How to Make Herb and Spice Infused Honey
I have to let you in on my NEW secret obsession! Well you guessed it, it involves honey. But not just any honey, Sonoran Desert Wildflower Honey with infused herbs, spices or both. I am a true believer in letting your imagination run wild on this.
Lavender and honey
Infused Honey - Spices & Fresh Herbs
The most important thing to remember when making honey with fresh herbs is to dry them first to reduce water content. If you grow your own herbs pick them in mid-morning when the essential oils are the most potent. Washing herbs are not necessary if grown organically though make sure they are free of soil.
There are several ways to dry herbs:
Food Dehydrator These range in price, if you don’t already own one it’s always a nice addition to your kitchen. Follow directions.
Solar Drying Works well in 100 F and less than 60% humidity. Keep the herbs out of direct sunlight and using herb drying screens can help facilitate the process. There are several different types herb drying screens on the market, choose the one that fits your needs. You can also make your own using a used window screen or muslin cloth and an old picture frame stapling the window screen or cloth to the back.
Drying Indoors Tie the herbs in bundles and hang upside down in a dry area of your home. Avoid the kitchen or bath due to moisture. Put the herbs in a paper bag perforated with holes and tie at the neck. You can also use muslin or a drying screen. Herbs usually take a few days to dry. You can tell when the stem is shriveled and the leaves are fragile to the touch.
Once the herbs are dried, give them a rough chop, place them into a clean mason jar about 1/2 way and cover them with raw honey about 1 inch from top of the jar. Fully submerge the herbs.
Use a chop stick, handle of wooden spoon or butter knife to remove any bubbles by gently stirring the herbs. Make sure that they are completely covered with honey.
Put the lid on the jar and place in a sunny location, a window sill works well, this helps keep the honey liquid and extracts the oils in the herbs.
Infuse mixture for 2-6 weeks, watching very closely to make sure that no mold forms.
After the honey is infused, place the jar in a bath of very hot water to help liquefy the honey if crystals have formed.
Strain out the herbs through a stainless steel mesh strainer into a clean jar, label and store in a cool dark place.
Enjoy in tea, coffee, smoothies, ice cream or gelato recipes. We use infused honey in some of our gelato recipes we now make in store, the Untamed way!
Rosemary and honey
You can add a mixture of herbs and spices, just spices or just herbs. When adding spices use whole spices instead of powdered spices. Whole cinnamon sticks crushed into the honey, cardamon pods, allspice, star anise. Create your own mixture and enjoy!
Infused honey with herbs and spices