0The New Complete Book of Food
What Happens When You Cook This Food
When honey is heated, the bonds between its molecules relax and the honey becomes more
liquid. If you heat it too long, however, its moisture will evaporate, the honey will become
more viscous, and its sugar will burn.
In baking, honey is useful because it is more hydrophilic (water-loving) than granu-
lated sugar. It retains moisture longer while a cake or bread is baking, and it may even extract
moisture from the air into the finished product. As a result, breads and cakes made with
honey stay moist longer than those made with sugar.
Honey also appears to enhance the Maillard reaction, a heat-triggered transformation
of sugars that turns toast brown, caramelizes custards, and crisps the surface of meats. The
Maillard reaction creates antioxidants that slow down fat’s natural oxidation (rancidity). As
a result, adding honey to meat dishes appears to slow the development of the characteristic
warmed-over flavor associated with cooked meat that is refrigerated and then reheated. In
studies at Clemson University, after two days in the refrigerator, cooked turkey roll com-
posed of turkey pieces plus honey (15 percent by weight) showed 85 percent less fat oxidation
than turkey roll made without honey.How Other Kinds of Processing Affect This Food
* * *Medical Uses and/or Benefits
Antioxidant activity. Honey is rich in naturally occurring antioxidants such as the pigment
beta-carotene (a precursor of vitamin A) and pinocembrin (found only in honey) that prevent
molecule fragments from linking up to form compounds that damage body cells. As a rule,
the darker the honey, the more potent it is as an antioxidant. Two exceptions: Light, sweet
clover honey is high in antioxidants and dark mesquite honey is low.
The antibacterial activity of antioxidants may be at least partly responsible for honey’s
age-old reputation as a wound healer. Greek and Roman generals used it as first aid; modern
medicine points to several hundred controlled studies showing that animal and human wounds
heal faster, cleaner, and less painfully when dressed with sterile, medical grade honey.
Soothing dressing. Like other sugars, honey is a demulcent, a substance that coats and
soothes irritated mucous membranes. For example, warm tea with honey is often used to
soothe a sore throat.Adverse Effects Associated with This Food
Infant botulism. Clostridium botulinum, the organism that produces toxins that cause botulinum
poisoning, does not grow in the intestines of an adult or an older child. Botulism poisoning in