Garlic Oil

This is something we use for ear aches, viruses, coughs and all kinds of other ailments in our family.  We try to always have some on hand!  You can add mullein for an extra punch as well. 

 ½ cup crushed garlic

 ½ cup olive oil

Mix thoroughly.

Add another ¼ cup olive oil

Let stand 10 days on sunny windowsill.

Strain on day 10.

You can use the garlic that as in the oil as a condiment if you like. 

You can decanter after that to get the last little bits out.   2 tsp garlic oil equals about 1 fresh clove.

Onion Cough Syrup

1 cup chopped raw onion. 

Cover with honey (about ½ cup)

Simmer on low heat (so your honey stays raw) until onions have dissolved into bits…this can take up to 20 minutes.  Cover the pot to lesson evaporation of nutrients.  This can be diluted.  You can strain it, but I usually don’t, because I am always for whatever is fastest.  They sink to the bottom and I don’t mind them when they come up.  You can take this as needed or up to once every half an hour in 1 tsp doses for children and 1 TBS for children 10 years and older.

 

You can easily add:

1 tsp clove (whole or powdered) for pain relief

1-2 TBS comfrey root or slippery elm (powdered or chopped) for additional lung support

1-2 TBS chopped fresh ginger root OR 1 tsp dried ginger root powder for better circulation, warmth and effectiveness of the syrup…as we go through the rest of the herbs you will be able to decipher what will be best for your own situation.  You can always add more than one herb, but you will want to make sure that you don’t use more than 2 TBS total of any combination.  This syrup is also a great tonic and can be taken daily

Hair-Raising Cider :)

Hi there everyone!

I really like this recipe because it's easy to get the ingredients and it can be used immediately. This recipe is from the book "Family Herbal" by Rosemary Gladstar.

1 quart RAW apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup fresh grated horseradish
1 chopped onion
1 head of garlic, peeled and chopped
2 TBS turmeric
1-2 pinches of cayenne pepper.

Cover and let sit in a warm place 3-4 weeks. Strain this and then add 1 cup honey, rebottle and regrigerate. You can take 1-2 TBS daily as a tonic or if you are sick then you can take it from the first sign of symptoms and every 2-4 hours until your symtpoms are gone.

Some people like the flavor okay, some don't care for it. However, it works great and has very familiar ingredients, all of which you can purchase at your local grocery store!

Sinus rinse

This remedy has worked for many a friend who has had a sinus infection. Even those treated with antibiotics with no success. Our family uses it with great success just for sinus congestion during a cold! Many people won't try it because they are afraid, but everyone that does try it raves about the way it aids them!

What I do is use 1 cup of warm water, 1 tsp of sea salt and a few granules of ground cayenne pepper. You can use up to a pinch, but I would start with a few granules and then add more as you feel like you need them. I do like a pinch, but it took me a few tries to find the acceptable heat.

Then what I do is breathe it up one side of my nose and let it go into the back of my throat and spit it out. I know this sounds gross, but it helps with sore throats and with stimulating all around your sinuses. Now, I use this same remedy in a nettie pot, but find that the breathing it up is more effective when totally infected.

We have not used antibiotics in our family for the past 7 years (except when I was in labor with positive group B strep and when my daughter severed the top third of her ear from her scalp)

Cavity Reversal & Prevention

Recently Melanie & I were discussing how to reverse cavities. I know it can be done as I have reversed a few cavities unknowingly. My dentist looked at the x-rays and said, "This was a cavity but the enamel has sealed it back up." I was so excited to hear that!

Here are a few tips:

*Eat whole foods

*Limit sugar (It is acid forming and changes the chemistry in your mouth)

*Increase your mineral intake. They are sold at the healthfood store but let me warn you some taste better than others. Ask before you buy.

*Take an herbal calcium. I prefer Dr Christopher Herbal Calcium Formula. I also recommend making your own infusion/tea using horsetail grass & oatstraw herb.

