Sandalwood, good for just about everything!

Life, is chaotic as usual! I have a lot of sewing projects (a lot) along with a lot (seriously too many) of migraines (so many it took way too long to finish this post). Time to sit and write feels so precious these days, and this post took way longer than I wanted to get out. But, without my writing I don’t feel whole – so I make time! (  >_<)9

The Hubs is growing a beard, seems to be all the rage these days with the male of our species in my age group. He went to get a shave and a haircut at a local place and they put some oil on his beard for conditioning it. He loved it, and I thought it smelled really great! Like cut wood and lovely (he would probably disapprove of that term but who cares 😉 ). So we looked up the ingredients, because I wanted to make it for him – like I love to do, and of course one of the ingredients was sandalwood – the others were pine and cedar wood with some hair friendly carrier oils, (remember rosemary is good for head hair, it is light and won’t weigh it down). Sandalwood had popped up in my saffron post, and I was growing more curious about it after reading some snippets here and there about it. So the dive into research began!

History and Uses of Sandalwood

Wow.Who knew that sandalwood was so cool? Well most of ancient India that is for sure! I love the stories surrounding the Gods and Goddesses of India, Durga, Sarasvati, and Lakshmi are personal favorites. So imagine my happiness when I found out that Sandalwood is sacred to that lovely Goddess Lakshmi! She is thought to reside in the wood itself, as mentioned by the Brahma Vaivarta Purana.

Lakshmi carving of made of Sandalwood (you can buy these from the site linked…for a pretty penny)

The name Sandalwood comes from a corruption of the sanskrit word Chandam, which then evolved through linguistic corruption into Sandal possibly along the path Chandam → Sandanam → Sandalum → Sandal. Chandam could mean literally “wood for burning incense” or “shining, glowing” from candrah. Most likely the word we use today is from a late Greek word – santalon – which probably influenced Medieval Latin to create sandalum which then led to sandell in Old French and then sandal in modern English.

Sandalwood heartwood and some sandalwood powder.

All sandalwoods are what is known as a hemiparasite which Wikipedia defines as –

“a plant that is parasitic under natural conditions and is also photosynthetic to some degree. Hemiparasites may just obtain water and mineral nutrients from the host plant. Many obtain at least part of their organic nutrients from the host as well.”

Sandalwood is very similar, as well as related, to the well known mistletoe. While they do photosynthesize to create their own food, many of the species also have a taproot that seeks out other plants and then feeds from them. Sandalwood has a sad story of destruction and overuse by humans, so it is extremely important to not only check for the species of sandalwood used in an oil, but also that it is sourced in a sustainable and ethical way. Generally the more expensive the sandalwood oil is, the more likely it is of the right species and from a legit harvester that is approved by the Indian government. Since it is so endangered in the wild there are strict harvesting rules and regulations around sandalwood trees. Sandalwoods are very slow growing trees, which makes restoring the wild population difficult when illegal harvesting is happening. And the older the tree the better quality and stronger smelling the oils (and wood will be).

It’s scent is what makes it so alluring, and I know well of this. My parents lived in China right before I was born, and I had a lot of unusual things growing up. One of them was a carved sandalwood fan, it was so delicate and I would take it out of its little protective box to just sit and smell it.

My fan looked much like this sandalwood carved fan

The scent was just so addictive to me even then, and I think this scent is what has drawn humanity to it over the centuries. It is also used in a lot of religious carvings from prayer beads, to statues of gods and goddesses, to even little fans like mine.

Sandalwood has a large part in human history as well as religions. Sandalwood is mentioned in Indian texts for at least 2,000 years and was used for religious practices as well as medical uses for possibly up to 4,000. It is basically a huge part of life in Hindu culture, it is used in birth rituals, marriage ceremonies, and death rituals. It is used in its oil form, and the wood is used in a powdered form and both are used for the aforementioned religious and medicinal reasons – which I briefly mentioned in the saffron post since it is great for skin masks, soaps, and other preparations, and helps treat and reduce acne as well as other skin conditions. It was also very prized for religious carvings, and for other carved wood products since it retains its scent for decades. In Hinduism specifically it is used as a paste, which is mixed with saffron or other herbal pigments, and is called chandan. Chandan is sacred and can only be prepared by those who are ritually pure. The paste is then used by devotees and is put on the forehead, neck or chest in a ritual manner. Chandan can also be mixed with herbs, or other items to create javadhu which is generally used as a perfume or mixed with water to make a paste and used as deodorant.

Typical Javadhu powder you would find in a store

In both Hinduism and Ayurveda sandalwood is a very holy, and thought to bring one closer to the divine (hence its use as a ritual paste) in fact it is one of the most holy elements to Hindu practitioners or followers of the Vedas and sometimes applied before prayers.

