Horehound Herb

 When I label my herbs,

I also note what they are used for.

When I was a little girl, my Bigmom (maternal grandmother) lived with us. What blessing she was ~ always pleasant, always a wealth of stories and wisdom. She taught me how to spread-up a proper bed, to iron clothes, enjoy coffee, tell a good story, enjoy a good story, to treasure my elders, to enjoy my greens, how to pick the best strawberries, and how endearing the sound of a wonderfully creaky rocking chair can be. She tried desperately to get me to like hominy, but she did teach me that there's nothing for a sore throat like horehound "candy" as a cough drop. And when I could find a source, I have always gone to horehound as my favorite cough drop. Fortunately, when I don't make them, I can get them at my favorite bulk food store. That sweet-pungent taste not only brings relief, but it brings back so many heart-warming memories of my Bigmom.

Now, as I have gotten into medicinal teas over the last several years, horehound herb often finds it's way into a sore throat tea. Granted, the tea is an acquired taste. It can be a little bitter, so you may want to make sure you have a little bit of honey to go with it . . . and local honey has it's own immunity-building benefits.  Horehound herb is renowned for it's immunity building, it's amazing ability to clear your lungs and bronchial passages, flushing your lungs of mucus and allowing for a very productive cough.

A favorite way that my family makes our horehound tea is to make this very simple blend . . . 

You will need:

~1/4 ts. horehound 
~1/2 ts. peppermint OR spearmint 
~a couple small dried olive leaves, crumbled 
~tea ball 

Directions:

1) put herbs into the tea bal
2)let it steep good and strong for 10-15 minutes (depending upon how bad your cough is), 

. . . add honey and sip while it's still nice a warm. Use as often as you need to . . . KEEPING IN MIND that the TEA (NOT the drops) can also be used to detox the kidneys and bowls, which means that using a lot will make you have to potty quite a bit and it can cause slightly loose bowl movements. So, it is wise NOT to drink too many cups back-to-back. 

 Full disclosure ~

these drops came from my

favorite bulk food store

Horehound cough drops are very easy to make. 

You will need:

~2 oz. dried horehound herb
~3 c. water
~3 1/2 c. brown sugar, tightly packed
~powdered sugar (*optional*)
~medium cooking pot
~fine mesh strainer OR cheese cloth
~parchment paper
~dish/plate
~glass container with lid

Directions:

1) In your cooking pot, bring the horehound herb and water to a boil
2) Once it boils, remove from heat, cover and let it steep for 25-30 minutes.
3) Using the strainer OR cheese cloth, strain as much of the decoction out as you can, pressing on the leaves or squeezing the leaves in the cloth
4) Put pot back on low heat, add the brown sugar and cook, stirring nearly constantly, until you can make a hard ball (take a spoon and get a small sample of the "syrup," drop it into a cup of COLD water; if it makes a hard ball, it's ready)
5) Spread parchment paper onto a dish/plate (some people spray it with grapeseed oil ~ optional) and carefully pour the "syrup" and let it cool
6) oil OR butter your hands and shape the candy into balls; if you like, you can flatten them into disks
7) lightly sprinkle with powdered sugar (*optional*)
8) now let them cool completely
9) store in a glass jar with a lid
10) use within a month

Don't forget to leave a comment and let me know how well these horehound herb remedies work for you.

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<><