# Herbal Recipes for Health and Home



## Lake Windsong

I know we have threads for various herbs in the health and medicine subforum that are extremely helpful, but I'd like to start a thread here for herbal recipes for home remedies, homemade hair and body/bath products, household cleaners, and culinary herb blends where we can share our herbal recipes and how we use them. I know it may become an eclectic mix of recipes, but if you're interested, please chime in with your recipes and their uses. I think it will be fun learning how others use herbs in ways I haven't thought of. I'll start with:

Herb infused sugar:
Possibilities are endless, and I'd like to add a few more infused sugars to my baking cabinet. To one cup of sugar, add one or more of the following:
1 vanilla bean, split and scrape into the sugar along with the pod
1 Tbs lavender blossoms, pulse lavender and sugar briefly in food processor or use mortar and pestle to grind blossoms to a finer consistency or leave the blossoms whole and sift sugar through a strainer after infusing if you don't want to use the blossom.
Zest of a citrus fruit, I let it dry overnight before adding to sugar
Mint leaves (can bruise with a rolling pin to release the aromatic oils)
1 cinnamon stick

I put our infused sugars in canning jars, shake them ever so often, and check them for flavor after a couple of weeks. You may want to adjust herb quantities to your liking.
I use infused sugars when baking sweets and breads, to sweeten tea or coffee, and to make sugar scrubs.

Vanilla Coconut Sugar Scrub:
1/2 cup coconut oil, organic unrefined
1 cup vanilla infused sugar (white or brown sugar)

Mix adding more oil or sugar until it is the consistency you like. If it dries out before you use it all, just add a little more oil. Be careful using homemade scrubs as the oils can make the shower floor or bathtub slippery!

Garlic Honey:
I ran across a great deal on dried minced garlic this week, so I am trying it in some new ways, one is a garlic honey. I filled a pint jar 1/3 to 1/2 full with dried minced garlic then filled the jar with honey, using chopsticks to release air bubbles and to mix. I'll check it in a few weeks and use it in sweet and sour type asian recipes, marinades, and to sweeten herbal teas when one of us has a cold.

Garlic tincture:
Using some more of that dried minced garlic, I started an alcohol tincture 1:5 ratio of dried garlic to alcohol. I used 80 proof vodka and eyeballed the measuring. I'll shake it ever so often and add more vodka if the liquid level goes down. After 6 weeks I'll strain into an amber tincture bottle with a glass dropper and use it topically or internally. Topically, for skin issues like acne or athlete's foot. Internally, a few drops to mix with other simple (one herb) tinctures for immune system boost or during cold season.

Vegetarian herbal broth:
To each gallon of water use 2 cups of herbs. The herbs I used this time were burdock root, raspberry leaves, red clover blossoms, nettle, oatstraw, and kelp. Simmered on the stove until I had time to strain and store it. I canned some, froze some, and it will keep in the fridge for a couple of days. I use this as a tea, add to rice/pasta/grain liquid, and use in soups and stews. I change the herbs I use depending on what I have in the cabinet/garden when I make it.


----------



## Grimm

Thank you...


----------



## Grimm

Lemon Honey

Cut up whole lemon and place in a jar. Cover with honey. Seal jar and put it away until the honey has dissolved the lemon.

Use in a cup of hot water or in hot tea to sooth sore throats or coughs.

Found on Pintrest but here is the direct link.
http://032ad8a.netsolhost.com/madmad/2012/03/12/medicinal-sweets/#.T3EyOniI3K3


----------



## JayJay

Grimm--great idea for pre-made sore throat remedy.

And this isn't an herbal recipe--but don't forget cayenne powder for instant clotting.
I can tell you, it works fast.

Seal as in seal or just close lid??


----------



## debbluu

I'm doing a cold infusion of yarrow and plantain to make a salve or ointment with. For cuts, scrapes and the like. Put clean plantain leaves and yarrow leaves and flowers in a jar. Cover with olive oil. Let steep for 2 -3 weeks. Strain oil through sieve or cheese cloth. Warm in pot. Add beeswax (even ratio to oil). Stir over low heat til melted. Pour in jar to set.


----------



## *Andi

Here is one for cleaning ... (the others will have to wait till morning.)

http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f78/i-make-my-own-4191/

Happy reading ...


----------



## Lake Windsong

Herbal Eye Mask

I use an 8"x8" piece of flannel, folded in half inside out and sew one short side and the long side before turning it the right way. Fill with some flax seeds (you don't want it full, just fill loosely). Add a small handful of dried lavender and dried chamomile. Sew the last side up. Store it in a ziploc bag to keep herbs fresh, can rub between your hands to crush the herbs some if the aroma fades, or replace the contents. Very relaxing scents, lavender and chamomile, but experiment with other herbs you like.


----------



## *Andi

Any herbal cleaning recipe calls for vinegar ...

How to make your own ...

http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f35/homemade-cider-vinegar-4202/index2.html


----------



## Grimm

JayJay said:


> Grimm--great idea for pre-made sore throat remedy.
> 
> And this isn't an herbal recipe--but don't forget cayenne powder for instant clotting.
> I can tell you, it works fast.
> 
> Seal as in seal or just close lid??


