“Honey and the healthy diet: The golden food”

7th Junior High School of RhodesOur visit in “Melissokomiki Dodecanesou” 21/12/2016(Beekeeping Company of the Dodecanese)Visit in the bee Museum. Attending the programme:“Honey and the healthy diet: The golden food”

On the way to Istanbul’s meeting! Subject: “The food of our countries”

About honey as healthy food.

A presentation by Dimitris Antonoglou and Marietta Georgarelli

Our visit in the Bee Museum

21/12/2016

Attending the programme

About bees and their valuable products: honey, pollen, wax, propolis and royal jelly.

An introduction

Beekeeping since the old times (up to 200 years ago) up to our days.

Beekeeping since the old times (up to 200 years ago) up to our days.

In the Bee Museum

The Beekeeper.

How honey is obtained (from the bee to our table).

The Beekeeper.

How honey is obtained

Tasting different kinds of honey.

Erasmus + bees!

Honey:A valuable human food through the centuries.Humans cultivated bees since the ancient times.

Honey is referred as therapeutical in Egyptian papyruses 3500 years ago.

In the ancient Indians’ book of life it is said that life is prolonged when there is honey and milk in everyday diet.

Nectar was the food of the immortal Olympian Gods. Zeus was brought up with honey by the Bee nymph.

The father of medicine Hippocrates recommended it for the treatment of several diseases, and so did Aristotle who believed that honey prolongs life.

Honey:A valuable human food through the centuries.● The Egyptians offered their gods honeycombs with honey as a valuable

present showing devotion and gratitude. Cleopatra, the Egyprian queen, used honey for her face and body.

● In Mykinae and the Minoan signs of other basic products of nutrition honey is (me-ri) is mentioned.

● In the classical era honey was one of the mytotos (kind of gruel) ingredients. Legumes also were eaten in the form of gruel adding honey.

● “Plakunta” was also a very popular sweet with honey, nuts and spices. Aristeos had become immortal because the Earth and the Hours to whom Apollon had given him,fed him with amvrosia.

● In the Byzantine period honey was also part of the diet.

Honey Categories

1.Honey from flower nectar. Its color is light, it has an intence aroma and

crystalizes relatively quickly.Pure Greek varieties:

Thyme,heather,orange,cotton,sunflower etc.

• 2. Honeydew honey from hertal or animal origin (secretions by insects which are parasitic on trees). It is darker,more viscous and less sweet tham flower honey. It crystalizes or it doesn’t crystalize at all.

• Pure Greek Varieties:• Pine,Fir

There are two general types of honey according to the raw material used by bees:

Answers to frequent questions about the honey.

Why do we have so many types of honey?On which factors do their characteristics depend?

• Types of honey, organoleptic properties (taste,aroma,color,fluidity) and physicochemical (moisture,PH,conductivity,etc) depend entirely on: The herbal origin of nectar or honeydews, the geographical area and the weather conditions.

• When these factors change, honey properties change too.

What is the best honey?• The nutritional value of all types of honey is very high

(with little variation). It is a matter of taste mainly. The price of honey is not a criterion of quality. It depends mainly on the production cost and the demand.

• Any type of honey is one thousand times better than any other sweetener(sugar, maltitol, aspartame, etc.)

What is the crystallisation of honey?It is a natural phenomenon and has nothing to do with the quality of honey.

Why we should add honey in our daily breakfast?

What makes honey unsurpassed is this coexistence of more than 180 elements with unique properties directly related to metabolism and growth in a harmonious whole. Honey is considered the most quick natural source of energy and wellness for humans.

Why we should add honey in our daily breakfast? Also honey is one of the most important factors for athletes as it is the most effective form of carbohydrate, for the necessary “charging” of the trainee before training, not only because it is easily digested and released at a constant rate in the muscular system, but also because it increases muscle resistance, eliminates fatigue and restores glycogen.

Honey and greek gastronomy

Traditional recipes with honey

Melekounia

Melomakarona

Loukoumades

Mel

ekou

nia Melekounia

In the island of Rhodes it's tradition to offer melekounia on weddings or christenings. The relatives and the friends of the bride and the groom are gathered before the wedding and celebrate as they make these delicious, traditional sweets . “Μelekouni” is a healthy sweet which stands out thanks to its great taste and high nutritional value. We use aromatic thyme honey , natural sesame, almonds, orange and lemon peel and spices. “Melekouni” is soft and frees all its fragrance the moment you taste it. It is more delicious and healthier than the usual pasteli because of its ingredients and the way it is made.

Mel

ekou

nia

Ingredients:• 700 gr honey • 1kg sesame• ½ t-spoon of cinnamon• ½ t-spoon nutmeg• scrap of 1 orange (or bergamot)• 100gr almonds whitened

ExecutionFirst clean the sesame and brown it .Then flail it lightly in a mortar or in a blender.Boil the honey until it loses its humidity and starts to become solid and stir it well with all the other ingredients. Clean and wet a surface ,spread the mixture of honey while it is still soft and warm. Press one by one all the almonds on its surface so that they become one with it and then let it get cold. When it is cold we cut it in lozenge and bundle in cellophane. In order to preserve them for a long time place them in pots well closed.

Mel

omak

aron

a2 glasses of corn oil• a small glass of cognac• a small glass of sugar• a small glass of orange juice with a t- spoon of soda• half tsp of cinnamon• half tsp clove powder• orange scrap• 1 kg of soft flour• finely chopped walnutsfor the syrup• 1 glass of honey • 2 glasses of sugar• 1 ½ glass of waterMix all the ingredients to form a soft dough. Give them a small oblong shape and bake them in the oven. Put the ingredients for the syrup in a pot and leave it to boil. Immerse the biscuits in the syrup for 1-2 min. and transfer them in a large flat dish. Sprinkle with the chopped walnuts.

Louk

oum

ades

500 gr. Flour• 1 tbsp yeast• 1 tsp salt• 1 cup tepid water• olive oil for frying

Syrup:• 400 gr honey• 100ml water• cinnamon• sesame

Louk

oum

ades

Mix the flour with the salt pour the mixture in a big bowl , add the yeast (dissolved in some lukewarm water) and stir slightly. Add a little lukewarm water to form a paste that is neither too fluid nor too thick. Whisk the mixture thoroughly to unify all the ingredients. Cover the mixture and let it stand in warm water. When the batter has bubbles on top it is ready. Heat plenty of olive oil in a pot until it is scalding cold. Drop teaspoonfuls of the batter in the hot oil. Allow the puffs to turn golden all around . When done, remove the puffs from the pot and place them on a large dish lined with kitchen paper. Prepare the syrup heating and mixing the honey with the water. Pour the syrup over the honey puffs and sprinkle with sesame. Serve them warm.

The importance of bees in the world

• Albert Einstein highlight the importance of bees in the world by saying that if bee disappears from the of earth, man would have no more than four years to live!

Thanks for watching!