GloryBee Blog

Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies

We don't know anyone who doesn't love a batch of cookies made just for them. In our all natural chocolate chip cookie recipe we sweeten the cookies with coconut sugar which provides an additional caramel flavor profile to the treats. Make your loved ones a batch - you'll put a smile on their faces and love in their heart. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

¾ Cup Aunt Patty’s Organic Coconut Sugar

½ Cup Organic Brown Sugar

½ Cup Aunt Patty’s Organic Virgin Coconut Oil, in solid to semi-solid form

1 large egg

1 ½ tsp Aunt Patty’s Pure Vanilla Extract

1 Tbsp water, can add additional tsp if not moist enough

1/8 tsp Sea Salt

1 tsp Aunt Patty’s Baking Soda

2 Cups Unbleached Flour

1 Cup Aunt Patty’s Organic Dark Chocolate Chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375° F.

2. Combine sugars and room temperature coconut oil in a medium sized bowl. Add egg, vanilla and water and cream the mixture, whisking or blending with a hand mixer on medium speed for about 5 minutes.

3. Sift in flour, salt and baking soda slowly to creamed mixture, blend until all dry ingredients are well coated. Fold in chocolate chips.

4. Place dough on baking sheet in heaping spoonfuls, gently pressing down on each.

5. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and let stand for 3 minutes before removing from baking sheet.

Sustainability Reports—three great reasons why your company needs them

Technology is progressing in leaps and bounds, simplifying our lives and helping us find faster ways to get stuff done. What is concerning is the effect our increased consumption is having on the planet. Businesses are required to keep track of their finances for reporting on their taxes, but there is no federal mandate for sustainability reporting. That’s why it’s up to responsible businesses to track their own economic, environmental and social performances each year and share that information with others. Transparency leads to accountability. When we all commit to doing business ethically and as socially responsible as possible, Earth wins.

Transparency

Everything isn’t awesome. Being confronted with painful truths is a good motivator for future sustainable improvements. Sometimes implementing new sustainable processes requires you to take several steps back. Other times your efforts pay off dramatically and you have something to celebrate. Sustainability reports invite others to take an inside look into your company’s sustainability practices- the good and the bad. This transparency holds your company accountable and challenges you to improve the ways you inspire your employees, your community, your customers and the environment.

Tracking

What gets measured gets mastered! Communicating key indicators of your sustainability practices is an important tool to verify your successes and your failures. By setting annual sustainability goals, you will have valuable data to guide you and indicate when you are making progress or need to implement changes to improve your efforts.

Tribal Knowledge

As technology eliminates borders and language barriers, we are closer to becoming one large global village. With the help of the internet, it’s totally possible for some little company in the middle of a rural area to impact a large multi-national company based half-way around the world. As humans, we are blessed with intelligence and creativity. By sharing our sustainability efforts with others, we encourage them to begin using their own business more responsibly and perhaps inspire them to innovate a brand new sustainable practice that will benefit the whole planet.

Sustainability reporting is a socially responsible way of creating the change you seek in the world, ensuring transparency in business supply chains and efficiency in company operations. Sustainability reports are your story, but also much more than that. They are a true and honest look at the last calendar year; what went well, what didn’t-- and what you can work on in the future.

Use this link to see our sustainability report?

Can Bees and Backyard Chickens Coexist?

Urban homesteading, urban farming, and urban beekeeping… whatever you call it many families are interested in raising their own food again. From vegetable gardens and fruit trees, to raising your own chickens and honeybees. You can find many of examples in neighborhood yards, on rooftops and shared city lots. While gardening is not normally a concern, there are a few considerations you must take before adding honeybees and chickens together.

1. Check out local city or county urban animal keeping rules. Where GloryBee is headquartered in Eugene, Oregon, homes are able to have up to six chickens, but roosters are prohibited. Three honeybee hives are allowed provided that they are located 5 feet from all property lines and that there is a water source onsite within 15 feet of the hives.

2. Chickens are known for eating everything in their path. Consider if you want to raise chickens, will they be enclosed in a coop or allowed to be free range within the yard? While free range is wonderful, you may need to arrange vegetable gardens appropriately.

