I had an unusual call yesterday from an author, David George Gordon. He was working to have one of his earlier books updated and republished, a book about eating insects. The book provides information about various cultures that eat insects as well as some recipes. He needed some help preparing for a photo shoot. He wanted to include some photos of recipes in the updated book. The help he sought was to purchase some live bees, pupae and larvae that he could use to prepare a particular recipe, "Three Bee Salad". I arranged to sell him one frame of brood and honey from my modified Warre hive. I told him that I would like to read his book and write a review for my blog and website. He offered to send me an advance copy. The new improved book is due out in July, 2013. He has a website at www.davidgeorgegordon.com for those who are interested.
As it turns out, I had actually read one of Gordon's books before. I just didn't recollect his name. The particular book was titled "The Field Guide to the Slug". Obviously, the author's name was less memorable to me than the book title. It was an interesting book that provided a great deal of useful information about my primary gardening nemesis, the slug. Yet, it was written in a light-hearted, whimsical style that made it an enjoyable read.
The subject of eating bees and bee larvae has come up several times in the past year. When a bear attacks a bee hive his primary goal is to eat the larvae, not the honey. I have one customer who was inspired to try eating the larvae after watching a BBC documentary on honeybees. He described the larvae as tasting better than the sweetest creamed corn he ever had. While I was impressed with his enthusiasm for his new-found delicacy, I've been reluctant to try them myself. It isn't that I couldn't eat an insect as much as it just feels wrong to eat my bees.
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