In Buddhism it is also mentioned in some of the sutras (or sutta, depending on which flavor of Buddhism you follow), specifically the Pali Canon mentions it. There is even a legend that as the Buddha died, sandalwood powder fell from the heavens. Sandalwood is thought to be of the lotus (padma) group for the Amitabha Buddha, and is considered one of the three main incenses that are integral to Buddhist practice in general. Sandalwood is thought to focus the mind, and keep one alert during meditation, as well as transform “desires.” It is the most popular for offering incense to oneself in Buddhism.

In the Sufi tradition of Islam sandalwood paste is applied to the grave of a saint by devotees, a mark of respect and of devotion – mostly practiced by people in Southern India where Tamil culture has an influence. In Chinese and Japanese local custom it is also a common incense used in worship and other ceremonies. In Zoroastrianism (in which fire is very sacred) the priests, Mobads, that keep the fire offer it sandalwood – but it is not used in home offerings to the sacred lamps kept in the home. Sandalwood purchased in a fire temple is often more expensive than elsewhere since it is a common form of income for the temple and the Mobads.

Why and How it Works

Some of the chemicals you can find in sandalwoods are santalin (which provides the red color for dying), santene (a terpine that is also in pine needles), tannic acid (same stuff you get in wine!) and santalols. The main chemical that is important in sandalwood for medicinal use is santalol.

Alpha-Santalol in its chemical format

Beta-Santalol in the same

Which is broken into two different chemicals α-santalol and β-santalol. Alpha seems to be the most common chemical, but seems like the beta version is the most medicinally useful. It is pretty hard to find medicinal journals that speak of trials and uses of santalol in medical tests but there is a mention in a medical journal of pharmacy ….from 1911. Though it is useful since it points out that sandalwood oil is not very pleasant in taste (though I, personally, would not suggest taking this internally). There is a lot of anecdotal evidence that there are antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, astringent, slight sedative, and good for the respiratory system, hair, and skin. The German government has approved sandalwood oil as a treatment for urinary tract infections, so there is at least some scientific evidence that it is effective for treating infections, but other than that official scientific studies are very scarce. The most interesting point of the German studies is that the oil needs to be coated so that the oils are not released until it hits the small intestine – or it could cause irritation. For this reason I again – do not advise taking this internally.

There seems to be some evidence of its anti-inflammatory action again no firm scientific trials but there is a ton of folk medicine and word of mouth evidence to back this up. Same with the antispasmodic but, again not nearly enough evidence scientifically to completely back these claims, but 4,000 years of history must have something to it. I have found that its use helps with pain, and spasms – especially when massaged into a painful area (with a carrier oil, this tends to need to be diluted). I have not tried it personally as a sedative, though I find the scent quite soothing. It’s antiseptic properties make it a fantastic addition to deodorant since it helps to kill any bacteria that would be lurking around in your armpits. Its skin properties help with scar treatments (like lavender does) and helps soften and soothe, and helps sooth skin inflammation as well as things like eczema. Its astringent nature as well as its antiseptic, make it also great for treating acne. It also helps soften hair, and moisturize it, so it is great to apply to hair  on your head (like rosemary, though it is not as light as rosemary) or hair on your face (if you’re a guy 🙂 ).

Floral scents like lavender or geranium blend well with sandalwood, as well as clove, bergamot, vetiver, and black pepper.

Sustainability & True Species

Like all things that are expensive – saffron, cinnamon and frankincense are good examples – sandalwood oils can be adulterated or diluted at the cheap end of the spectrum. And the actual stuff is expensive – like Lemon Balm oil level which makes frankincense look cheap! I found that it is actually one of the most highly adulterated oils for sale on the market. That means if you see a 9-13$ bottle – you are probably getting mostly jojoba oil or some other carrier oil – or not even a drop of real sandalwood oil. Real sandalwood oil (Santalum album) is in the 100$+ range, which is really prohibitive for some pockets. So you can purchase the cheaper stuff, and this is the cheapest one I trust using on my skin. If you want to go “whole hog” I would go with this site or this one (which also has powdered sandalwood) since they are sustainably and ethically harvested. As you can see the cheapest one is actually a blend of species, since they are all technically all sandalwood but not the “top” species (though they are all good species in the blend as we will discuss further down).

This is another one of those “you get what you pay for” type things. Like the cinnamon I mentioned – if it is cheap, it probably is cassia. Once you have had true cinnamon, there is nothing like the real thing! But what is the right species of sandalwood? Well you could make a blanket statement like all trees of the Santalum genus are real sandalwoods. Which would mostly…mostly be true.

My husband will be pleased with this image. Mostly…

But there are a few main species used for sandalwood that you should be familiar with and are the most commonly used.