3. Honeybees and chickens have a cooperative relationship – Chickens are busy foraging on the ground and can help clean up areas around hives. Your hens will be more than happy to eat all the ants, beetles and other bugs you do not want around the hives.

4. Chickens can also be utilized for minor pest management in your hives. Varroa mites like jumping into drone brood because they can get an extra cycle of their own offspring since drone bees incubate for 24 days. Once honeybees have drawn out comb, queen has laid the drone eggs, and worker bees have capped the drone cells you can give your hens a treat. They love drone larvae and eat the mites along with the larvae.

5. Water sources for both honeybees and chickens separately are essential. Honeybees will scour the yard searching for water, and if they find the chickens water they may be in the way of the chickens drinking. You will need to keep an eye on both, but it shouldn’t be an issue if you keep fresh water near both hive and coop.

We always recommend reaching out to your local beekeeping association for tips as well. Many beekeepers enjoy raising chickens and honeybees together. What are some of your tips and tricks for raising hens and honeybees? Feel free to share!

Grilled Cantaloupe Caprese

Scouring your local farmers market is a great way to find new ingredients and surprising recipes to share. After one of our trips, we found a way to make a new spin on the standard caprese salad. By adding grilled cantaloupe along with our spicy Habanero Honey to fresh tomatoes and basil a whole new flavor profile to the dinner table. The recipe will soon be a family favorite. Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 medium cantaloupe, halved, seeded, and cut into wedges

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

¼ cup Glory BeeⓇ Habañero Honey

1 cup multi-colored cherry tomatoes, halved

½ cup fresh basil leaves, torn

8 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into small pieces, or small mozzarella balls (bocconcini)

Flaky sea salt and black pepper

Directions

1. Prepare a hot grill fire and brush cantaloupe with 1 tablespoon oil. Place cantaloupe on grill and brush with honey. When browned, flip the wedges and brush on the other side with honey. When browned, remove to a serving plate and brush with any remaining honey.

2. Arrange tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella on the plate and drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Top Three Uses for Queen Excluders

There are multiple uses for queen excluders. From keeping queens out of honey supers to more advanced re-queening techniques, queen excluders offer beekeepers an array of interesting options to integrate into their tricks of the trade.

Keeping in mind every beekeeper is different, you may find queen excluders are not for you; however, GloryBee suggests every beekeeper keep at least one queen excluder in their arsenal of bee tools.

Honey Supers
To keep queens from laying eggs in a newly placed honey super, a queen excluder can be placed between the deep brood box and the newly placed western honey super. The excluder’s grate openings are large enough for the worker bees to slip through, but too small for the queen to pass through. Remember to only use the excluder when you add a honey super and the forager bees are bringing in nectar and making honey. We recommend having at least seven bee-covered frames in your deep box before adding a honey super on top. If you are not actively collecting honey, don’t use an excluder.

Requeening a split hive
Before splitting a hive, take out three or four frames of brood and put them in a new deep box and place on top of original box. Make sure all the bees are brushed off the frames before you add them. Worker bees will instinctively care for their young. Put an excluder between the boxes-- You will notice nurse bees crawling through the excluder into the new box to keep the eggs and larvae warm. Wait a day, then move the queen-free frames and brood into a nuc—you can then begin introducing a new queen bee to the new nuc colony or entice them to raise their own.

Locating the Queen
There are many ways to locate a queen. The most popular method is marking the queen with paint. For those needing to locate your queen, an excluder can be used to help find her, but be warned this is a technique that should only be employed when all else is failing you.

Make a strainer box--Attach a queen excluder to the bottom of a deep box.
Shake all your bees out of their box and into the strainer box- when you are done, make sure all bees are out and all frames are left in.
Place the strainer box on top of the box with frames
Use a little smoke to make bees go down through excluder to the brood box
Soon you will only have drones and the queen left in the strainer box.
It should be fairly easy to find the queen

Cruelty-Free – A Small Action To make A Big Difference

As consumers who have become more aware of the impact our purchases can have, many of us are beginning to wonder how we can use our spending dollars to make a positive and impactful change. One amazingly simple thing we can do is purchase cruelty-free products. Together we can eliminate harmful and inhumane animal testing with our purchasing habits by supporting cruelty-free products.

