FONDANT Recipe
WINTER FOOD FOR YOUR HONEYBEES 

This is a COLD WEATHER honeybee food supplement.  Fondant is generally used when honeybees run short of honey supplies in the colder, late fall and winter seasons. Honeybees cannot process sugar syrup in the cold months primarily because of the water content. Unlike sugar syrup, fondant has low moisture content and will not stimulate brood rearing and for that reason it’s ideal for feeding your hungry colonies in the winter months.   

1. Coat the cookie sheets with cooking oil; then line them with wax paper. 

2. Using a candy thermometer to monitor temperature, heat the combined ingredients to 240º Fahrenheit, stirring constantly until granulated sugar is dissolved. 

3. Once 240º Fahrenheit is reached, immerse the pot in cold water.  Using a hand-held mixer beat gently until the clear mixture begins to turn milky. This milky appearance takes place somewhere between 190º and 200º Fahrenheit depending on the viscosity of the corn syrup and the over-all accuracy of your ingredient measurements. 

4. Promptly pour into cookie sheet molds and let cool.  

STORAGE: The cooled fondant can be cut into smaller pieces and stored in a cool, dry, non-refrigerated location until ready to use.  

FEEDING: The fondant should be placed on the top bars of the frames directly above the honeybee cluster.  Remember that honeybees do not travel far from the cluster during the cold winter months and it’s important that the fondant be very close and directly above the cluster of bees in the colony so the workers will have no problem finding and processing it.