The Sweet Bees Honey Festival and artisan market at the Cradle Aviation Museum, celebrated the benefits of bees and provided gourmet food and craft beverage tastings from local vendors from the tri-state and New England areas. Below is a list of sweet finds from the festival worth buzzing about.
Honey Products
Did you know that raw honey contains antioxidants and has antibacterial and antifungal properties? Be sure to stock up on honey for the winter months, it’s the perfect ingredient to soothe a sore throat with tea and lemon.
Honeybrook Farms from Pine Bush, NY showcased their European Style Honey Spread which is smooth and delicious. They also had Pure Comb Honey which can be used for baking, salads, breads, and cheeses.
Honey Straws are a sweet natural energy booster and are a great snack on the go. They are also the perfect sweet treat for kids and it’s much healthier than candy. However, be sure never to feed raw honey to kids under the age of 1.
If you like a mix of sweet and heat, try Mike’s Hot Honey infused with chilies from Brooklyn, NY. Drizzle over chicken and waffles, BBQ, seafood and even cocktails, to bring the heat this holiday season.
Drinks
Looking for a new mocktail or non-alcoholic cocktail for holiday entertaining? Try making a Bee Sting with lemonade, iced tea, sprite and a touch of honey. Honey is a versatile ingredients that is used in both sweet and savory recipes in holiday recipes, which will give you the perfect pairing.
Playing bartender for an upcoming holiday get-together? Pick up More Good syrups and mixers, they use locally sourced and organic ingredients to create hand-crafted soda syrup concentrates, tea and tisane concentrates, and bitters.
Moonshine is a strong high-proof distilled spirit. Since Moonshine has a very hard taste, LI o’OldTymer Moonshine
uses Long Island honey to sweeten up the spirit for a smooth taste with a little kick.
Old York Farm from Hudson New York is a farm-to-cask distillery and cooperage. They use grains and fruits from the Hudson Valley to make special micro batch spirits. Handmade barrels that are made on site, are used to age our bourbon, whiskey, and brandy. Add their Pumpkin Spice Vodka and Smoked Maple Bourbon to your bar cart this holiday season.
Bärenjäger is the original honey liqueur with a vodka base. This liqueur maybe be strong, but it’s delicious with some sweet mixers. For recipes to wow a crowd, check out the Bärenjäger website.
Food
Treat the meat lover in your family to Cactus Pete’s Beef Jerky from Warwick, NY. They make all of their marinating sauces from scratch with no nitrates added. They make 15 different flavors of beef jerky, from mild to spicy, sweet, smoky to extra spicy. If you’re looking for a fall inspired jerky, definitely try their apple pie beef jerky.
R & G Cheesemakers from Troy, NY, offers a full line of artisan cheeses, made with milk sourced by farms in the Hudson, Mohawk and Hoosick Valley. If you’re putting together a cheese and crackers platter or charcuterie board be sure to peruse their selection.
2 Chicks with Chocolate from Metuchen, NJ, makes a variety of chocolates, bars, bark, bon bons, CBD- infused chocolates, alcohol filled chocolates, and much more. If you’re looking to indulge your sweet tooth try these decadent artisanal hand-crafted chocolates.
The post What’s Buzzing at the Sweet Bees Honey Festival appeared first on Living Local 24/7.
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