ALL-PURPOSE SWEET AND TANGY SALAD DRESSING
This recipe is the perfect way to put an almost empty jar of honey to good use. It is so simple to make it’s hardly a recipe at all—just dump all of the ingredients into a nearly empty honey jar, shake well, and . . . voilà! The dressing can be stored in the fridge for a couple of weeks, but it’s probably going to be gone long before then.
Makes about 1 cup
¾ cup olive oil
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 to 2 teaspoons honey—or whatever is left in the jar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Place all the ingredients into your honey jar (or another empty jar) and shake.
JAMMY HONEY-ROASTED TOMATOES
I’m a big fan of the BLT. Really, any kind of tomato sandwich does it for me. Toasted bread with some olive oil/mayo/bacon/what-have-you; a thick, juicy slab of perfect in-season tomato; a sprinkling of salt and pepper; and, sure, throw some lettuce on there, too, please—that’s perfection. Alas, the heart wants what the heart wants and in moments of desperation, against my better judgment, I have made the mistake of ordering a BLT at a restaurant in the dead of winter (Why?!) and I learned my lesson. Adding a mealy, pale slice of tomato—the ingredient that should actually be the star of the sandwich—is a quick and surefire way to ruin lunch. While I understand and fully support the notion that a BLT or tomato sandwich should be a seasonal treat, I am not opposed to finding loopholes in the name of off-season gratification. This sorta tomato jam is just the kind of loophole I’m talking about. Its sweet, summery, dreamy tomato flavor added to a sandwich (or a cheeseboard, or a plate of eggs . . .) can fulfill that hankering pretty well. And the best news is that it works beautifully with those not-great fresh tomatoes that are lurking around when the air is cold, so it’s truly a year-round recipe hack!
Makes about 1 cup
1 pint cherry, grape, or other small variety of tomatoes, halved
2 tablespoons minced onion
1 tablespoon honey
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for pan
¼ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.
2. Combine the tomatoes, onion, honey, olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl. Toss well to evenly coat the tomatoes.
3. Spread the tomatoes on the prepared pan, making sure not to space them too far apart—they like to remain cozy. You want a little huddle of tomatoes in the center of the pan.
4. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes, until lightly browned and bubbling.
CHILE-INFUSED HONEY (PLUS OTHER INFUSIONS YOU’LL LOVE)
A few years ago, someone gifted us a bottle of chile pepper–infused honey that we seriously couldn’t stop eating. We tried it on pizza, popcorn, salmon, soft pretzels, sandwiches, plain yogurt, in cocktails, and right off the spoon . . . until the bottle ran out. At that point, I began to wonder, How hard can it possibly be to make my own hot honey? And thus began my honey-infusing mania. As I learned, infusing honey with herbs, spices, and even fruits is dead-easy and is a great way to give all manner of dishes a little more depth, a little more flavor, a little more sumpin’. Plus, a jar of infused honey makes a great gift (see above), so keep a few extras in your cabinet and bring one along next time you’re invited out for dinner.
Makes about 1 cup
5 dried New Mexican red chiles (or other dried chiles of your choosing), or 2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
1 cup honey
1. Place the dried chiles in the bottom of a glass jar.
2. Warm the honey in a saucepan over very low heat, until liquefied and hot.
3. Pour the warmed honey into the jar over the chiles. Allow to cool completely before covering the jar with its lid.
4. Allow the honey to sit for 5 to 7 days or longer (longer = stronger flavor) at room temperature before using.
5. Once infused, you can strain it into a clean glass jar. Store at room temperature indefinitely.
Suggestions: To make other infused honeys, swap out the dried chiles for 2 tablespoons of dried herbs, spices, or chopped dried fruit. I happen to like using cinnamon sticks, whole cardamom, star anise, chamomile, vanilla bean, and rosemary—sometimes on their own and sometimes in different combinations with one another. Have fun experimenting with flavors you love, then try your infused honey stirred into tea, added to salad dressing, served along with cheese, and—yes—drizzled on pizza. But please note: use only dried flavorings (as opposed to fresh herbs, for example), when making infused honey, to mitigate any risk of bacterial growth.
WHIPPED HONEY BUTTER
I love butter—for better or worse—and use it often enough to have educated my family on the notion that it is a Very Important Food. Even my four-year-old regularly repeats the mantra “Everything’s better with butter.” When my husband and I were dating seriously, after we’d learned all about each other’s families and childhoods and hopes and dreams for the future, I remember becoming (maniacally?) focused on trying to figure out his food quirks, because this stuff is important when you’re considering spending a lifetime with another person. At some point, I started to notice that he didn’t really like butter or mayonnaise or whipped cream or, really, anything creamy (ice cream excepted). Okay, I thought, I didn’t necessarily understand the whipped cream thing, but I could work with it. And mayonnaise is definitely one of those inexplicably polarizing foods, so I accepted that one, too. But the butter thing stopped me in my tracks and I actually found myself wondering, Can I spend the rest of my life with someone who doesn’t like butter? Thankfully, I didn’t have to find out, because slowly, over time, I’ve worn him down shown him the light. There are still some things that are “too buttery” for him, such as puff pastry (whuh?!), but he has come to appreciate and accept butter in enough other places that it doesn’t matter. This whipped honey, for example, is something he loves. And who wouldn’t? It’s creamy, sweet, and salty. The Big Three. It’s perfect on anything from toast to just-out-of-the-oven corn bread to pancakes and waffles. I defy you to find a butter-skeptic who doesn’t love this stuff.
Makes about 1 cup
½ pound (2 sticks) salted butter, softened
3 tablespoons honey
Sea salt, if desired
1. Place the butter in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Using a handheld mixer or the stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on medium speed, or until smooth and creamy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
2. Add the honey and beat again until combined. Taste and add a little sea salt if the mixture isn’t quite salty enough for you. Serve.
3. Honey butter can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Bring to room temperature before serving.
CREAMED HONEY
Smooth, “buttery,” drip-less, spreadable and—uh—creamy, creamed honey is a treat on toast, bagels, biscuits, and more. For years, I assumed it was simply runny honey that had been whisked into something stiff yet light, sort of like what happens to egg whites when they’re whipped, but it’s actually more akin to making sourdough bread or yogurt: with a starter. Creamed honey, as it turns out, is simply crystallized, but in a way that is controlled and results in tiny, round little crystals rather than the big, gritty ones that occur naturally when honey hangs around for a while.
Transforming liquid honey to creamed is easy: all you do is beat a little creamed honey (either from a store-bought batch or an older homemade stash) into “regular” honey, wait a week, and presto!—creamed honey, ready for toast, peanut butter sandwiches, or—my favorite—licking off a spoon!
Make about 1 cup
1 cup liquid honey
2 tablespoons seed honey (already creamed honey)
1. Place both honeys in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or using a handheld electric mixer and beat until thoroughly combined.
2. Pour the mixture into a glass jar and cover with its lid. Store it in a cool, dark place (but not the fridge!!) until the mixture has fully “creamed,” about a week and a half. You’ll know when it’s happened because the color of the honey will be much lighter and the contents of the jar will stay put when tilted.
3. Creamed honey will last indefinitely and, amazingly, will never get grainy.