Since local apple trees blossomed in early May, a nearly invisible — yet truly golden — harvest has been under way: honey!

To get a few tips about cooking with honey, I reached out to Tony Batchelder, a commercial beekeeper of Buckfield, who is otherwise known as the “Tony” of Tony’s Honey fame. Tony harvested his first batches of honey back in 1975 and is a major player in the local honey business.

“I have 70 bee yards now,” he said, referring to his production, “with 600 hives of bees.” He manages a rather large area, he said, from Phillips to New Gloucester, to South Paris and over to Gardiner, covering several counties.

But when it comes to cooking with honey, Tony immediately had two simple recommendations to offer up:

— First, in almost any recipe that calls for sugar, you can swap out it out with half as much honey (meaning, if it calls for one cup of sugar, use a half-cup of honey instead);

— Two, if you want to learn about cooking with honey, talk to Tony’s daughter-in-law, Andrea Batchelder, a woman who has perfected the sweet art of baking with honey.

Batchelder operates Tom’s Honey and More with her husband, Tom, (who happens to be both Tony’s son and a fellow beekeeper) and was happy to help us out. She gave us a few pointers about cooking with honey, and shared three of her favorite recipes: Easy whole wheat muffins, a nice pumpkin bread for fall and an easy triple-chocolate fudge.

The husband-and-wife team operates their own 300 to 350 bee hives, and sells their own honey at two farmers’ markets in Portland, along with many pickles, jams and jellies, baked goods and a line of honey-based products such as hand cream, lip balm and candles. Since the honey crop typically goes through the end of October, “we’re really busy from May to November,” Batchelder said.

The baked goods she brings to market often vary according to the current harvest. One of her most popular year-round items is what she calls a “secret recipe” — a honeyed granola bar.

“A lot of the recipes I use already have honey included in them,” she said, which means she doesn’t have to make the sugar/honey substitution. When you do substitute honey in a regular recipe, she said, “The honey usually makes the baked goods more moist.” To help ensure the moistness, she recommended adding a little extra liquid (such as an extra tablespoon of oil) or adjusting your oven temperature to 25 degrees lower than what the recipe recommends. She usually finds the cooking time will not need adjustment.

In her baking, she often uses what she calls a “cooking grade of honey, which is a very dark honey with a strong flavor.” Their honey is considered raw, since it is not heated past a certain temperature. They also sell an unfiltered honey, which can appear thicker in consistency and white in color once left alone on the shelf in a jar.

Along with baking with honey, Batchelder will sometimes use honey as a glaze for chicken, or will sometimes throw together a salad dressing — without using a recipe — using honey as the sweetener, adding whatever oil, herbs or berries she might have on hand.

The line of pickles she makes includes dill, bread and butter, mustard, dilly beans and now, a hot dill. At least one of the recipes uses honey as the sweetener. “We grow almost all our own vegetables,” she said. “And if we don’t grow it,” she said about their primary ingredients, “we buy from a local farm.”

The elder Batchelder offered up a few additional details about the honey business in Maine. Throughout his 37 years in the industry, Tony said, a bumper crop used to yield upwards of 40,000 pounds of wild flower honey. In a less-than-favorable year, his harvest might be less than half that amount, which ultimately influences retail prices. He said he has seen a drop in the amount of honey local bees are able to produce — a fearsome trend he tends to attribute to changes in local farming practices, such as the use of genetically modified seeds or what he referred to as “self-pollinating seeds.”

Tony’s Honey can be purchased at Axis Natural Foods in Auburn, the Better Living Center in Farmington, and periodically at several local farm stands.

You can find Andrea Batchelder’s goodies and Tom’s Honey and More products at Monument Square in Portland on Wednesdays from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on Saturdays at Deering Oak Park, from 7 a.m. to noon.

Honey whole wheat muffins

1 cup sifted flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup milk

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup of one of the following: Raisins, chocolate chips, dried cranberries, blueberries or strawberries

1/4 cup canola oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line muffin tins with paper liners.

In large bowl sift flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in whole wheat flour; mix well.

In medium bowl, combine milk and the remainder of the ingredients. Beat well with wooden spoon. Pour milk mixture slowly into flour mixture. Stir with fork until just moistened.

The batter will be lumpy. Pour or spoon batter into prepared muffin tin until each tin is two-thirds full. Bake about 20 minutes or until nicely browned.

Take out of muffin tins; serve warm.

Honey Pumpkin Bread

2 cups fresh pumpkin

1-3/4 cups honey

1 cup canola oil

4 eggs

3-1/2 cups flour

1-1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

3 teaspoons cinnamon

1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the cleaned pumpkin first by baking in the oven until tender. When cool, scoop out the pulp. If necessary or desired, you can puree it until smooth. Although she prefers using fresh, Batchelder said canned pumpkin can be substituted.

Combine pumpkin, honey and oil. Add eggs. Sift together dry ingredients; then stir dry ingredients into pumpkin mixture. Add nuts. Pour into three greased bread pans. Bake in oven for 1 hour.

Triple Chocolate Honey Fudge

1-1/3 cups sugar

1 (8-ounce) jar of marshmallow cream

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Grease a 8-inch-by-8-inch pan. In medium saucepan, combine sugar, marshmallow cream, milk, honey, butter and salt. Bring to a boil. Stir occasionally. Boil for 5 minutes while stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and add semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips until melted.

Stir in vanilla and nuts. Pour into prepared pan.

Sprinkle white chips over top and let them melt. Take a small spatula and swirl the melted white chocolate. Let Cool. Batchelder said this recipe usually results in a soft fudge, so she recommends storing it in the fridge.

Honey has long been used as a natural ingredient in health and beauty products. It is considered a humectant, which means it “attracts and retains moisture,” making it a natural choice to use in a variety of moisturizing products including cleansers, creams, shampoos and conditioners. Go to www.honey.com for additional info and details, along with a few tips and lots of recipes.

Note of caution: Because of the natural presence of botulinum endospores in honey, it is not recommended it be feed to infants less than one year of age.