Indian Sandalwood – (Santalum album)

Santalum album

Other Common Names – White Sandalwood, East Indian Sandalwood, Chandana, or Chandam

First up is the king of all sandalwood species (or would it be queen?) either way Santalum album is the one that is most commonly used, and is sadly the most threatened of species due to poaching and illegal logging. Also this is the wood that sandalwood is named from since Chandam is the Sanskrit word that led to the modern English word. This species is currently the most vulnerable to extinction in the wild, which you may have heard of due to the exploits of Veerappan, a well known sandalwood smuggler. Often used in religious carvings, and as a powder (then made into a paste) is smeared on devotees or made into incense. It is also used for folk medicine and was used to treat: common colds, bronchitis, skin disorders, heart ailments, general weakness, fever, infection of the urinary tract, inflammation of the mouth and pharynx, liver and gallbladder complaints and other maladies. It is known to be effective (from folk medicine history and some medical trials) in treating analgeisc (specifically calming to nerves), antidepressant, antifungal, antispasmodic, antiviral, astringent (good for acne and skin), sedative and a fantastic scent to add to perfumes, soaps, and deodorants.

Coast Sandalwood – (Santalum ellipticum)

Santalum ellipticum

Other Common Names – ʻIliahialoʻe, or Hawaiian Sandalwood

Hawai’ians used the heartwood (‘la’au ‘ala) for its oils, and was often exported to China during the years 1790-1840 for production of carved objects, chests, and joss sticks (incense). The natives used the wood to make the decks of their double hulled canoes (wa’a kaulua) and the heartwood was used to make perfumes and sometimes added to kapa cloth possibly for its fragrance. The leaves and bark were used after burning to ash to treat dandruff and head lice. Shavings of the wood in combination with other plants were used to treat some sexually transmitted diseases.

Australian Sandalwood – (Santalum spicatum)

Santalum spicatum

This is a species that comes from Western Australia, and its export is a major part of their economy. Its oil was first distilled in 1875, and was produced here and there for a few decades until the 1990’s when it experienced a resurgence which increased (and is still increasing) since it is often used in the perfume industry, very popular with aromatherapists, and in chewing tobacco. This is a much less threatened species, and is almost equal in medicinal properties to Santalum album without the worry of using an extremely endangered species. So if you are unable to afford or can not find ethically sourced Santalum album, this is a good (and less costly) alternative. Testing shows pretty strongly, so far, that it has a lot of great antimicrobial properties, as well as all the stuff listed for Santalum album (since they are so closely related their chemical makeup is very similar and makes it a fantastic stand-in for the more expensive sandalwood).

Other Santalum species you may see are: S. acuminatum, S. austrocaledonicum, S. boninense, S. fernandezianum, S. freycinetianum, S. haleakalae, S. lanceolatum, S. macgregorii, S. murrayanum, S. obtusifolium, S. paniculatum, S. yasi. These species you may see pop up in the occasional commercial preparation, but are not commonly used nor are their medicinal properties well known.

The Fakes

These species, while useful in their own rights are not sandalwoods and are occasionally used as an adulterant in real sandalwood oils or preparations. These should be avoided if you are looking for a real sandalwood.

•  Adenanthera pavonina sometimes called Red Sandalwood, but this is not sandalwood. Its seeds while toxic when eaten raw are safe to eat when cooked and have been used to treat inflammation in folk medicine.
• Amyris balsamifera – known as Balsam Torchwood this is a common species accepted by a lot of perfumers and aromatherapy blends.
• Baphia nitida called African Sandalwood Camwood or Barwood, its bark and heartwood make a red dye, it is known as Osun in Yoruba and is a part of a brand of Nigerian black soap called Dudu Osun.
• Eremophila mitchelli also called False Sandalwood, Sandalbox and Rosewood Belvory as well as other common names. While native to Australia it is considered an invasive species in some areas of Australia and is illegal to plant.
• Myoporum platycarpum sometimes called Sugarwood, False Sandalwood as well, which is another native of Australia but is mostly toxic and just the sap is edible, but can not be produced by wounding the tree.
• Myoporum sandwicense another False Sandalwood, or Bastard Sandalwood, Naio in the native Hawai’ian. It was used in making canoes, fishing net spacers and torches for night fishing. It is a very oily wood and was part of the woods exported to China for Joss stick production.
• Osyris lanceolata known as African Sandalwood as well, but is generally in Southern parts of Africa, it is over logged despite government protection. Its wood is used for utensils and firewood, and in some communities it is used to preserve milk in gourds for long periods of time.
• Osyris tenuifolia or Osyris lanceolata known as East African Sandalwood or again as False Sandalwood. Not much information is available on this species.

Recipes

Easy Sandalwood Lotion

• 2 oz Coconut Oil
• 10-20 drops of Sandalwood oil (or 1/2 teaspoon of Sandalwood powder)

Take the coconut oil, and whip 2 oz of solid at room temperature coconut oil in a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, and adding 10-20 drops of the essential oils. You can also use a bit (half a teaspoon to a teapoon depending on how thick or honey-like you want your lotion. Raw honey is good wound healing and for your skin too.

