The local honey business is blooming at metro Atlanta farmers markets. There’s wild flower honey and orange blossom, tupelo and tulip poplar, each coming into season and making its appearance in turn. Depending on the time of year, you might find locust, strawberry, blackberry, blueberry or even cotton or kudzu honey available.
Each honey has its distinctive taste with customers partisan to that particular variety. “A lot of people tell us they didn’t know there were that many different types of honey, and we explain that where there’s an abundance of flowers of a certain type, the bees gather that nectar and the honey will have a distinctive taste,” said Donna Lopes of Hidden Springs Farm in Williamson, 50 miles south of Atlanta.
Hidden Springs Farm sells honey at the Wednesday Dunwoody Green Market and Decatur Farmers Market, the Thursday East Atlanta Village Farmers Market, the Saturday Peachtree Road and Sandy Springs farmers markets as well as at the Green Market at Piedmont Park and the Sunday Grant Park Farmers Market. They’re at the Saturday Decatur Farmers Market every other week and monthly at the Emory University farmers market when school is in session.
At each market, Lopes and her helpers offer samples so customers can find their favorites. The unique flavors and colors of the honey draw many customers, but for others it’s the idea of buying honey that’s locally produced.
Just what qualifies as local honey?
“I tell people who are looking for local honey that they should look for honey produced within a 50-mile radius of where they live. The tree structure and the plants will pretty much be the same so the bees will be working the same plants as where they live,” said Lopes.
Of course some of her honey doesn’t fit that definition of “local.” She keeps bees in Florida for her orange blossom honey and down in south Georgia for the cotton honey, and brings those honeys to market in Atlanta for her customers who crave those particular tastes.
“I’ve been selling honey for 13 years. I find that our customers are getting back to local honey after hearing about contamination in the honey that comes from China. They want to know where their honey comes from and who’s harvesting it,” said Lopes.
In addition to honey, the farm offers beeswax candles, lip balm made from beeswax, honey-based soaps, bee pollen and creamed honey.
“I like to remind my customers that honey is the only food that will never spoil if it’s harvested correctly. Over time it may crystallize, but that doesn’t mean it’s gone bad. It just wasn’t used quickly enough,” said Lopes. Gently warming crystallized honey will restore it to a syrupy consistency, although some find that crystallized honey is perfect for spreading on toast.
Lopes starts every day with a bagel spread with creamed honey, and if she needs a pick-me-up in the afternoon, has been known to dip apple slices into honey. Her favorite variety? Cotton.
When asked which honey to buy, Lopes offers this advice. “It really comes down to personal preference and what you like. My taste is totally different from yours, so we tell people to try them and see what they like,” she said.
At local farmers markets
Cooking demos:
Thursday, July 11. Chef Angus Brown of Octopus Bar. East Atlanta Village Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.farmeav.com
9 a.m. Saturday, July 13. Chef Jeffrey Gardner, Alma Cocina, working with blueberries. Morningside Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.morningsidemarket.com
10 a.m. Saturday, July 13. Chef Drew Belline, No. 246. Peachtree Road Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.peachtreeroadfarmersmarket.com
11 a.m. Sunday, July 14. Chef Nick Melvin, Doux South. Grant Park Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.grantparkmarket.org
For sale
Vegetables and fruit: arugula, Asian greens, beets, blackberries, blueberries, broccoli, broccoli raab, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chard, collards, cucumbers, dandelion, eggplant, fennel, figs, garlic, green beans, green garlic, herbs, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce, Malabar spinach, mushrooms, mustard greens, okra, onions, pea tendrils, peaches, peppers, potatoes, radishes, sorrel, spinach, spring onions, squash blossoms, strawberries, summer squash, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnips
From local reports
Honey-Mustard Chicken
Hands on: 15 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
Serves: 4
4 (5-ounce) trimmed boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs (1 slice)
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Put chicken breasts in a food-safe plastic bag.
In a small bowl, combine honey and mustard. Reserve 1/4 cup to use as sauce. Pour remainder over chicken, seal bag and refrigerate overnight.
When ready to cook, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a rimmed baking sheet.
Pour bread crumbs, garlic salt and pepper in a pie plate. Remove chicken from marinade. Discard marinade. Dip chicken breasts into bread crumbs, pressing to help crumbs adhere and coating all sides. Arrange on prepared baking dish. Discard remaining bread crumbs.
Bake 30 minutes or until chicken is 165 degrees. Remove from oven and tent with foil. Let chicken rest 5 minutes before serving. Serve with reserved honey-mustard sauce.
Per serving: 325 calories (percent of calories from fat, 9), 35 grams protein, 40 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 3 grams fat (1 gram saturated), 82 milligrams cholesterol, 763 milligrams sodium.
