The Sweet Life: Tricking Your Taste Buds With a Top Ranking Superfood

 I think  all of us Americans can agree that we live in a culture that is addicted to sugar.  We say we can't get through the day without our soft drinks.  When hungry and busy we reach for granola bars or whatever else is nicely packaged and only 100 calories per serving. We can be quick to reach for a frozen dinner.  We know these things are destroying our futures.  But, they are also destroying our daily lives.  Full of refined carbohydrates, refinded sugar, and an ingredient list that is 2/3 preservatives; these "foods" (if they even deserve such a title) actually just make us feel tired and weak.  We know they are bad.  But, we eat them anyway.  Why?  Because we are too busy, overtired, and stressed to the max.  And, in the moments when we feel we can't take it anymore, we are quick to satisfy our sugar addiction.  Worry not.  There is a way to satisfy your addiction and take excellent care of your body. 

The answer is honey.  Of the 10 top ranking superfoods, honey is the only one widely harvested in the continental U.S. and it has far more uses than a way to make your herbal tea a little more palatable.  However, like so many other foods that have been made widely available to us, not all honey is created equally.  First of all, honey is only worth your money if you buy raw honey.  Pasteurized honey does not contain any enzymes whereas raw honey is full of them.  The enzymes in raw honey are so good at fighting off infection that honey is used medicinally for ear and sinus infections and can even speed the healing of open wounds when applied directly.  Consuming raw honey is also known to aid in weight loss and helps you to absorb the minerals in other foods.  It is also very important that you use organic honey.  Bees farmed organically consume natural flower pollens from their surrounding environment.  Bees not farmed organically are often actually fed high fructose corn syrup.  Honey gets its enzymes from the pollen the bees are consuming so if you don't buy raw organic you may as well stick with that sack of white cane sugar. 

While not imperative like being organic and raw, I also recommend that you try to buy local honey.  If you consume honey made from the plants in the area where you live, the honey can actually work as a histamine blocker and reduce the effects of seasonal allergies. 

Use raw organic honey anytime you would normally use sugar or syrup.  Drizzle it over your waffles at brunch, stir it into your cookie and cake batters.  It also makes an excellent homemade salad dressing ingredient or marinade for fish or vegetables.
I find that combining a couple of tablespoons of oil with about 1/2 cup of fresh squeezed orange juice, and 2-4 tbsp of raw organic honey and 1 tsp of dried oregano makes an excellent marinade for a nice piece of wild caught salmon.