DIY Pasteurized Honey - Or Not . . .

I love honey.

I've heard if you eat local honey you may have fewer problems during allergy season. I haven't tested this line of thought myself, but there's probably some truth to it. And it doesn't hurt to try!

I recently found a local lady who sells honey at a great price. It's yummy and the drive is kind of fun too. We pass goats and other farm animals on the way there.

The only thing is, the honey is not pasteurized. Does that matter? Well, the thought of getting botulism is pretty scary. It's pretty rare, but still a concern when you have children.

So, I decided to buy the honey and pasteurize it myself - after googling it of course!

I put the honey in a pot on the stove, stuck the candy thermometer in, and waited for the temperature to rise to 140. It did. And it kept rising. I tried to get it to remain at 140, but I was also feeding the girls breakfast, doing laundry and dishes (separately) and really just not qualified to be in charge of pasteurizing this honey.

So, it may have gotten a little too much heat.

And may have boiled over and made a mess all over the stove at one point.

It also may or may not have been on the stove a little too long.

(I picked the WRONG time of day to do it, really!)

All of these things resulted in honey with what I think is a slight burnt taste. My husband actually likes it. He says it tastes just the same as it did before - it's a wild clover honey and a little stronger flavor than most honey you get in the store.

But, if Mr. Picky-Pants - don't tell him I called him that! ;) - likes it, I guess it's okay and I might even attempt to pasteurize it again. With more research and fewer distractions next time!

What do you think? Do you have any experience with unpasteurized honey?