To create honey, bees collect a huge amount of pollen from various plants. A lot of pollen and nectar can be obtained from some flowers, and some produce very few of these substances, so the final product becomes very valuable. This also applies to natural pumpkin honey, in connection with which people have learned how to make artificial pumpkin honey. It will be discussed further.

Pumpkin honey: characteristics, features

Pumpkin contains a lot of useful substances, and the nectar obtained from it is very much appreciated. But despite the fact that the plant has impressive flower sizes, they give very little nectar, so its value increases significantly.

Pumpkin flowers secrete transparent nectar with a sugar content of 20–37%. It stands out only 3-4 hours a day, so only about 42 kg of honey can be obtained per season from a hectare of pumpkin melon. At the same time, crop plantations should be huge, because if a bee cannot get a lot of pollen, it flies away in search of more generous plants.

Natural pumpkin honey has the following characteristics:

1. The aroma is delicate, unobtrusive. The color is golden yellow. The presence of an impurity in color and taste is possible, since honey plants can grow among gourds.
2. His taste is delicate, without too much astringency and bitterness.
3. It crystallizes quickly and the cage is small, may be fatty.
4. Unlike other types of honey, pumpkin product contains a large amount of iron.

Artificial product is slightly different from natural . It has a different composition, a higher percentage of sugar content, but, according to consumers, it contains no less useful substances than natural ones, since they are collected from the pulp of the fruit. These substances include salts of phosphorus, potassium, calcium, iron, copper, cobalt and silicon. The amount of carotene exceeds this indicator in carrots.

Read more about color, aroma, texture, crystallization, honey taste.

The use of pumpkin honey, nutritional value and medicinal properties

Natural pumpkin honey contains:

• water - about 18%;
• carbohydrates - about 81%;
• minerals - about 1%;
• water-soluble vitamins, proteins, enzymes, amino acids - about 3%.

Among vitamins, the main share falls on ascorbic acid and carotenes, a little less there is folic acid. Almost all B vitamins are present, there is also K, E, PP. Potassium, iodine prevail among macro- and microelements, slightly less compounds of manganese, sodium, magnesium, calcium, selenium, phosphorus, cobalt, aluminum.

• The healing properties of it are as follows:
• improves digestion;
• improves fat breakdown, which stimulates weight loss;
• exempts blood vessels from cholesterol plaques;
• expels toxins from the body;
• helps with food poisoning;
• relieves nausea and heartburn;
• lowers acidity;
• activates brain activity;
• normalizes the activity of the cardiovascular system.

You can treat them with such problems:

• cold;
• disorders in the work of the kidneys, liver;
• constipation
• breakdown, energy;
• weakened immunity;
• worms.

Also, the treat is a diuretic, choleretic and hepatoprotective agent

The classic recipe for pumpkin honey at home

As mentioned earlier, natural pumpkin honey is extremely rare on sale. Purchase is possible only on pre-order. Often, unscrupulous sellers sell sunflower honey instead, so if you are not sure that you can buy a real product, it is better to prepare its artificial counterpart yourself. Making a treat is very simple, but you will need to wait a while until the product is infused.

Ingredient preparation

The main thing in the preparation of homemade honey is the choice of pumpkin. She must be ripe . Size does not matter much, but you need to remember that the larger the fruit, the longer it will take for the ripening process; it can stretch for a whole month. At the same time, large fruits are more juicy and sugary, which is just extremely necessary to obtain a quality product. Pumpkin is thoroughly washed and wiped dry.

Important! Honey should ripen in a dry and cool place so that the vegetable does not begin to mold.

Proportions

The amount of sugar depends on the size of the pumpkin. Sugar must completely fill the space in the vegetable, which was occupied by seeds.

Cooking process

You can prepare a medical treat as follows:

1. Take a clean pumpkin and cut off the top of it. Do not throw it away, it will be a cover.
2. Use a spoon to extract the seeds. They must be removed carefully, completely so that the residues do not start the fermentation process.
3. Fill the vacant space with sugar (to the top).
4. Cover the pumpkin with the chopped portion.
5. Set the vegetable in a deep bowl. Leave to insist that all sugar is dissolved. It takes at least a week and a half.
6. Syrup merges through the hole made at the bottom of the fetus.

Video: Cooking pumpkin honey

Interesting recipes for making pumpkin honey

There are many original recipes for this product with a very simple cooking technology.

Quick Pumpkin Honey Recipe

The classic recipe is quite simple, but time consuming. For those who do not want to wait long, but want to enjoy the goodies quickly, a slightly complicated recipe is offered, but very fast.

For him you will need:

• pumpkin pulp - 2 kg;
• cloves - 2-3 pcs.;
• citric acid - 1 tsp;
• sugar - 400-500 g.

The cooking steps are as follows:

1. Wash the pumpkin, dry, cut, remove the seed and cut into slices.
2. Peel and chop the pulp into cubes. Fold them in a glass or enamel container.
3. Sprinkle with sugar and leave for half an hour so that the slices let the juice go.
4. Put the container on the stove, add the cloves and boil for 20-30 minutes. The liquid should not boil.
5. Strain the syrup, put it back on the stove and boil for a quarter of an hour. It is necessary to weld carefully: the substance should thicken, but not boil.
6. Pour the finished syrup into a jar.

