for the honey but for the crops. There are some
major crop declines happening because of the lack of hives to pollinate
the fields/trees.

Would love to find another bee keeper. Haven't had one local that I
know for several years.

Pati, in Phx
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks

NightMist wrote:

Buckwheat honey makes just amazing (and really really strong) mead.
Try avocado honey sometime. It is not my favorite for eating, but it
is most excellent for mead, actually methoglin since I find that you
want to add a bit of herb (linden or elderflowers are my prefered in
this) because sometimes avaocado honey is prone to that sharpish
metallic tang that some hives produce. Linden especially takes that
out. IMHO, YMMV

Been here? http://www.gotmead.com/index.php

Alas, honey prices are going to skyrocket because of all the hives
dying off. The mites and whatnot from China have just about wiped out
any wild bees that were left, hurt the population of kept bees, and
now we are getting large numbers of inexplicable domesticated hive die
offs. It is not going to be a good year for honey. If they can't
figure this die off thing out it might be a bad several years for
honey.

NightMist
Used to have a beekeeper I bartered with, but he joined AA and got all
wierd on me.


On Sun, 17 Jun 2007 21:16:45 GMT, Pati Cook
wrote:


There is a difference in "sweetness" depending on what the bees "feed"
on. G Found that out when I made a batch of mead with Buckwheat honey.
That stuff went so fast it wasn't funny. And used every single bit of
sugar in the honey. I ended up having to add more honey to get the stuff
to finish off and be drinkable. Orange honey is a lot sweeter. BG
And yes different flowers produce way different tasting honey flavors.
Clover is sort of a "general all purpose" in many places. Around here we
get "desert" honey, and if we are lucky might find mesquite honey.

BTW, last time I was in KFC I discovered that they don't have honey for
the biscuits any longer, it is "Honey flavored syrup". or some such. sigh.

Pati, in Phx
http://community.webshots.com/user/PatiCooks

Debra wrote:


Oh dear, that's just awful. I don't care at all for the processed
honey sold in grocery stores as it lacks the bite of raw honey. I buy
my honey direct from a bee keeper at a local flea market. He has all
kinds of variety throughout the year which can only be gotten by bees
producing it from natural nectar sources through the growing season.
My preference is for clover honey, but I'll take whatever he has
available.
Debra in VA
See my quilts at
http://community.webshots.com/user/debplayshere

The scary part is that the die offs are worldwide. It's not a loss of
honey that worries researchers around the world, it's a lack of
pollinating insects needed to produce food crops.

According to French research, the city dwelling bees are doing much
better than their suburban and country cousins. The bee die-offs may
be due to pesticides, herbicides, and other chemical pollutants.

BTW--wish I had been one of the bottle lickers. A good meade is a joy
to taste.

Debra in VA
See my quilts at
http://community.webshots.com/user/debplayshere

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 13:35:53 -0400, Debra
wrote:

The scary part is that the die offs are worldwide. It's not a loss of
honey that worries researchers around the world, it's a lack of
pollinating insects needed to produce food crops.

According to French research, the city dwelling bees are doing much
better than their suburban and country cousins. The bee die-offs may
be due to pesticides, herbicides, and other chemical pollutants.

BTW--wish I had been one of the bottle lickers. A good meade is a joy
to taste.

Ah shoot!

I thought it was just the US, Spain, and Poland.
But it makes sense that if it was hitting areas that far apart, the
rest of the planet would start seeing it too.

I have a secret theory that it is not chemicals of any variety, but RF
and microwave saturation. The last report I read said that the bees
were not dying in the hive, they were leaving as usual and not coming
back. Basically they were getting lost on the way home. Since nobody
has actually ever figured out for sure how bees find their way home,
interference from cell phone towers and other sources is as good a
guess as any.

NightMist
--
Come to the dark side.
We have cookies.

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 01:09:01 GMT, Pati Cook
wrote:

Thanks for the website. Looks like fun. G
That batch of mead that started with 20 pounds of buckwheat honey was
certainly potent. (And yes, it was technically a methleglin, with
spices/herbs addedG)
I usually add a mix of cinnamon stick, cloves, and such to the basic
mead recipe. Have also used star anise in some.

I tend to prefer the more subtle herbs, but DH does love a bit of
spice in mead.

