🐝🍯 and discuss...

Its more like cold runny honey when you take maple syrup out of the freezer - still runny, but sluggish.

erg boatyard - yes, I couldn't face it, once I knew it had been in there, I just couldn't do it (odd, because I'll happily take all the sides off a lump of old cheese covered in mould).. I had to just resolve not to buy the big jugs again.

Now that I know about the freezer though, I might do that - perhaps separate into little jugs first - although, being sugar, perhaps defrosting/re-freezing isn't so bad - like it wouldn't harm icecubes...

Manuka bushes are pretty. But Of all the New Zealand flora, i wish I could grow feijoa. They are bloody gorgeous.

Anyway, we never resolved what should go in a fish Finger sandwich.

Im Voting salad cream.

Manuka honey is not delicious to eat, but is totally brilliant for healing wounds, especially burns. I've used it on myself, dogs and horses.

There are proper, scientific studies which demonstrate the efficacy of the active ingredients in Manuka honey in assisting wound healing. At a pinch ordinary old supermarket honey does a decent job of keeping wounds moist and clean (honey produces hydrogen peroxide as a by-product).

That's all I'll say about that; I don't have a vast list of qualifications, so obviously science stuff makes me work too hard in the thinking bit. I'm over 30 though, so have obviously slacked off a bit.

Peanut butter and honey are good on toast. Also Australia has native blue bees which are very pretty.

They sell sugar water with a touch of honey as honey. Same with fake olive oil. It is a scandal!
I have a bee lady and an egg lady and feel very blessed.

I have heard (don't know if it's accurate) that more 'manuka honey' is sold in the UK than the entire output from New Zealand.

I can’t say I pay much attention because I’m not all that keen on bee vomit, but I’m sure I’ve seen different strength Manuka honey in healthfood shops so perhaps we sell more than they make because some of it is blended with normal honey.

Manuka is a Maori word pronounced more like mah-noo-kah (even stress on each syllable) than muh-NOO-ker as we tend to say it.
As well as the manuka bush, there is also kanuka, which is taller and likes wetter environments.

"Bad people they are" in reference to feminists was the best sentence in the pulled thread, and I have been using it in a wide variety of conversations today.

Surprised the OP didn't co-opt the bee v wasp theme, for surely the bees are the good looking women (fluffy & curvaceous, cheerful colour scheme) making top dolla (honey, wax) and not complaining (just a comforting drone). Whilst the wasps are the angry, ugly, lazy feminists going out of their way to sting poor, unassuming men (when actually without wasps there would be widespread crop faliure and a creepy crawly tidalwave) Or something.

Ooh, I was the one who said that Errol. Glad you've passed it on.

Think, I read it here first, mind you

I have heard (don't know if it's accurate) that more 'manuka honey' is sold in the UK than the entire output from New Zealand.

There's another thread all about bees in chat at the moment, I passed on the info I learned last night about not giving them honey.

I like that Aldi sell Manuka Style honey.

So all of the "am I eating Vicks?" and none of the health benefits?

And from the same link:

In addition to refrigerating opened maple syrup, the Vermont Maple Sugar Makers' Association recommends storing unopened maple syrup in a cool place. For long term storage, the Association says that maple syrup retains its flavor best when kept in the freezer (it will not freeze solid).

StillTasty.com indicates that 100 percent pure maple syrup should keep for a year unopened in the pantry, a year opened in the refrigerator, and indefinitely in the freezer.

manuka honey - yes, have tried it. got it from costco so not quite so eyewateringly expensive, had a spoon a day to try to help not get coughs and colds, seemed to work quite well.

Also spanned the time that I got pregnant with ds2... seemed to help with morning sickness in that I wasn't as sick at the start of my pregnancy as I was with ds1 but when I realised and people started saying about not having honey when pregnant I gave it up. Morning sickness came on hard and fast and remained for most of the rest of the pregnancy... totally miserable. If I had another dc, I'd certainly try to carry on taking the honey to see if it made a difference (even if it was just a boost of sugar at that time of the morning rather than the manuka-ness of it!) because the difference was so noticeable. Having said that, no idea if it is supposed to help with this or not, or if it was just a co-incidental chance thing!

Turns out I’m not such a scabby cook:

According to the Massachusetts Maple Producers Association, unopened maple syrup will keep indefinitely, but it must be refrigerated once opened. As for mold, the MMPA says, "If any harmless mold should form on the surface, merely bring the syrup to a slight boil, skim the surface, and pour into a clean container and refrigerate." We haven't tried this ourselves, and are reluctant to recommend it unless you know exactly what kind of mold you have and whether it is truly harmless. Do any of our readers have experience with this?

www.thekitchn.com/maple-syrup-does-it-ever-spoil-102784

What about pikelets?

I like that Aldi sell Manuka Style honey.

Plus, it's very important you eat it quickly, or it grows this floating mould which the internet is unhelpful about the safety of (as I discovered when I peered into the kirkland maple syrup jug in the fridge once....)

Maple syrup doesn’t last long enough to go mouldy in our house. I am dredging something out of my memory, possibly unreliable, but I think you can boil maple syrup to get shot of the mould. It is alo OK in the freezer IIRC because it doesn’t freeze due to the high sugar content.

Bumble bees are solitary and make nests in soil, holes in wood, and apparently crumpets. They pollinate plants and bumble about. Honey bees live in massive colonies and work their bee socks off making honey.

Noooo. Surely everyone knows that wasps make marmalade!

There is also a bizarre thing called a hornet hoverfly which I discovered last summer as I thought to my horror there was a hornet sitting on a leaf by the door. It's massive (nearly 3cm long!) but looked like a cartoon version of a hornet rather than an actual hornet when you looked closely. And it didn't sting or get angry while I took photos which was another plus! Doesn't make any sort of honey or marmalade or marmite though...

Speaking of honey, has anyone tried the manuka kind? Very good for your health, apparently. Smells distinctly medicinal and is eye wateringly expensive.

Who was the poster who once woke up clutching a dead wasp in her fist?

Gin Is it really dark? I know forest honey as being almost like treacle and for hardcore honey enthusiasts only.

Can someone tell me the difference between bumble bees and normal bees.

I had this conversation with my daughter. Neither of us knew the purpose of a bumble bee, other than to look cute.

Bit like us girlz...

I suppose they deleted the thread because we were too mean to the misogynist OP.

No, the deletion message said it was because he was clearly just here to goad, and he's been banned. Nowt to do with our response to him was mentioned. I would guess MNHQ doesn't mind the tea and lack of sympathy approach to GFs at all.

So: ants.

They farm aphids and 'milk' them to obtain their sugary secretions.

Also, butter must be slathered on to toast before any topping is applied

And it must be proper best butter. Not (urghhh) spread (urghhh)