You can also just add a drop or two of Sandalwood essential oil to your regular routine, or just massage a little into problem areas with a carrier oil (Sweet Almond oil is a good alternative if coconut oil makes you break out).

Saffron & Sandalwood Lotion

• 1/4 cup Whole almonds
• 1/4 cup Strained Yogurt (or Plain Greek yogurt)
• 2 teaspoons Lime or Lemon juice
• pinch of Ground turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon Sandalwood
• pinch of Saffron

First make your strained yogurt, if you don’t know how to do this go here and follow the instructions. Then soak the almonds in a bowl of water overnight, peel the skins off the next morning and grind into a fine paste in a food processor or strong blender. Add in the strained yogurt, lime (or lemon) juice, turmeric, sandalwood, and the saffron threads. Blend again in the food processor or blender until smooth and creamy. This cream can be stored in a clean container in the fridge for about a week, and you should apply it after washing your face at night. Smooth it all over your skin and massage in gently, in the morning wash your face again.

Both of these lotions are good for fighting acne, skin rashes, eczema, sunburns, helps reduce age spots and brighten dull skin. It even does a lot if you massage it into scars, helping to soften them and reduce their visibility, you can even add in a bit of lavender too to help with the redness of scarring if you are treating that. Really it does your skin good and will help just about anything to do with skin 🙂 there is some evidence even that it may help with Rosacea, though it may irritate some skin types that have Rosacea so make sure to do a test patch before you attempt to treat it with sandalwood oil.

Sandalwood Steaming

• 2-5 drops Sandalwood oil
• Bowl of hot water, must be steaming
• Towel

Place a few drops into the bowl of hot water, place towel over your head and allow the steam to bathe the face. This another way to treat skin issues, or to treat very dry skin, or chapped skin.

ProChestColdTip: If you have a chest cold or respiratory issues, or even laryngitis, you can do this with some eucalyptus since there is some evidence that sandalwood can act as an expectorant and has antiviral properties.

ProStressTip: This can also be really good for stress, as the smell is very soothing, and has a mild sedative action, but I would suggest using meditation while inhaling the scent of just the sandalwood oil to reduce stress and bring relaxation.

Woodsy Beard Oil

• 25 milliliters Carrier oil (this can be straight or a blend, 100 drops = about 5 ml)
• 2 milliliters (about 50 drops) Sandalwood oil
• 1 milliliter Cedarwood oil
• 2 milliliters Pine oil

Mix well and store in a dark bottle, apply a few drops to hands and massage into beard. Comb through with beard brush or beard comb. Trust me guys your ladies will love this

The carrier oil can be anything you like, jojoba is good, vitamin E is great, argan oil is all the rage these days. Grapeseed, hemp, coconut, sweet almond, olive and apricot are all ok as well – it is really up to you on this and what works best with your face and hair and you can combine them and do half and half, or whatever combo you prefer most. Since you will be putting this on your face it will condition and soften your skin (especially with sandalwood oil) and condition and soften your beard hairs. This will make about an ounce, and you can either use a bottle with a dropper or you can use a bottle that has a built in dropper like on most essential oil bottles. You can even re-use some essential oil bottles for this.

ProScentsTip: You can also substitute the pine or cedarwood for lime and rosemary respectively, for a more citrusy smelling oil. You can also check out this site which has some great links for bottles, measuring equipment (if you don’t have anything to measure milliliters with) and some other recipes.

Muscle Spasm Massage Oil

• 1 ounce Carrier oil
• 10-20 drops Sandalwood oil (or 1/2 teaspoon Sandalwood powder)
• 10 drops Wintergreen
• 10 drops Cardamom

Mix well it is best to use an oil that is liquid at room temperature, if you use coconut oil that is not, you may want to whip this in a stand mixer to make it easier to apply. This is a great oil to massage into painful muscle spasms, or for general muscle pain (especially back pain!). The sandalwood and cardamom will help release the muscles and relax them, and the wintergreen will provide warming (which always helps muscles release) as well as providing a natural aspirin component to alleviate pain further.

Sleeping Sandalwood & Lavender

• 1-2 drops Lavender oil
• 1-2 drops Sandalwood oil

Massage into temples and inhale the lovely scents deeply. This is a combination that I find many swear by, and I do like the combination. It isn’t as powerful as hops, but it will definitely send you off to a sweet smelling dreamland.

ProMigraineTip: Since lavender and sandalwood oil are antispasmodics as well as good for treating pain, these are also great to massage into the temples if you are suffering a migraine.

If you suffer from dandruff you can also use sandalwood oil to treat it, and you can use the Best Shampoo Ever Recipe I posted previously as a base for it. Also sandalwood as I mentioned is great as a deodorant, you can add the oils to the Best Deodorant recipes I posted (any of them in the post will work) or you can use sandalwood paste to make your own. Simply take your sandalwood powder, mix with small amounts of water until it forms a paste and apply with the hands to the armpits.