I'm using a jar with a bale clasp and rubber seal.


----------



## Enchant18

Great recipes!

Boil a handful of red clover and honey. I let it sit for awhile, strain and use for sore throat.
Love the taste


----------



## Zayde

Not sure if anyone has mentioned it before, but try not to use the dark blue cobalt jars for storage of tinctures and the like as cobalt has a tendency to leach into your products.


----------



## Grimm

Zayde said:


> Not sure if anyone has mentioned it before, but try not to use the dark blue cobalt jars for storage of tinctures and the like as cobalt has a tendency to leach into your products.


Modern day colored glass is not food safe. They have just painted the in side of the glass to give it color.

Victorian or older colored glass is safer as long as you stay away from leaded colored glass.

Anchor Hocking, Ball, Kerr, Golden Harvest, Fire King, Pyrex etc are all food safe glass companies. If you need an amber colored jar opt for a used amber colored sprout jar.


----------



## Lake Windsong

Burn or Insect bite Relief
One aloe vera leaf and 4 calendula blossoms.
Slice away the outer layer of the aloe vera leaf leaving only the gel. Blend the aloe and four calendula blossoms in a blender, pour into an ice cube tray to freeze. You can store the frozen cubes in a ziploc in the freezer until needed for burns/insect bites.
*for those of you who use essential oils, a couple drops of lavender oil into each filled cube on the tray before freezing works well.


----------



## readytogo

*Ginger.*

Ginger as an Anti-Inflammatory
Ginger and Blood Pressure
Ginger for Migraine Headaches
Ginger for Pain Relief
Ginger for Nausea
Ginger for Morning Sickness
Ginger and Diabetes
Ginger for Acid Reflux
I make ginger candy, dry organic lemon/orange peel for teas and baking, I also dry apple peel to make a tea infuse with cinnamon, good for diabetes.
Ps.make sure all peels are from a pesticide free fruit.


----------



## Caribou

I strongly recommend the book "Prescription for Nutritional Healing" by Phyllis Balch. 

This book is loaded with supplement and herbal treatments for a multitude of conditions. Numerous therapies are also explained. I have used this book to reduce or in some cases eliminate prescription drugs.


----------



## camo2460

RTG you forgot Ginger from Gilligans Island. LOL


----------



## Grimm

One of my favorite blogs, CleanMama, has these neat printables one each for Vinegar, Baking Soda and Borax. Each has 11 recipes for homemade cleaners.


----------



## Anicole19

Very nice!!


----------



## carolexan

I was recently stung multible times by our Texas red wasp...hurt like the dickens but took the opportunity to try some home remedies. Sliced onion tape it to the sting for 20 minutes, they break down the venom from the sting. Tobacco mositened over the sting with bandage. A copper penny, yes it worked, tape over the bites, and apple cider vinegar mixed with baking soda to make a paste, cover stings and let it dry. Devils Claw leaves are great for taking away the swelling and it grows wild.


----------



## Lake Windsong

Some gift projects we are working on: 

Drawer sachets
We are using 4-6" unbleached muslin squares (I'm eyeballing it here). 
For lavender sachets, I add a cotton ball for a better shape and a small spoonful of dried lavender. Twist tight and tie with embroidery thread or a rubberband. Add a pretty ribbon tied in a bow to cover the thread or rubberband.
For cinnamon sachets, I'm breaking down cinnamon sticks into smaller pieces and leaving out the cottonball. Wish I just had some cinnamon chips, but oh well, just making do with what we've got.
Any variety of moth repellant stuffs can be used, cedar shavings etc. Just using what we have on hand.
We are going to pile some of these up into some square cotton scarves I found on clearance earlier this year and tie it all up with a pretty fabric bow and craft paper tags.

Cinnamon stick Christmas trees to hang in the closet after the holidays:
We are using whole cinnamon sticks and hand tying 4 strips of green, red, gold printed quilting scraps onto each. A twine loop for hanging is tied onto the top fabric knot as it is being tied, and each strip gets progressively longer, in the triangle shape of a Christmas tree. These are good for decorating bigger gifts, and whoever gets them can hang them on their tree or later in their closet. Found this neat idea googling cinnamon stick decorations.

Whipped coconut body butter:
Very simple. A cup of organic coconut oil whipped up with the mixer for 5-10 minutes, usually about 8 minutes gets a good consistency. We have some new wide mouth 'pretty' jelly jars to spoon this into, top with a fabric circle and twine. As long as you keep it cool (around 75 F or cooler) it won't melt and is a cheap and simple body butter.

Lavender oatmeal milk bath sachets:
Using larger muslin squares for this. Equal amounts oatmeal and powdered milk, adding a little dried lavender. Putting about 1/2 cup of the mixture into the muslin squares and tying closed with embroidery thread. These are going in quart and half gallon mason jars with a fabric circle and twine on top.


----------