The very first batch of mead I ever made was back in the SCA dark
ages--very early '70s. Had no source for wine yeast so used a partial
package of older baking yeast. G Flavored with raisins, a banana (the
esters that are released do interesting things to the fermentation rate)
and spices. End results were "interesting", but it did get consumed. Of
course, as Rick has said, that was also in the days of "mead aging in
the car on the way to the event" so what could you expect. VVBG

Ah yes, the early days when foaming mead meant "not done fermenting
yet", rather than "used a specific beer or champagne yeast". (G)


Best batch was one that was able to sit for a long, long time. Had
people trying to lick out the bottle. And got told to never let anyone
consume much of it at one sitting. It did go down nice and smooth. G
But then if you tried to stand up--------- that was a whole 'nother story.

Yep some meads are sneaky like that. Goes down like sweet tea or soda
pop, hits like hard liquor.
The best way to make sure you have good well aged mead to hand is to
make it a LOT. Alas! since my beekeeper embarked on a crusade to
"save the world from alchohol" I haven't been able to make mead like
I used to. One time I swapped a queen sized quilt to his wife in
exchange for a hundred pounds of honey and fifty pounds of wax. Now
he won't allow swaps with me because I have been known to make "the
devil's brew" and otherwise consort with the demon rum. Pity for his
wife, she is in a chair with but one strong hand and enjoyed a good
dicker like nothing else. We would get going like an amishman trading
with a pennsylvania dutchman, even if at the end of it she would get
naught but a basket of tomatos and herbs and I would get naught but a
sheaf of straw. Then we would have coffee and doughnuts.

I do hope the experts figure out why the bee hive die offs are
happening. Not only for the honey but for the crops. There are some
major crop declines happening because of the lack of hives to pollinate
the fields/trees.

Would love to find another bee keeper. Haven't had one local that I
know for several years.

You know I do believe that the lack of local keepers is part of the
problem. I know that in some places they have zoned out things like
beekeepers, never mind that without bees the other pollinaters cannot
keep up with the crop volume. So some beekeepers have found it to
their financial advantage to tote their hives around to pollinate for
farmers that don't have any or don't have enough local bees. I
imagine that that might have messed up the bees just as easily as my
rf theory. Honeybees are not native to north america, so mucking
about with them here is a chancey buisness I would think.

NightMist
--
Come to the dark side.
We have cookies.

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 21:58:12 GMT, (NightMist) wrote:

I thought it was just the US, Spain, and Poland.
But it makes sense that if it was hitting areas that far apart, the
rest of the planet would start seeing it too.

I have a secret theory that it is not chemicals of any variety, but RF
and microwave saturation. The last report I read said that the bees
were not dying in the hive, they were leaving as usual and not coming
back. Basically they were getting lost on the way home. Since nobody
has actually ever figured out for sure how bees find their way home,
interference from cell phone towers and other sources is as good a
guess as any.

NightMist

Hmm, could be high power electrical fields or something messing with
the bees sense of direction too. Or maybe it's the same thing that
leads healthy whales to stray up rivers and onto beaches. I just hope
the scientists figure it out and find a solution before it's too late.
Debra in VA
See my quilts at
http://community.webshots.com/user/debplayshere

On Jun 18, 5:25 pm, (NightMist) wrote:

You know I do believe that the lack of local keepers is part of the
problem. I know that in some places they have zoned out things like
beekeepers, never mind that without bees the other pollinaters cannot
keep up with the crop volume. So some beekeepers have found it to
their financial advantage to tote their hives around to pollinate for
farmers that don't have any or don't have enough local bees. I
imagine that that might have messed up the bees just as easily as my
rf theory. Honeybees are not native to north america, so mucking
about with them here is a chancey buisness I would think.

NightMist

I'd go with the rf theory. Beekeepers have always toted their bees
around, for enhancement
of the flavor of the honey. Different pollens affect the flavor, so
you take the bees wherever
the desired flowers are. We never lost a hive that way.
My husband is a beekeeper. One factor that is hurting is the hysteria
over Africanized bees. Sure, they
are dangerous and becoming more common. But the media attention has
gotten people to start
calling exterminators anytime they find a wild hive on their property.
People used to call DH, and he'd
go get them. Not so much anymore.
Bees aren't easy to raise, and there's a plethora of things that can
happen to a hive. They're very susceptible to
verroa mites, and disease. Moths will invade and cause them to abandon
their hive. Farmers use too many
chemicals now. DH has just about given up except for keeping a few
hives just for our own supply.

Sherry