Remember, everyone’s body is different and has different chemistry so always do your own experiments and see what works best for you. Always check sites like WebMD for interactions with any medications you might be taking, and remember check for ethically sourced, and sustainably harvested sandalwood oil. You will pay a little more, but it is worth supporting people who want to make sure this tree is around for future generations. And as always, if you have any doubts whatsoever – ask a professional!

Cardamom, Holiday Love Potion #9

Happy New Year Everyone!!! What a great year 2015 will be! The best yet!

Finally, winter is officially here, and that means – winter colds (bleh!) & holiday stress (double bleh!). Everyone seems to be getting sick, and this is that time of year when I keep ginger, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom close at hand. Then you get weather changes, and that means horrible migraines. So I tend to hole up, and hibernate, in winter. I venture out even less, since my poor immune system can’t take the cold, and the direct assault of microbial evil, plus all the people out for holiday shopping is overwhelming to my senses as well as a moving people shaped mass of infection. Of course prevention tea helps stave off most anything winter can throw at you – colds, flu and virus-y type things. But did you know that if you add cardamom to your food and drink, or if you drink chai tea (or even chai coffee) that there are a lot of elements in it that helps to stave off colds as well as ease pain, lessen stress, and many other things? That is right, that chai latte you are craving could have those calories written off as medicinal!

So, start taking notes because cardamom is a great way to fight holiday stress & anxiety, winter colds, and even migraines from stress (or winter weather if you are like me). You can also seem like an awesome host, since it is another relaxing warm drink to serve, and it is lovely to experience the aroma of the spices as you chat and warm yourself by the fire. It’s sensual smell has led it to be used in many love potions and perfumes to lure the opposite sex. So, since every King of Spices needs it’s Queen, I bring you…Cardamom!

Lean, green, anxiety fighting pod-machines!

Now if you know more than the average bear about cardamom, you will know there are actually more than one sort. So to keep this post below epic proportions, I will only be covering Green Cardamom or Elettaria cardamomum, and not Black Cardamom, that will be for another time :). The genus name of green cardamom, elettaria is derived from the Tamil words for “cardamom seeds.” Though this word could be much older, and the term cardamom we now use, could be derived from Dravidian, which is basically the grandparent language of Tamil. The Greeks called the pod kardamomon, which is another contender for the likely root word for this sweet little pod, though the exact etymological roots of the English term is not fully known. A lot of Westerners are not familiar with the taste of cardamom, or have even seen it before. I have been quite amused recently serving people cardamom coffee, mostly to see if they notice the difference and if they enjoy the additional flavor. It is sometimes difficult explaining what is in it, since almost none have even heard of cardamom, and then showing them what cardamom looks like. You get some suspicious glances at first, but the lovely smell from the jar, and the taste of the coffee seems to win most people over fairly quickly.

The History and Uses of Cardamom

As you can see it looks a lot like ginger and turmeric, we are just aren’t concerned with the roots this time!

Thankfully chai tea (or if you want to get really technical masala chai, but I will refer to it as just chai) has made it’s way into popular Western culture, and cardamom should taste familiar now to most palates that have had chai flavored things. Cardamom is the dominant flavor in most traditionally made masala chai, but in the States it may be more cassia you are tasting with little to no cardamom, so you may have missed out on the best sort of chai if you only are purchasing pre-packaged or commercially made preparations. That is why I highly suggest you make your own chai at home, it is fun, super easy and you can put in as many or as varied a mix of spices as you want. Chai is fun to make and there is a great recipe here, and I will add another to the mix further down. Plus chai with cardamom is good for alleviating stress, and easing holiday anxiety – or any anxiety really!

It also has beautiful flowers, that just happen to be edible (you can plant the seeds from your store bought pods. Almost all grow, and it will possibly bloom, I suggest indoor planting or hot house unless you live in a tropical climate)

Cardamom has been known in India since before history, at least 3000 years of human history we know it has been used, and as soon as people were writing medical texts cardamom was mentioned. Since cardamom is native to India it was easy for it to spread to most of Asia, it quickly became well known to most of the cultures it came into contact with. In India a medical text was compiled between 2 BC and 2 AD called the Charaka Samhita, which mentions cardamom as part of some medicinal preparations, also a Sanskrit text from 4 BC discusses using cardamom, “ela” in the language, as part of formal political gifts between two groups. Cardamom was sometimes offered in some Hindu traditions to the recently deceased to appease them, and can be part of some tarpanas. In traditional medicine of India, Ayurveda, an 11th century medical text called the Manasollasa (Book of Splendor) it names cardamom as one of the ingredients in panchasugandha-thambula or “five-fragrance betel chew”. This five-fragrance chew contained cloves, cardamom and other spices wrapped in betel leaves, sometimes with areca nut sometimes called the betel-nut, which was then chewed to aid with digestion and relieve wind. This is still being done today to ease the stomach and promote digestion, if you include the areca nut is included this is a strong stimulant which could explain the tradition of adding cardamom to the mix.

