Honey Mustard Dressing

One of the biggest debates between vegans is whether honey is vegan. It is after all made by bees. However, made from the nectar of flowers, it is not an animal product in the same ways as say milk or eggs. But at the same time, bees can sometimes be harmed when humans retract the honey from their hives, and by taking the honey, we are stealing their food.

When I first went vegan, I did not think of honey as an animal product because it is made with a plant product rather than being produced naturally from their bodies. We do after all use other animals to help us produce things, like using cattle to pull plows to farm; in that sense, should we not eat farmed vegetables because animals helped in their production?

As of now, I can't know what ethical stance to take on the honey debate. For now I eat it occasionally. But I do make a compromise: generally I use agave nectar in place of honey.

Peony in my front yard

One thing that I do use honey for though is honey mustard dressing. I love honey mustard. It tastes so good on so many things, from salad, to steamed kale. So I'm posting a recipe, and hopefully you'll enjoy it. If you don't feel right eating honey, try it with agave nectar (you'll just need to up the proportion a bit because agave is not as sweet as honey). And if you have a favorite thing to put honey mustard dressing on, then please share in the comment section.

Honey Mustard Dressing
1/4 cup mustard
2 Tbl honey
3 Tbl cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
a generous grinding of pepper
1/8 tsp salt
1 clove garlic

crush the garlic and mash with salt. add everything else, except oil and mix. add oil slowly while mixing.