Top 3 ways to help eliminate Animal Testing

Look for the Leaping Bunny Icon - When shopping for cruelty-free products, one of the highest benchmarks is the Leaping Bunny Certification. Leaping Bunny requires companies to agree to independent audits to ensure no animal testing is being done on their products. Better yet, the ingredient suppliers for these products have to be certified as well.
Do your Research -There are other benchmarks as well. Many companies that are not Leaping Bunny Certified are still completely cruelty free. This is why it is always important to do your research, and often a quick google search can lead you to the answers you are looking for. As consumers, it is so important that we purchase wisely and connect to products we believe in.
Live Your Values - It is of the upmost importance to consider your own standards through this process. Often, companies put out cruelty-free products, even though the company is not cruelty-free as a whole. Other companies are cruelty-free, but are owned by companies that are not. This decision is up to you. Every bit helps, and the more emphasis we put on supporting products that are cruelty-free, the bigger the cruelty-free market becomes.

Make every purchase matter. Be the Change. Visit humansociety.org for more information.

Thai Brussels Sprouts

This crispy Brussels sprouts in an authentic Thai chili fish sauce recipe may soon become your favorite side dish!

Brussels sprouts are members of the cabbage family and are a great source of vitamin C. When properly cooked, these crispy sprouts burst with hearty flavor. However, the star ingredient in this unique Thai Brussels sprouts recipe is GloryBee’s Artisan Fermented Honey, which adds a hint of tangy sweetness to this traditional Thai treat.

Ingredients

1 pound Brussels sprouts, halved
2 tablespoons preferred vegetable oil
2 tablespoons Glory Bee Artisan Fermented Honey
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1” piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 small red chiles, thinly sliced

Directions

Preheat oven to 425℉.
On a baking sheet, toss together Brussels sprouts and oil. Turn Brussels sprouts so cut side faces down and roast until tender and browned, about 25 minutes.
While Brussels sprouts roast, in a small bowl whisk together honey, fish sauce, vinegar, garlic, and ginger. Toss hot Brussels sprouts with the dressing and serve garnished with chiles.

DIY Grill Cleaner

Natural ingredients can be used to clean even the worst of messes. By combining the cleansing powers of baking soda, vinegar and essential oils you can clean your BBQ or smoker grill in less than 30 minutes. Right on for a job well done!

Ingredients

½ cup baking soda
¼ cup castile soap (https://glorybee.com/extra-rich-castile-liquid-soap-base)
10 drops lemon or citrus essential oil (https://glorybee.com/aromatherapy/essential-oils/lemon-essential-oil)
Aunt Patty's Apple Cider Vinegar (https://glorybee.com/apple-cider-vinegar-10794)

Directions

Mix all ingredients in a glass bowl. Add vinegar until mix has a thick liquid consistency (think olive oil). Remove grill grates from BBQ and brush on mixture – let sit on grill grates for 10-15 minutes. You may need to use a natural scrub brush or scouring brush to remove all pieces left behind. Rinse grates with water and towel dry.

When is a compostable spoon REALLY a compostable spoon?

Local landfills are filling up. Garbage incineration wastes precious energy and produces toxic fly ash. It’s becoming harder and harder to find safe and sustainable waste disposal options. Composting provides a way of reducing the amount of waste that needs to be disposed of and converts it into a sustainable product that can benefit gardening and enrich soil nutrition.

In an ideal world, we would never have single use plastic items. There would be no need to buy 100 plastic forks for a picnic in the park, and food trucks wouldn’t need styrofoam to-go containers. Instead, there would be time and inclination to wash re-usable durable dishware. If we had a birthday party at work, all our utensils and plates would go in the dishwasher, not the trash.

Keeping it real
Of course, we live in the real world, fast paced and full of working lunch meetings and food safety regulations.

In the world of compostable, biodegradable, and plant-based packaging, it’s easy to get confused.

Here’s a quick guide to the different definitions:

Compostable: If the item is clearly marked ‘Compostable’ it can be composted in an industrial compost system. Most restaurants or companies with a compost pick-up service can compost these items.
Biodegradable: This actually doesn’t mean anything of substance to act upon. Bio-degradable is a generic term that might mean biodegradable in a month, or it could mean in 10 years.
Plant-Based: Made from renewable resources like plants, instead of plastic. Not always compostable.