*Someone recommended a book called Oil Therapy. The basic idea is to swish coconut oil every day for 20 minutes to pull toxins from your mouth and body. I am trying this to see how it works.

*Dr Christopher's infection formula

*Dr Christopher's exceptic formula swished in the mouth

*Dr Christopher's herbal tooth & gum Powder

I have discovered that cavities are caused by overgrowth of certain bacteria in your mouth. I suppose I believed in the past that it was from sugar sitting on your teeth. I was a little surprised to find that you can contract or share this bacteria with others by sharing foods and drinks.

Here is an herbal formula I have created to replace minerals and provide calcium.

1 part Horsetail grass (calcium)

1 part Red Clover (minerals, cleanses the blood)

1 part oatstraw (calcium)

1 part Red Raspberry leaves (calcium, minerals)

1 part Comfrey (heals the body)

I have not gone into all of the properties of each herb thoroughly but you can get the basic idea. I take this tea 1 cup/2 times a day. I also have a little container in my pocket full of the tooth and gum powder mixed with slippery elm to make it thicker and stick it in my gums. I am trying to provide the right nutrients right to the tooth. I am flossing and brushing the tooth after every meal to keep it clean. The sensitivity is lessening and we'll see how it goes from here!

Garlic Oil

With Spring coming, but nasty coughs and colds sticking around, I decided to post on garlic oil. This is something that has been FANTASTIC for our family by boosting the immune system, great for ear infections, it's awesome! For extra pain relief, you could make mullein oil first and then make the garlic oil.

For one batch, you will need:

1/2 cup FRESH minced garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup olive oil to be added later.

You will want to mix the first 2 ingredients well and then add in the other 1/4 cup of olive oil. This will fit perfectly into a half pint jar. Then we put it in the windowsill for 10 days. On the 10th day you can strain it and then put it in the fridge. You can strain it with paper towels, coffee filters, muslin, cheese cloth etc. You can then put it in the fridge. It will separate even more and then you can decant it and continue to store in fridge. If you have an ailment, you don't have to wait the full 10 days, but it gets stronger each day! We love this and rub it on our feet, put it in our ears, rub it on chests etc. Enjoy!

Herbal Throat Lozenges

Hey everyone!

Making your own lozenges is a great thing! You know what is in them and you can make them for your own ailments. Remember, when cooking, sometimes things flop and sometimes they work out wonderfully. I love herbs and they make me happy. They have helped our family through some difficult times! Here is the basic recipe that I use. It isn't set in stone by any stretch of the imagination, but this is what I do. :)

Use 1 cup of honey or blackstrap molasses or a combination of both. Remember that molasses is VERY strong and so think of who your audience is. Will they take them?

Then you will use up to 1/4 cup of an herb, either cut or powdered. I love ginger and clove with some red raspberry leaf. I use the powdered herbs, but you can use cut herbs. Think about your herbs as well, if you are going to use herbs like cayenne and/or garlic type herbs then I would choose less herb to honey ratio, but that's just me.

Very first, butter some cookie sheets to put the lozenges on. Then to begin your exciting new creations bring your honey to the hard crack stage. On my thermometer it was 150c, it's okay to go slightly higher (makes them less sticky) but after burning mine in the past I am a little more cautious. After your honey is hot, then you can add your powdered herbs. If you use cut, then you will need to leave over the heat for an extra 10 minutes and then strain them out. I have never done this because I am lazy. I also don't mind the extra herb at the end to chew up after the honey dissolves away. My kids like it too, however some people that are more sensitive are less impressed. I intend sometime to try oils, but it's also important to remember that the more whole the herb the better!

Once at temperature and herbs mixed in, then either put them in little dots on the pans or you can pour them out and score them. I have never poured them out, though this might be pretty easy...maybe I will try that next

So, now in short:

Butter your pans.

Heat 1 cup honey to hard crack stage.

Add up to 1/4 cups herbs.

Pour onto buttered pans. Enjoy!

These can be frozen easily and are yummy right out of the freezer, it also helps with the stickiness.