Cardamom spread from India and the East, then to the West. Making it’s way to Egypt, and into some of its famous medical writings. We have gone over the Eber’s Papyrus before, and of course it name drops cardamom as a great fix for “wind” (or “farty pants”, in the parlance of our times) and digestion. It was also used in Egyptian religious ceremonies, cosmetics, and embalming, as well as food and medicine. The Babylonians and Assyrians also knew well and prized highly the health benefits of cardamom, and they were early traders across the land routes and possibly water routes via the Persian Gulf as early as the Bronze Age. A king of Babylon, Marduk-apla-iddina II, was known to have grown it in his royal garden, and many Assyrian doctors wrote about the uses of cardamom. Since it was used in many perfumes by many cultures it eventually grew to have a reputation of being a powerful aphrodisiac, and was frequently used in love potions.

Not that sort… I wish though! Why yes I WILL go to the dance with you Adrian Paul! *swoons*

Greeks also loved cardamom, and it was so highly prized that it was in itself a symbol of luxury, and was used in social rituals and gatherings. Cardamom is mentioned by a lot of names that should now be very familiar to you, Dioscorides and Hippocrates both agreed this is great for the stomach and digestion, and eases cramps. Alexander the Great, sent many plants home to his tutor, Aristotle, while he was out doing his conquering thing and it is likely that is how his successor, and possible father of botany, Theophrastus wrote about this plant that he may have obtained from Aristotle. While it was used medicinally it did not catch on in the same way it did in India, it was more prized for its scent and was often used in incense and perfumes. Its delicate flavor and scent is what led it to it more often being used in perfumes, and could be the reason for it being unofficially dubbed the “Queen of Spices.” The Romans were just as as fond as the Greeks cardamom to make perfume and other cosmetics, but still Galen wrote about it, agreeing with other medicinal writers of the time that it is a great way to treat stomach disorders, cramping and “wind.” In the 2nd century AD it was listed as a taxable luxury good in Alexandria. Sadly with the collapse of the Roman Empire, cardamom trade routes collapsed it seems, and this lovely pod disappears from history for a short while in the West.

Cardamom maintained its favor in the Arab world and further East, it was incorporated in recipes from the court of the Sultan of Mandu, dating from about 1500’s, and has a number of sherbets and rice dishes flavored with cardamom. You still find a lot of foods, not just dessert type foods, in Indian and Arabic cuisine that contain cardamom. If you have never had the joy of eating Indian sweets (or mithai), I don’t think you can say you have truly lived. I am also a huge fan of food from the Middle and Near East, and especially Indian food – who am I kidding I love all foods! Their savory and sweet dishes all will probably have some cardamom in them. Cardamom is, in my opinion, best in desserts, and it is so popular a dessert flavor that there is a popular brand of cardamom syrup, and you frequently find cardamom extract in dessert aisles.

I can’t read Arabic but I am sure that it pretty much says “this stuff is delicious, shut up and put it in your face hole”

Cardamom makes it’s comeback in the West during the Middle Ages, when trade from the Crusades re-introduced Europeans to civilization (thank goodness for that, especially the part about bathing regularly). Later as trade between lands Holy and further East increased, the spice became more common and more often used in European cooking. In the Scandinavian countries they continue this tradition, and there are lots of types of cardamom breads, Which I will include some recipes for further down. It was mostly Venetian traders that supplied cardamom, since they had access to the spice routes. Or to put it more bluntly, they had all of the trade routes coming via the sea from Africa and the Levant so locked down they had a near monopoly on most items from the East. (It was such a stereotype for Venetians to be rich it even comes up in Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice). They controlled and were pretty much the only point of entry for most luxuries that were arriving from anything East of Greece, and everything had to disperse out from there. They had this trade locked down from the 8th to about the 15th century, when the Ottoman Turks rolled up, and pretty much took over.

They also cornered the poofy hat fashion niche.

If you are paying attention to the dates, you can now see why Columbus was sent by Spain to find a different route to the spice laden East, they were trying to skip the middle men of Venice and the Arab traders that controlled the waters of the Gulfs and Indian Ocean. As more Europeans got out on the sea, a few started to dominate. A surprising country that wielded a lot of power despite its size is Portugal. Many Portuguese merchants made it all over the world, one of them, Duarte Barbosa, in his travels during the 16th century wrote about wild cardamom growing along the Malabar coast, but it was already cultivated when another Portuguese explorer came by a mere 40 years later – testament to is value and value as a trade commodity. But despite its availability, then and today, Cardamom is sadly way under used in US and a lot of Europe. But oddly enough, it is a part of traditional Christmas cookies made this time of year in the Netherlands and Sweden, so again, what better time to talk about this great spice? 