To learn more about compostable products check out this easy to use guide: http://compostingcouncil.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Compostable-Food-Serviceware-Quick-Guide.pdf

Sweet and Smoky BBQ Rub

Fire up the grill! Sunny afternoons are perfect for grilling. Many BBQ rubs use standard white sugar. For better flavor, substitute with Aunt Patty's Coconut Sugar. It'll provide another flavor profile along with the perfect amount of sweetness needed for caramelization from the grill fire. Enjoy!

Ingredients

1/4 teaspoon - paprika
1/2 teaspoon - dark chili powder
1/4 teaspoon - cumin seed, ground
1/2 teaspoon – Aunt Patty’s Coconut Sugar
1/4 teaspoon - salt
1/8 teaspoon - oregano, whole
1/8 teaspoon - black pepper, ground
1/8 teaspoon - white pepper, ground
1/8 teaspoon - cayenne pepper

Instructions

Combine all ingredients until mixed thoroughly. Rub onto meat and allow to sit for minimum of 1 hour before grilling. Try on chicken, pork or beef.

GloryBee Honored With Ethical Leadership Award

Northwestern Christian University recognizes GloryBee for 43 years of community service.

Eugene, Ore: Lane County community leaders gathered together on May 11, 2017 to honor the 2017 Exemplary Ethical Leadership Award recipients during An Evening of Tribute, presented by Northwest Christian University’s Center for Leadership and Ethics. This year’s three recipients were businessman Phil Speers, non-profit Eugene Mission and honey company GloryBee.

In 1975, GloryBee started as a simple family honey stand in Dick and Pat Turanski’s garage, with a dream of providing natural, healthy ingredients to friends and family. Over the years, their business grew, increasing their ability to serve their community. Today GloryBee is operating under its second generation of leadership. President Alan Turanski and Executive Vice President RaeJean Wilson continue to practice the GloryBee family tradition of helping others and inspiring community cooperation.

“Receiving this award is a direct result of the ideals of integrity and ethical leadership our founders exemplify,” says Wilson. “We are truly honored to be recognized by such an outstanding organization alongside the Eugene Mission and Phil Speers.”

GloryBee offers employees paid community service hours and sponsors non-profits like the Eugene Mission, Habitat for Humanity, School Garden Project and FoodCorps. In addition, they created two social impact programs- SAVE the BEE, which raises funds to support honey bee health research and FOOD for HEALTH, an initiative which inspires kids to eat healthy.

Natural Sunscreen: A Recipe and What you Need to Know

We're loving the summer sun and warmth. Protecting your skin is an essential part in ensuring your ability to enjoy your time in the sun. If you find it tough to choose between sunscreens at the store, there are options for you. Making your own natural sunscreen is a lot easier than expected. Check out our all natural recipe for keeping your skin protected.

The sun protectant factor (SPF) of oils can vary when it is on your skin. Determining the exact SPF of an oil can be difficult, since natural oils tend to oxidize, losing some valuable properties over time, especially when exposed to light. Most plant oils protect only against UVB rays, so you’ll want to consider mixing in a non-nano titanium or zinc oxide to create a broad spectrum sunscreen. We recommend you always do research before considering different ingredients for sunscreens and test to ensure they work for your skin.

We offer a non-micronized zinc oxide. The particulates have been scaled down in order to NOT penetrate the skin, thus providing a reflective surface on your skin giving a white or chalky appearance.

Ingredients

1 cup Organic Virgin Coconut Oil
1 cup Shea Butter
1 cup Beeswax
Vitamin E Oil
Essential Oil (optional. Avoid citrus essential oils as they can be Phototoxic)
2 Tbsp (or more) of Zinc Oxide
Container

Instructions

1. Combine coconut oil, shea butter, beeswax and a few drops of the vitamin E oil in a double boiler.
2. Stir until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and add the zinc oxide powder and just a few drops of essential oil. Gently stir until essential oils are incorporated.
3. Carefully pour into large round container. Allow to cool completely.
4. Store at room temperature or in the fridge or freezer for longer term storage. This product will melt in warm temperatures.