IN-SEASON RECIPES small font: In-season recipes is sponsored by Monadnock Oil & Vinegar

Last spring, my 13-year-old decided to pursue his bee obsession and get hives of his own with the guidance of beekeeper and teacher Jodi Turner. The honey is great, and he's enjoyed it so much — and so have we! He wrote his 8th-grade speech on challenges facing pollinators and concluded with this: &emsp;"Or go a step further and buy a colony of your own. Beekeeping is a fun, low-time commitment activity that will benefit your garden and potentially make you a little money. I would recommend it to all ages. Beekeepers are a supportive, tightly-knit community that will welcome you and help your bees thrive. &emsp;&emsp;"In closing, we need to make a beeline for a better future. While the bees would be helped by government regulations banning harmful pesticides, we cannot rely on this. We must take action on an individual level to save the pollinators. We must continue to try and improve our world by tirelessly working together, just like the bees I see every day." &emsp;Here are some of our favorite recipes using honey. Honey Whole Wheat Rolls Yield: 15 rolls Adapted from a King Arthur Flour Company recipe. 8 ounces potato 1 cup lukewarm milk 2 1/4 teaspoons dry yeast (one package), not fast-acting Pinch sugar 2 cups whole wheat flour 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, plus additional 2 ounces butter, melted and slightly cooled, plus additional 3 tablespoons honey 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 1 cup orange juice 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds, optional Peel potato and cut into chunks. Put in small saucepan with unsalted water to cover amply. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower heat and simmer until tender. Drain and return to pan over low heat to dry out slightly. Mash well with fork or potato masher. Combine milk, yeast, and sugar and let stand for 10 minutes. In a standing mixer with a paddle attachment at low speed, combine whole wheat and regular flour, mashed potato, butter, honey and salt. Add orange juice and yeast mixture and beat until well combined. Switch to dough hook and knead at medium-low speed for seven minutes. Put dough in lightly buttered bowl, cover with a dish towel and let rise in warm spot in kitchen until very light-looking. To test, flour your middle fingers and plunge them gently into the dough. If dough springs back, it needs more rising time. When dough is ready, scrape onto a lightly floured counter and divide into 1 1/2 inch balls. Round the balls and set with ¼ inch space between rolls in a lightly buttered 9" x 13" pan. Cover the pan with the dishcloth and let rolls rise until they look puffy. During last minutes of rise, preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Brush risen rolls with water and sprinkle sunflower seeds, if using, on top. Bake until rolls are nicely browned on top, about 35 minutes, rotating pan midway through. Brush warm rolls with melted butter and let cool in pan. Local ingredients: potato, butter, honey =================================== Sesame Feta with Spicy Honey Drizzle Yield: 12 servings as hors d'oeuvres One 14-ounce package of feta 1 cup flour (or rice flour for gluten-free) 1 large egg 2 tablespoons milk ½ cup sesame seeds, and additional if needed. Vegetable oil 3 tablespoons honey Hot sauce to taste Slice the feta vertically into ½-inch thick slabs. Put flour on a plate. Beat egg with milk in a shallow bowl. Put sesame seeds on a plate. Take each slab of feta and coat it thoroughly, first with flour, then egg mixture, and then sesame seeds. In a skillet, heat a ¼" layer of oil until hot enough to sizzle the feta but not so hot it burns the seeds. Brown on both sides and drain on a paper towel. Mix the honey with hot sauce to taste. Cut the feta into bite-size pieces and drizzle with honey hot sauce. Local ingredients: feta, egg, milk, honey. ======================================= Super Versatile Honey Cake Yield: 6-10 servings This starts with a recipe from Snacking Cakes by Yossy Arefi, my mom's obsession (we're an obsessive family), and veers into the territory of all summer fruits and favorite nuts, with a white chocolate glaze that is a perfect fruit dipping sauce just on its own. Cake ¾ cup honey ¼ cup light brown sugar 1 egg ½ cup vegetable oil ½ cup buttermilk* 1 teaspoon vanilla ½ teaspoon cinnamon ¾ teaspoon salt 1-¼ cups (160 grams) all-purpose flour 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda 1-½ cups blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches (cut in ⅓" pieces) or any combination ½ cup almonds, pecans, hazelnuts, pistachios, or walnuts Glaze 8 oz. white chocolate, broken into ½" pieces ½ cup heavy cream Grease an 8" x 8" cake pan, line pan with parchment or wax paper, and grease the paper. Set rack in middle of oven, and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine honey, brown sugar, egg, buttermilk, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Mix well with a wire whisk for about 30 seconds. Whisk in flour, baking powder and baking soda until batter is just smooth. Put batter in pan and level. Sprinkle on fruit, then nuts. Bake until golden brown on top and cake tester comes out clean. Cool in pan for 15 minutes before using parchment to lift cake onto cooling rack. When the cake is cool, make glaze: Set white chocolate and cream in a bowl over barely simmering water. When chocolate is mostly melted, remove from heat and stir until smooth. Use a fork to glaze the cake in a zig-zag pattern. Reserve extra glaze as a dip or topping for fresh fruit, storing it in the refrigerator and warming gently in the microwave when ready to serve. *I freeze buttermilk in small containers. Local ingredients: honey, egg, buttermilk, fruit