Aaaaaaaaand maybe suggest bringing back Krampus, or at least totally metal cards with him on them. That guy is Ozzy Osborne (pre-“The Osbornes”) metal.

Cardamom in the Levant and Middle East was heartily embraced and took on a whole new set of uses and a new parts in rituals. In most countries that have had an influence from Arab culture, or Islam, it is traditional to add cardamom to coffee, in fact, it really isn’t Turkish coffee without the addition of cardamom, it also could be known as Arabic, or Saudi coffee, or a plethora of other terms. So lets just agree that Turkish coffee will refer to coffee with cardamom and possibly other spices prepared by boiling. I will use Turkish coffee to refer to this to avoid being overly confusing, since there are loads of regional variations (and different names in each region) that makes this really, really complicated to discuss). In some areas it is traditional to pile on the cardamom to show the level of generosity of the host, and respect for their guest, since it is such an expensive spice. It can be so heavily added in some styles of coffee that even the powerful taste of coffee itself plays second fiddle to the flavor of cardamom.

There are literally 100’s of regional variations of making coffee in every single part of the world, couple that with an almost insane level of variation on terms in each region for their own spices, roasts and levels of sweetness, and this post could take years. But since this is all about cardamom, and not coffee (another post in the future!), I am only going to cover just Turkish coffee, since most versions of this contain cardamom in traditional preparations. Coffee in many of these regions also tends to be so strong it is drunk in small amounts, from beautiful coffee pots, and there are all sorts of gestures (as with some tea drinking) that go along with the coffee ceremony.

I hate to admit that until recently I had no idea that the pairing of cardamom and coffee was why I loved Turkish coffee sooooooo much, but what is even more awesome is I found that cardamom, and this was known to those Turkish coffee drinkers, tones down the effects of the caffeine (that means you can have 6 cups of good, strong coffee and not fear that your body may vibrate itself to its atomic parts, I tried it in the name of science and I only felt a little more “amped” like I had only had a cup or two) making the coffee you drink a lot more healthy and beneficial for you. If you take your coffee with milk, it can also reduce the extra mucus that dairy products tend to cause as well, so you can have a splash to give you another way to get Vitamin D. Since it reduces stress as well, it may be a good idea to throw cardamom in the coffee you take on your morning drive to help combat the stress of commuting, and combat the dreaded Monday yawns.

This could be the answer for a happy morning commute!

Now knowing that it can over power coffee you would hardly be surprised at how much in flavor is packed in this little pod. It also easy to keep when stored in unbroken pod form, it can last for ages since the seeds (unbroken) inside the pods are what hold all the precious oils and flavors. I actually keep and re-use a lot of glass jars, my favorite are amber yeast jars for storing spices like this since they are usually airtight, and help prevent damage from sunlight (that is why good beer comes in amber bottles, yeast hates direct sunlight). Cardamom can last even longer if sealed, then put in the freezer. So stock up if its on sale! Because cardamom pods keep extremely well once dried, and retain almost all of their flavor and oils until crushed it made it a very easily stored, and therefore traded, spice. It was so hardy it became quickly a far traveling spice, it was strong enough to make it all the way to Scandinavian countries and still carry its sweet flavor to their palates. Its easy storage is also why it is one of the oldest traded spices (excluding resins), but because it has to be hand harvested like tea – ranks as one of the top 3 most expensive spices, only beaten by saffron and vanilla (more spices we will discuss later). While it is an expensive spice it is not out of reach, and you can buy bags of whole pods at most markets for reasonable prices (much less cost, and easier to find than good quality saffron). You can even find some in a few of the larger chain stores, but I would much rather give my cash to Mom & Pop stores, and local places. Shop local y’all! Like saffron the expense is countered by you not having to use much to get a lot of flavor, 1-3 pods is a lot of flavor for a dish. Heed this warning though, the pre-ground powder loses its potency and flavor faster than most spices. I strongly advise against buying pre-ground cardamom unless you are using it all that day, or you have no other available options. Though if you have pre-ground cardamom it is easy to throw it into coffee beans that are ground, or you are grinding!

Cardamom is also available as essential oil, remember to buy a good quality one if you are going to ingest it, and I advise caution and not to ingest more than 2 maybe 3 drops (that is for adults only) since over use can quickly lead to overdose and that has symptoms opposite to calming the stomach (and definitely some time in the bathroom), but as far as testing has shown this is “mostly harmless” and shouldn’t have overly adverse effects (nothing is ever 100% safe to consume vast quantities of so remember common sense and moderation). Also if you have, or are prone to gall stones, avoid cardamom in excessive amounts it can irritate them.

What is in Cardamom that Works?

