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Watch GLBC’s Genji Leclair make Habanero Honey Margarita and Healthy Honey Ball on Good Day Northern Michigan

 

In celebration of National Honey Month this September, Great Lakes Bee Co. Owner Genji Leclair recently shared her Habanero Honey Margarita and Healthy Honey Ball recipes on Good Day Northern Michigan on 9&10 News.

“Margaritas are basically just citrus and tequila, so you can get creative in how you make it,” Leclair told Good Day Northern Michigan hosts Sid Simone and David Lyden as she began mixing grapefruit, lime, lemon and orange juices with tequila. “What makes ours special is the habanero honey – it’s a great alternative to sugar.”

Great Lakes Bee Co. – producer of Hasselman’s Honey – was founded by Larry Hasselman in Newaygo in 1974. Leclair, who grew up on honey, took over for Hasselman when he retired eight years ago.

“I’m a honey person. When I moved to Newaygo, I popped into the local grocery store and bought the local honey. When I tasted the honey, I had to call Larry to find out why this honey was so good,” Leclair said during the live Good Day Northern Michigan segment. “From there I learned all about the honey.

“We do it exactly the same way as Larry’s done since 1974,” Leclair added. “We’ve changed nothing. It’s all delicately handled. We don’t overheat the honey at all – it’s raw right out of the hives and it’s very special because the microclimate in Newaygo is very unique with an unusual blend of flowers. We only collect and sell the honey from summer – and so you have this crazy good taste that’s different – very different. It’s just amazing honey out of Newaygo.”

For the Healthy Honey Ball
• Leclair recommends having a base, such as oats (grinded) and a nut butter – peanut butter, almond butter or cashew butter.
• Then pick what you would want to mix in: cacao, turmeric, cinnamon, chocolate chips, cranberry, raisins, apricots, etc.
• Mix together – then add the secret ingredient: Honey
• Stir and roll it into a ball with your hands, then roll a topping like, coconut shavings or pecans or other nuts, over your ball and voila!

Charcuterie, Cheese or Fruit Board
• Add honey to enhance your charcuterie, cheese or fruit board flavors and pairings
• Blue cheese pairs well with honeycomb
• Goat cheese pairs well with lavender honey
• Leclair recommends playing around with different flavors of honey: pepper honey, habanero honey, etc.

“There are different flavors in the region depending on the floral sources,” said Leclair. “You can go to northern Michigan and you’ll get a lot of star thistle, which is a little bit lighter honey, and as you head down south, you get different types of flowers so you’ll get darker and different blends. It’s fun to taste honey from all regions. I really enjoy honey – people send me honey from all over the world and it’s just crazy how different they taste from region to region.

“Even just here in Michigan, across the state from north to south, you’ll get different honey and its different in the spring than it is in the summer and the fall. You’ll get a great experience tasting honey all over the world, but especially here in Michigan, we just have a lot of flavors.”

Great Lakes Bee Co.’s Hasselman’s Honey can be found at Whole Foods Grand Rapids, Spice Merchants inside Downtown Market in Grand Rapids, Rockford Cheese Shop; and in area Spartan Stores soon. It’ll also be available at West Michigan Meijer stores starting in mid-October. All honey products, including beeswax, candles, balms, salves, can also be found line at www.GreatLakesBeeCo.com

Watch Genji Leclair’s full interview on Good Day Northern Michigan, here.

 

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GLBC’s honey products now available at Whole Foods Market in Grand Rapids

You know that delicious Hasselman’s Honey and honey infusions we make? You can now purchase them at the new Whole Foods Market in metro Grand Rapids!

Whole Foods Market opened its first West Michigan store on Aug. 16 and features a variety of local products, including Hasselman’s Honey from The Great Lakes Bee Company. Our unprocessed, raw and unfiltered honey is collected from hives around Newaygo County, a region that specializes in honey production due to its unique environment that GLBC bees forage on, producing 150,000 pounds of Michigan honey each year.

As a local Whole Foods Market vendor, you can find GLBC’s Hasselman’s Honey, including comb honey and 3 oz. flavored honey infusions available for purchase inside the new store, 2897 Radcliff Ave SE, in Kentwood. Our honey products are currently located in the produce section, aisle four, and register seven in the check-out lanes.

If you’re as thrilled as we are about having GLBC’s Hasselman’s hometown honey in Whole Foods Market, the world’s leading natural and organic grocer, buzz on over to the store in Grand Rapids and check it out!

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Beeswax Fire Starters

Camping is the perfect time to relax and unwind, until the nerve-wracking task of starting a fire comes up! Don’t worry about how long it will take you to get a fire started when you’ve got this DIY natural fire starter craft. Ease your mind and expedite the fire-starting process with these nifty fire starters made with our very own GLBC Beeswax.

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How Pollination Works

 
 
Like all living things, plants want to reproduce. Reproduction happens when a male fertilizes a female. Plants reproduce similarly by making seeds after being fertilized. In order for plants to make seeds, plants must first be pollinated. Pollination is the process by which the male part of a plant fertilizes the female part of another plant (of the same species). The male part of a plant produces pollen, which then must travel to the female part of another plant in order to fertilize it. Plants can’t pick up their feet and walk like other living animals. The male part of the plant relies on external forces to transfer the pollen to other plants, like bees.

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Annual Bee Pick-Up Day

 

Beekeepers from all over the state came to pick up bees to add to their colonies during our annual bee pick-up days. The exact date of pick-up days differ every year, but they’re typically around May when the weather starts to get warmer in Michigan.  Around that time, we head down to Georgia to pick-up our bees, who vacation in the peach state for colony building in the winter months. Bees from GLBC also provide pollinating services in California. Continue reading Annual Bee Pick-Up Day

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Our Wood Conditioner Featured in Midwest Living Magazine

Last month, Midwest Living magazine featured The Great Lakes Bee Company in an article as part of their February publication. This bi-monthly publication that focuses on travel, food, home, and garden saved a spot for us in their piece titled, “Our Guide to Midwest Honey Finds”. The Great Lakes Bee Company found its Butcher Block Conditioner highlighted among several other admirable bee and honey businesses.

Continue reading Our Wood Conditioner Featured in Midwest Living Magazine