Do you know thistle honey ? Typical product of Sicily and Sardinia, it is a precious food rich in properties and benefits not to be underestimated and with a truly particular flavour . From features to combinations passing through its price, here's everything you should know about it.
Thistle honey, properties and benefits
Among the properties of this honey are the purifying and detoxifying ones: it can be combined with milk or tea instead of sugar and consumed daily to be able to fully enjoy it. It is also antioxidant , antiseptic, antibacterial, has healing and invigorating properties. Finally, it boasts digestive properties from which the liver benefits.
The characteristics of thistle honey
Characterized by a color that varies from light amber to amber (it becomes lighter when it crystallizes), thistle honey is a niche product that is difficult to find outside the two largest Italian islands. It has an intense smell and aroma and a strong flavour, but it is not bitter as chestnut can be. The important floral note can be appreciated, which is sweet and pleasant on the palate and recalls cinnamon and nutmeg.
Contraindications of thistle honey
Let's go to the contraindications : the properties that thistle boasts on the liver mean that honey is not very suitable for those suffering from gallstones, liver or gallbladder. It contains a substance, called tyramine, which causes an increase in blood pressure: for this reason it is preferable not to consume it in case of hypertension .
Pairings with thistle honey
There are numerous combinations with thistle honey to experiment with. In addition to being used to sweeten both white and green tea, it goes well with cheeses that we often use in mixed platters for aperitifs such as caciocavallo , ragusano or taleggio. But, in particular, it goes very well with spreadable ones such as the classic Philadelphia, robiola, ricotta. It can be used instead of sugar in the preparation of desserts but not to sweeten any drink. It can be enjoyed spread on slices of bread or rusks, it can be eaten for breakfast together with an unsweetened yogurt. The price of thistle honey is around 10 euros per 400 gram jar.
