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Its story dates back to ancient Egypt, where evidence of the first beekeeping activities was found. Throughout the past, honey has found its way into the kitchen as a standalone food, as an ingredient in cooking and baking, as well as a sweetener. Moreover, this sweet, liquidy, thick ingredient was applied as a home remedy in folk medicine and has held a notable significance across many religions.

Today, honey is mostly cherished for its health benefits - its high level of antioxidants acts favorably in preventing cell damage, as well as lowering the blood pressure and the risk of heart disease, whereas fat-free composition helps in reducing cholesterol and triglycerides.

So, how can you integrate this delicious, wholesome ingredient into your everyday cooking? Let's dive into the best tips on using honey for cooking, as well as check out some recipes for a balanced, healthy meal using honey, like Australian organic honey.

6 Pro Tips for Cooking with Honey

• Honey has a high fructose level and is thus sweeter compared to regular sugar. Therefore, when substituting sugar with honey in your favorite cake recipe, add around half of the amount of sugar called for.

• When in the oven, turn the temperature down and keep the dish a couple of minutes extra - honey makes the food brownish, so it's easy to end up with an under cooked meal.

• Honey attracts water, so in order not to end up with a moist cake biscuit, reduce a quarter of a cup of water for each cup of honey.

• Thanks to its liquidy nature, honey helps foods stay moist and soft for a longer time.

• Honey is acidic, so adding a half spoon of baking soda will help counteract that acidity.  

• Use cooking spray or vegetable oil to coat the measuring cup so that the honey wouldn't stick to it. That way, you can precisely measure the honey.

How to Use Honey in Cooking: 12 Inspiring Ideas

Now that we've covered the titbits on how to integrate honey into your cuisine, let's see some tasty, honey-flavored titbits.

Start Your Day with Honey

• On an empty stomach, take a teaspoon of honey and drink a cup of warm water. This morning routine is an incredibly beneficial practice, as it helps you lose weight, clear your skin, fight cough and throat infections, boost the immune system, and soothe allergies.

• Honey French toast? Take your regular batter of eggs and milk, add a quarter of a cup of honey, and dip the bread until soaked.

• All-time favorite pancakes with a twist - just add some honey into the batter for extra sweetness and flavor.

Sweeten Your Sweets

From pies to tarts, cakes to cookie bars - honey is much more than just a sugar replacement. Here a few simple ideas on how to use honey as an ingredient when baking sweets:

• Whisk cream, mascarpone cheese, and honey together to get a rich cake coating that will transform even the most basic sponge into a glorious experience.

• Honey is marvelous in ice creams - just add cream, egg yolks, and vanilla extract.

• Pastry filled with honey? Of course - mix it with some egg yolks, cream, milk, and sugar, and season with vanilla seeds, lemon crust, and cinnamon to flavor. 

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Lunch Combos With Honey

• If you thought chicken wings couldn't be more tasty, sticky, and glazy, well, think again. For extra crispness and crunchiness, add honey to the wings' coat mixture.

• Seafood and honey? When you buy raw honey, adding it to a shrimp dish might not be your first thought. However, cooking shrimps in brine to which we added honey and drizzling them with honey as a final touch makes a dish to impress.

• Fresh vegetable salad with lemon juice, honey, and mustard dressing will make all the flavors pop and add extra freshness to your dish.

Honey Snack Recipes

• Roast almonds in a pan, season with honey, sugar, salt, and cumin, and you've got yourself an amazingly tasty and nutritious snack.

• Whisk Greek yogurt, lemon, and honey to get a perfect summer dip for strawberries.

• Try out taffies, and have fun stretching the honey to make it more pliable.

Honey is a nutritious, beneficial, and tasty ingredient that is equally amazing in cooking. Its natural sweetness and a variety of flavors make honey an amazing choice for preparing different dishes, and it makes a perfect combo with salty and bitter, sweet, and sour foods. If you haven't already discovered the pleasures of honey, it's about time.