Did you know? Indians use pumpkin to catch monkeys. They drill a small hole in the fruit, pour a treat there and tie the bait to the tree. The animal will put a foot in the hole, but with a clenched cam, it will no longer be able to pull it back.

Pumpkin Honey with Lemon

Components:

• pumpkin pulp - 2 kg;
• honey - 2 tbsp. l .;
• lemon - 1 pc.

Cooking process:

1. Wash the pumpkin, cut it and remove the seeds.
2. Peel and chop the pulp.
3. Put the slices in a pan, add honey. Leave to infuse for 30 minutes.
4. Drain the resulting syrup.
5. Put the remaining thick on low heat and boil for 15 minutes. Juice formed during cooking must be periodically drained.
6. Fold the pulp into a colander, let the juice drain.
7. Put the juice on low heat and cook until thickened. Add lemon juice to the finished product and pour it into a jar. Keep the treat in a dark place.

Herbal Pumpkin Honey

Most often, honey is prepared with the addition of such herbs:

• sage (for cold and expectorant action);
• thyme (for anti-inflammatory, antiseptic and soothing effect);
• chamomile (to eliminate colic, discomfort in the stomach);
• elecampane (to improve the general condition for respiratory diseases).

To prepare a treat with herbs, you will need:

• pumpkin - any size;
• sugar - to fill the pumpkin;
• herbs - dry, in small quantities.

Cooking process:

1. Wash and dry the fruit. Cut off the top and extract the seeds.
2. Fill the resulting void with sugar.
3. Close the top and insist a week and a half.
4. Put herbs on the bottom of the can so that they fill a third of the container.
5. Pour syrup over them. Leave it for another week and a half.

Read also about the properties of pumpkin juice for organism.

Pumpkin honey with walnuts

Ingredients:

• pumpkin - 1 pc.;
• sugar - to fill the fruit;
• walnuts to taste.

Cooking method:

1. Wash a large and ripe pumpkin. Cut the top off her, remove the seeds.
2. Pour sugar and leave for a week and a half. The contents must be stirred periodically so that the sugar dissolves better.
3. Peel and chop the nuts. Pour the syrup into a saucepan and simmer over low heat. Add nuts. After boiling the syrup for several minutes, pour it into the jar, and, closing it with a lid, remove it to a dark place.

Cooking phase: basic mistakes

The main condition for obtaining high-quality delicacies is the absence of boiling. You can’t boil the syrup in any case, since all the useful substances of the product are lost. In addition, it is necessary to constantly stir the syrup so that it does not stick and thickens evenly. When cooking pieces of vegetable, one must not forget to drain the resulting syrup all the time.

Therapeutic recipes for making pumpkin honey at home

The therapeutic effect of the product is enhanced if properly selected herbs are added during the preparation process.

Important! Do not add honey to hot drinks, because when it comes into contact with them, it loses all its healing properties.

Pumpkin honey with chicory: a medicine for the liver

Components:

• pumpkin pulp - 2 kg;
• chicory - 1 tsp;
• lemon juice - 1-2 tbsp. l .;
• honey - 2 tbsp. l

Step-by-step process description:

1. Prepare the pumpkin. Cut it into pieces, peel the seeds, peel and chop.
2. Put the resulting cubes in a deep pan. Add honey and mix.
3. Leave to infuse for 25-30 minutes. Drain the resulting juice.
4. Put the remaining pulp on low heat and boil for 20 minutes.
5. During cooking, add chicory and mix. Do not forget to drain the resulting juice.
6. Fold the pulp into a colander, leave to drain.
7. Put all the collected and filtered juice on low heat and boil for 10 minutes. Add lemon juice.
8. Cool the finished medicine and pour into jars.

Rules, dosage, contraindications

To benefit from pumpkin honey, you should use it in small doses. For preventive purposes, it is recommended to take it three times a day for a teaspoon, dissolving in the mouth . You can drink with warm tea, stirring it instead of sugar, or sweeten pancakes, pancakes and other pastries.

Pumpkin treats have many beneficial properties, but they can be harmful.

• Perhaps this is in case of neglect of contraindications, such as:
• low acidity;
• gastritis, ulcer;
• diabetes;
• allergy to bee products;
• chronic kidney problems;
• overweight or carbohydrate-controlled diet.

Storage conditions for pumpkin honey

Artificially created honey can only be stored for 30 days without losing its properties. It is advisable to place it in any cool place (refrigerator, cellar, balcony). The shelf life of the product can be increased by boiling it, but then some of the useful properties will be lost . Ideal for storing containers - glass.

Did you know? It is believed that in Russian the word "pumpkin" came from the pro-Slavic "tyky", derived from "tykati", meaning "to fatten, get fat."

As you can see, pumpkin honey is a very useful product. In its natural form, of course, it is practically inaccessible, but its artificial analogue successfully copes with a number of problems. It is also important that it is absolutely not difficult to cook it, and the cost of cooking is minimal.