Honey is a common ingredient in many dishes and is often used as a topping or spread to sweeten anything from toast to cereals. Natural sugars, as well as enzymes, vitamins, amino acids and minerals, give honey not only a delectable taste, but also make it a nutritious food. Not all honeys are the same. According to the National Honey Board, light-colored honeys are generally mild in flavor, while dark honeys tend to have a more full-bodied taste.
Appetizers
Honey is easily incorporated into appetizer dishes and can be mixed into dips and dressings. For healthy appetizer options, add honey to herb dips and eat with vegetables, such as celery sticks, carrots and radishes. It can also be served as a dip for appetizer breads. Honey is often used to marinate and dress chicken or buffalo wings, and is used as a glaze for nuts and seeds. Spicy dressings or dips can be tempered with honey or served separately to complement spicy dips. Honey also makes for a healthy ingredient in salad dressings and can be used as a coating for croutons.
Entrees
Many main dishes and entrées feature honey, such as honey ham and honey-fried chicken. Honey is typically used as a marinade or glaze to coat a main dish, but it can also be mixed into sauces or side dishes. Common food items that are marinated or glazed include chicken, fish fillets, shrimp, steaks, sausages and ribs. Honey can also be used in stir-fries and made into a balsamic. Common flavor mixes for honey are whiskey- or lime-based glazes or sauces, such as honey-lime chicken and honey whiskey-glazed ham.
Desserts
Honey is one of the most commonly used ingredients in dessert dishes. The natural sweetness of honey makes it ideal as a dessert topping. Honey can also be used as an ingredient for dough mixes, as well as glazes used in desserts like baklava. Cookies, pies and cakes often contain honey, as do creams and dessert sauces. Certain liquors and honey are sometimes mixed and part of the dough or the dessert topping, as with honey and brandy orange delight, for instance. Honey and caramel, honey and chocolate, and honey and fruits are other common mixtures used in desserts.
Snacks
Honey makes a nutritious ingredient for various snacks. Many granola bars, cereals, nuts, fruit dips and hummus contain honey and turn ordinary snacks into nutritious alternatives to fattening sweets. Various energy bars commonly include honey for its rich flavor, but also for its essential sugars and amino acids that provide energy.
Caution
The Mayo Clinic warns that giving honey to a baby can potentially lead to infant botulism -- a serious but rare type of food poisoning. Children younger than 1 year old should not eat honey or foods that contain honey, as well as foods with corn syrup, as certain bacteria in these foods can multiply and produce a toxin that causes food poisoning.
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