Try This Local Hive Honey Vanilla Sugar Cookie Recipe For Christmas!

Clay and I no longer use regular, white/cane sugar but we do still use natural Honey. Even though it can raise your glycemic index, the benefits of all natural, local honey far outweigh that, for us. We tolerate honey well so we continue to use it, occasionally in sweets and a tsp daily for allergy health. I have a yummy sugar cookie recipe for you today that uses honey as the sweetener.

This sugar cookie would pair perfectly with our Protein Iced Coffee recipe!

It also uses regular flour, corn starch and then powdered sugar in the frosting but I’d use a sprouted wheat flour and xanthan gum, in place of those and powdered stevia blend OR I may try to see if I can replicate the recipe using the THM baking blend. It’s not a 1:1 ratio swap for flour so not sure how it would work but I’m willing to try. For now, though, I’ll just use the sprouted flour. It’s easier on the blood sugar than regular flour. I love me a good sugar cookie so I’m excite to give this Local Hive™ Honey Vanilla Sugar Cookie recipe a try!

I’ve included the original recipe, below. It has been shared with us courtesy of Local Hive Honey (Rice’s Honey® – founded in 1924 by L.R. Rice). I was given some samples of their honey to try and it is delicious! Local Hive is natural, raw unfiltered honey and each bottle has been sourced in a region local to where you live.

For instance, the 2 bottles I received are Southeast and Midwest. I’m in Kentucky so both pertain to us and both will have things local-ish that will help with our outdoor allergies. By the way, our oldest daughter and I just had allergy testing. We 42 allergens injected into our backs. No food allergies! YAY! But outdoor allergens? Yeah. A lot of those popped up for both of us. Did I mention we live in the woods? 😏

So, we use honey to help combat all that! Honey is full of antioxidants.

Anyway, this honey. It is so good! Thick and syrupy and smooth. It doesn’t have that weird tang that some store-bought honey’s have. It is sugary tasting. Very sweet but not overpowering. Maybe that’s the region it’s from or maybe that’s just their honey in general. I don’t know but I do know I’ll be buying this regularly. Our Wal-mart has it so it’s going on my pantry list!

All Local Hive™ honeys are sourced exclusively in the U.S. and bottled in Greeley, Colorado.  The team at Local Hive™ work directly with local beekeepers across the U.S., to ensure each varietal yields incredibly delicious and subtly different natural flavors.

Raw, unfiltered honey also offers many health benefits including being rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, enzymes and pollen.  Unlike processed unnatural sugars or sweeteners, Local Hive™ honey offers transparency, as each natural varietal is made so local it’s “made right in your own back yard”.

Very similar to wine, where you taste and see the difference between varietals, Local Hive™ from Rice’s Honey® also imparts specific flavors in each of the honeys they produce.  From Washington to Florida each varietal is unique.

I don’t know the flavor sources of the 2 I received but here’s some info on those as well as the flavor sources of a few other varietals.

• Southeast Honey: Quite dark in color, our Southeastern honey embodies floral notes from all over the bright, subtropical climate. Its flavor is as intriguing as it is lingering.
• Midwest Honey:From nectar nestled between the Appalachians and Rockies, our Midwest honey has a sweet start and floral finish, with just a hint of cinnamon.
• Local Hive New England Honey: Floral Sources: Basswood, Berries, Clover, Goldenrod

*Flavor is bold and robust. Northeast honeys are much darker than anywhere else.

• Local Hive Florida Honey: Floral Sources: Citrus, Brazilian Pepper, Clover, Gallberry, Tupelo      

*Flavor is a bit fruity with a hint of spice.

• Local Hive Colorado Honey: Floral Sources: Clover, Alfalfa, Wildflowers

*Flavor should be light & sweet.  The sweetest of all honeys sent.

• Local Hive Southern California Honey: Floral Sources: Alfalfa, Berries, Citrus, Clover, Sage

*Flavor is fruity and sweet.  You’ll notice a hint of orange

• Local Hive Texas Honey: Floral Sources: Alfalfa, Clover, Cotton, Horsemint, Tallow

*Flavor is medium bodied and sweet.  Not as sweet as Colorado.

• Plus others!

A new label design highlighting our new Local Hive™ brand coincides with Rice’s new alliance with PACE, “Pollinator Awareness Through Conservation and Education”, the Butterfly Pavilion’s non-profit global initiative to restore habitats, strengthen populations and reintroduce pollinators into native habitats around the world. This partnership and commitment will be communicated on the back of the new label and will highlight how a portion of proceeds from every bottle sold of Rice’s Honey® will be donated to the PACE initiative to promote and protect the prosperity of pollinators worldwide. Rice’s Honey® has a mission to help promote all pollinators & sustainable bee farms across the country.

Check out their new website at:  www.localhivehoney.com

Ok, I know, I know you want the recipe for the cookies. Here you go!

Local Hive™ Honey Vanilla Sugar Cookies

I hope you enjoy these Local Hive™ Honey Vanilla Sugar Cookies. Have you used Local Hive honey before? What did you think?

Readers Who Tried Our Recipes!