It was noon before Pa came driving home. Laura had been watching for him, and she ran out to the wagon as soon as it stopped by the barnyard. But she could not see into it.
Pa called, "Caroline, if you'll come take this pail of honey, I'll go unhitch."
Ma came out to the wagon, disappointed. She said:
"Well, Charles, even a pail of honey is something." Then she looked into the wagon and threw up her hands. Pa laughed.
All the pails and buckets were heaping full of dripping, golden honeycomb. Both tubs were piled full and so was the wash-boiler. Pa and Ma went back and forth, carrying the two loaded tubs and the wash-boiler and all the buckets and pails into the house. Ma heaped a plate high with the golden pieces, and covered all the rest neatly with cloths.
For dinner they all had as much of the delicious honey as they could eat, and Pa told them how he had found the bee tree.
"Little House in the Big Woods" by Laura Ingalls Wilder
If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, 'a land which flows with milk and honey.' Numbers 14:8
Refined, white sugar is destroying the health of millions of people. It is yet another type of addiction in this country. The terrible consequences to our health are too numerous for me to list here. Refined sugar, masquerading as high fructose corn syrup, joins forces with caffeine and other dangerous artificial ingredients in soft drinks. It hides itself within the ingredient labels of most all processed foods, including popular breakfast cereals and so-called "health foods". What is worse than this refined white sugar are the deadly, cancer causing artificial sweetners like Nutra-Sweet and Splenda. Aspartame is contributing to a number of diseases and yet, popular diet fads, many of them claiming to be all about, "encouraging good health and a natural lifestyle", are selling and promoting foods that contain this very dangerous sweetener.
Many people are still under the impression that "low fat" and "low calorie", means "healthy". This is wrong thinking and it is the result of us allowing million dollar marketing schemes to, in essence, brain-wash us into abandoning our own logic and knowledge that God gave to us. These fat-free foods that grace the shelves in your local grocery store, and in all too many health food stores, are not appropriate foods for you or your family to be eating. You must be eating whole foods.
Let me put this in to practical terms here. A good example would be this...it is better for you to eat a large bowl of whipped whole cows cream skimmed from fresh, real cows milk, with a bit of honey added, or even a touch of fructose (a natural form of sugar, less refined and easier to process, but not for use in large quantities!), rather than a small cup of fat-free cool whip topping. Now, I'm being a bit factitious here. I would hope that none of you would begin eating large quantities of real whipped cream on a regular basis. But, I want to make a point here of what a real food is compared to a "fake" man-made food, that is not really a food at all. In all honesty, a large bowl of homemade vanilla ice cream, made with whole cream and milk, real vanilla flavoring and topped with homemade peach preserves would do less damage to your health than a small cup of "diet" fat-free, non-dairy ice cream. (Is "non-dairy" ice cream even logical?) The reason for this is that our bodies know how to process the real foods that we eat, but they don't know what to do with this food that comes out of cans and boxes. The preservatives and unnatural ingredients stick around inside of us much longer than the whole, real foods do. This puts strain on our digestive system and many other organs. Kidney and liver diseases are becoming much more common these days. We are hearing about so many unusual diseases that are causing people to suffer chronic fatigue and pain. I believe it is because our bodies are crying out for help. We are, in fact, poisoning ourselves. The next time you take a trip to the grocery store, take the time to read the labels on some of the popular foods on the shelves. You will be shocked at the list of unpronouncable and unnatural ingredients.
Eating well and following a whole foods diet, thankfully, does allows us to experience the joy of tasty, sweet treats. These "homemade-with-love" sweets can be far more enjoyable and delectable than anything you can pull or pour out of a box. With the proper ingredients and the right sweetener, you can enjoy delicious cakes and cookies. My very favorite sweetener, hands down, is raw honey! It is truly a magnificent food and one that too many people are missing out on. Honey can be used as a substitute for white sugar in nearly every recipe, a bit less than cup for cup. I prefer and advise that you always reduce the amount of any sweetener that a recipe calls for. When a recipe calls for a cup of sugar, use a half cup of honey. We simply have an unhealthy taste for too much sugar in our culture.
When time does not permit for a fancy cake or a flaky crusted pastry, try your hand at a simple fruit crisp. You simply slice up some fruit or use whole berries, mix in some arrowroot flour or cornstarch to thicken the juices as they cook, and coat the fruit with some honey. Top this with oatmeal, chopped nuts, shredded coconut, butter, and honey. Bake this in the oven for about 40 minutes and you have a much healthier dessert than anything you could pick up at the grocery store. The best part is that it takes 5 to 10 minutes to prepare it. If you can't wait around for the crisp to bake, enjoy raw fruit topped with a bit of honey and real whipped cream. The more raw foods in your diet, the better.
You should attempt to reduce the need for sweeteners in your home, but eliminating them is not necessary. Honey is not only a much healthier alternative to refined sugar, but there are actual benefits to its use. It has even been called "the gourmet medicine". Honey has antibacterial effects, enhances the immune system, reduces inflammation, stimulates cell growth, and contains beneficial antioxidants. Studies have been done that indicate honey may relieve constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, and several other gastrointestinal disorders. It is soothing to the digestive tract and has even been used as a successful remedy for allergy sufferers. Honey from local bees contains the pollen from many of the common allergens and can stimulate your immune system, acting as a kind of natural vaccine against allergies. Amazing! Honey has been used to clear up stubborn infections when used externally on wounds. It is also a safe alternative sweetener for diabetics.
What I love most about honey is that it is so complex in taste and more delicious than any other sweetener. Of course, that is only my opinion. But, I do find that most people who claim to dislike honey have never tasted it raw from a local beekeeper. The flavor is truly unique. Different honeys have different flavors, depending on the plants in the area. A buckwheat honey will be much darker and deeply flavored than a clover or apple blossom honey. Darker honeys may contain more medicinal benefits. Lighter honeys are more suitable for cooking and baking.
I use honey in my home as a medicinal product. I use it as a base for herbal syrups and in healing salves for external skin problems. I also serve it on dry toast as a light snack during times of illness. It is recommended by the medical community today not to give honey to infants under one year of age. Once your child has passed that milestone, feel free to introduce honey as a safe food. Honey is also an important ingredient in home baked breads and cookies. It is a natural preservative and will improve the shelf life of all your home baked goods. Cookies baked with fresh ground flour and honey as a sweetener makes for a healthy treat that you don't have to feel guilty about!
One of the great concerns we should all have right now is the danger that has befallen the honey bee. Disease and the latest, Colony Collapse Disorder, has threatened the very existence of this very important creature. Without the honeybee, we will all be facing a much bigger plight than simply having no honey to enjoy. We could suffer a famine in this country. Farmers depend on this little bee to pollinate food crops. God placed an important burden on this insect. It is absolutley essential that we do everything possible to encourage healthy hives and work to save the honeybee. If you have the space, look into getting a few hives of your own. The danger to the bees is, ironically, being inflicted upon them by the very farmers who need them the most. The honeybees are being destroyed through the use of dangerous pesticides, fungicides, and chemical fertilizers. Recent studies indicate that cell phone use may also be behind the decline of the honeybee. If you have some land that is free from the use of chemicals and far away from cell phone towers and populated areas, and you can take measures to raise the bees as naturally as possible, please consider this as a hobby. I urge you, though, to research organic, natural beekeeping as a possibility. Sometimes, in our quest to improve on things, we do so to our own detriment. This includes food, medicine, farming, technology, education...
Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. Genesis 1:31
