I think the old saying is true that you find things when you least expect to. Or, put another way, they find you when you least expect them. That’s what happened with me and honeycomb.

I spent years looking for it but for some reason, I could never find it. Maybe I didn’t look in the right places, or maybe it just wasn’t meant to be. But last week, I got some local honeycomb from a colleague who is a beekeeper. I’m not exaggerating when I say that it was love at first sight (with the honeycomb).

For those of you unfamiliar with honeycomb, it’s basically a step before what you purchase in the little plastic or glass jars. Wax holds the honey together in a compact brick. You can cut into it with a sharp knife and break it into pieces, but then the honey will leak out. Overall though, the structure itself is pretty impressive. I like to think of the comb as little honey bricks that explode with sweetness in your mouth.

Honeycomb is different than most foods texturally. It has chewy, crumbly wax and sweet, liquid honey. I had a comment from a woman on social media this week asking me if you can eat honeycomb. You certainly can, but just know that it’s an acquired taste. Once you get used to it, you might even prefer it to regular honey.

Below is a list of a few ways you can use up honeycomb. I know not everyone works next door to a beekeeper so it might be hard for you to find some. I hope you prevail, though. When you do, give one of these recipes a try:

1.) Honeycomb Cheese Board

I had a lot of fun putting together the cheese board pictured at the top of this blog post. Generally, a cheese board should contain a mix of sweet, salty, and savory things. For mine, I used a wedge of Brie, goat cheese, salami from Salume Beddu, sea salt crackers, green apple slices, and fresh honeycomb. I would highly recommend this combination.

2.) Honeycomb Pancakes

One of the best parts about honeycomb is that is dissolves easily into a mix. I would recommend using it with pancakes or waffles. I made some lemon ricotta honeycomb pancakes over the weekend and I’m still thinking about them days later. Get the recipe in one of my latest blog posts.

3.) Honeycomb in a Salad

You might be thinking, ew, why would I put honeycomb in a salad? This is where you’re terribly, terribly wrong. Putting honeycomb in a salad is one of the best things you can do, especially if you’re not an avid salad eater. Honeycomb’s unique texture works to its advantage here, where you want a mix of textures, flavors, and ingredients. I made a salad with arugula from the farmers’ market, cinnamon glazed walnuts, honeycomb pieces, goat cheese, and Aleppo chiles. I squeezed some lemon juice on top and it ended up mixing with the honey to make a dressing. 

4.) Honeycomb in Oatmeal

Honeycomb in oatmeal is a fun, simple way to incorporate the ingredient into breakfast. Make your traditional oatmeal recipe and top it with some pieces of honeycomb. Or, if you want, you can mix it into the oatmeal right before you take it off the stove. I like to pair my honeycomb oatmeal with fresh berries.

5.) Honeycomb in Yogurt

Honeycomb in yogurt makes a great breakfast or dessert. I like it especially because yogurt is so smooth, and honeycomb is a little more crumbly, so you have two textures that complement one another. I made a yogurt bowl the other morning with banana, chia seeds, granola, blackberries, and chunks of honeycomb.

There are plenty of other ways you can use honeycomb, too. I still have some left so I’m thinking about making a pizza or tart with it this weekend. Until then, I’ll leave you with these ideas and an inspirational song.