When you use fresh, local, minimally processed honey, you learn to live with crystallization.
As you come to the end of a honey jar, you don't want to waste a single dab of that natural goodness. My solution is to make a honey simple syrup right in that jar with honey crystals clinging to the sides.
Clearly the larger jar in the rear (above) is not ready for cleaning out. But the smaller jar in the front had lots of honey clinging to its interior before I added a bit of hot water and swished it around.
Safety Note: Be Careful Not to Burn Yourself! The water does not have to be extremely hot to melt the honey. Still I recommend using a pot holder to swish the water around in the jar and I do my dissolving step over the sink, just in case the cover is not on tightly enough.
Now when I want a bit of sweet in my ice tea, I'll just pour in a touch of honey simple syrup from the jar in the refrigerator. (Once you add water to honey, you should refrigerate it.)
Naturally you can make a bigger batch of honey simple syrup to have on hand for the summer drink season or to add a new dimension to your cocktail recipes.
Most recipes from around the Internet are similar to this one from Honey.com.
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Words: Penny Cherubino
Photos: ©2016 Penny Cherubino