I cannot think of a better place to get honey than from the middle of Iowa. That is where Jill Beebout and Sean Skeehan live on their Blue Gate Farm. They own farm land in Columbia in Marion County, Iowa. It is there they produce their sweet and aromatic wildflower honey. It is organic and healthy, and it works well in a variety of recipes.

Blue Gate Farm is a small family-owned organic farm. They keep Italian and Carniolan honeybees that produce wildflower honey. The comb honey is harvested and the raw liquid honey is extracted. Wildflower honey means that their bees draw nectar from a large area with several types of flowers and plants, such as pear, clover, basil and alfalfa; harvesting does not revolve around a particular plants bloom time. During processing, Blue Gate Farm does not heat their honey so all the true flavor and enzymes shine through. As mentioned, Blue Gate Farm is organic and they rely on labor-intensive management to handle any critters or disease that otherwise might creep in. Relying on these methods is so much healthier for the consumers of their honey; I know that I do not want to be eating any pesticides on my whole wheat toast with honey and cinnamon! Honey is a very healthy food. Besides its role as natures nutritive sweetener, research has also shown that honeys one-of-a-kind composition makes it useful for antimicrobial agent and antioxidant purposes. Antimicrobials kill or hamper the growth of microorganisms like bacteria and fungi. Antioxidants protect our bodies from damaging free-radicals. It can also function as a wound healing agent. Honey is used frequently as an energy source, but it also works as an ergogenic aid; ergogenic aids can help an athletes performance. So many great reasons to include honey in your everyday diet, but I eat Blue Gate Farm organic honey mostly because it tastes amazing and it is not heavily processed like white sugar. Lucky for us too, that Blue Gate Farm ships their organic wildflower honey around the U.S. If you are really fortunate, you live near them and can go to the Des Moines Downtown Farmers Market where you will find their honey along with other fresh, organic products such as eggs, preserves, and fruits and veggies. All of their information is on their website, bluegatefarmfresh.com.

I have travelled around the U.S. a lot, but only drove through Iowa on my way from Pennsylvania to California. Too bad I missed Jill and Sean; now, however, I have a reason to go back, and I will for sure be stopping at the De Moines Market. The recipes below are heavenly, but my favorite is the Peanutbutter cookies. I will never again make PB cookies without their honey! If you are looking for sweet, wholesome, organic honey, Blue Gate Farm is the place for you.

 

Melissa McCabe

 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup Blue Gate Farm Organic honey
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking soda
• 1 egg
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Beat butter till creamy. Add peanut butter and beat till well combined. Add sugar and honey, continue beating and add dry ingredients. Beat in flour until all ingredients are well combined. Chill if necessary. Form into 1 inch balls and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Flatten slightly with a fork. Bake 7-9 minutes until the bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer to wire rack and let cool. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup yellow cornmeal 
• 1 cup all-purpose flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 2 large eggs 
• 1 cup milk 
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1/4 cup Blue Gate Farm Organic Honey

Directions 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan and set aside. 

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Mix together eggs, milk, butter and honey; add to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Pour into prepared baking pan. 

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. Serve warm with butter or honey.

Ingredients

• Half a banana 
• 5 strawberries or ½ cup mango
• 9 ounces Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon
• ice cubes 

Directions 

Cut up the banana into pieces and put them into a blender with the strawberries. 

Add yogurt, honey and ice cubes. 

Blend until combined. Garnish with banana slices