Well one of the main components is 1.8cineole which is also known as eucalyptol, which may sound familiar as it is in eucalyptus, lavender and camphor (another future post). Which is something we know to be an anti-inflammatory and there are scientific studies that are showing this is a promising chemical for medicinal use. Also the second highest component in cardamom is a-terpinyl acetate, which has a lot of studies that show it to be an effective antimicrobial, and is the reason that cardamom is such a good addition to any cold, or illness fighting food or drink. Another one that should hopefully be familiar by now is linalool, which has shown a lot of promise in lab research as a stress reliever, and mild sedative. Hence it being such a great addition to drinks to relieve stress, mild anxiety, and can help ease the pain of tension headaches, and all of these mean it is great for migraines.

Α and β-pinene are also present in cardamom, and α as having anti-inflammatory properties, as well as having an almost antibiotic effect, which makes it great for fighting pain and illness. Β-pinene more aromatic, and should be familiar since they are both prevalent in pine. Now this is probably the most important chemical in cardamom for the sufferers of pain – myrcene. This little chemical is a well known pain reliever, and is why hops are effective pain relievers and the not so legal in Texas, but very legal elsewhere, cannabis. Cardamom contains a lot of this chemical and it is fairly safe to ingest in sensible daily amounts with no adverse side effects. Another, hopefully familiar one is limonene, which is why cardamom is so great for settling the stomach, and may actually help people with IBS or acid reflux – if you have these look into it, it may be your answer. It is also a sedative and helps to reduce stress since it helps to stimulate adenosine receptors and the production of adenosine – which is a key chemical in the body goign to sleep as well as an anti-inflammatory. Terpinolene which helps preserve foods, and other things, since it is an anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. And many others we have discussed before like (but not limited to) – citronellol, nerol, and geraniol. So as you can see, it was no exaggeration saying that cardamom was a heavy hitter packed into a tiny pod.

Cardamom Recipes

Right, so, since its the holidays fudge is everywhere, or at least it is here. And while most of us know only the chocolate kind, carrot fudge is a World War II treat that was able to be easily made with rations, and has a long history in India as Gajar Halwa. Which as one of my friends (who is Indian) said Gajar Halwa is a great way to take something healthy and turn it into something that is the complete opposite of what it started out as.

Carrot Fudge (Gajar Halwa) (adapted from myheartbeets)

• 2½ cups Carrots, grated
• 1 can Coconut Cream (or full fat coconut milk or even condensed milk)
• 2 tablespoons Coconut oil (butter or ghee could be substituted)
• 2 tablespoons Honey
• 1 teaspoon of ground Cardamom seeds
• Optional: chopped dates, golden raisins, chopped prunes, and optional garnish of crushed pistachios or toasted almond slivers

Melt coconut oil in a saucepan, add grated carrots and cook until softening (about 10 minutes) add coconut cream and simmer on low heat stirring to keep it from burning. After about 20 minutes add the cardamom, mix thoroughly, and then add in honey (leave out if you used condensed milk), mixing well until all liquids evaporate and mixture thickens. Serve in bowls with optional garnishes, or throw in dried fruits for some extra depth, but best is to spread it thickly in a greased or wax paper lined pan. You can press a whole nut or formations of dried fruit into regular intervals while the mix is still hot, and then slice into squares for gifting. Because this has cardamom in it, it is also good to serve after a large holiday meal (especially one where people are sure to overindulge). It is also good for the host(ess), since it helps reduce stress and can help take some of the edge of the exhausting nature of this season.

Vetebröd (Swedish Sweet Yeast Bread slightly altered from here)

• 2 1/2 cups Milk
• 1 1/2 cups Butter, melted
• 1 cup Sugar (or honey)
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 2 teaspoons Cardamom seeds, ground
• 1 tablespoon yeast
• 9 cups Flour
• 7-9 tablespoons Gluten
• 1 egg and 2 tablespoons water for egg wash
• Cardamom sugar (see below) or slivered toasted almonds for topping

Prepare your Basic Cardamom Bread Dough using the first 7 ingredients listed above (this takes about 1 1/2 hours).

After punching down dough following its first rise, remove from bowl and knead lightly on floured counter until smooth and shiny. Divide dough into two halves.

Divide each half of the dough into three equal portions. Roll each portion into a long, thin “snake” (about 18 inches long). Braid three of the “snakes” together, folding and pinching outer edges under to form a loaf shape. Repeat for second set of three dough “snakes.” (Alternative: Do not divide dough into 2 halves, but separate entire mass into three equal portions. Roll the three portions into “snakes,” braid together, then join and pinch ends together to form a single braided bread wreath).

Place the two braided loaves (or the single braided wreath) on a greased baking sheet, cover with a towel, and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 375º.

When loaves (or wreath) have doubled, brush with egg wash and sprinkle with [cardamom or orange sugar] or almonds. Place in the middle of a preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until done.

Yield: 2 braided loaves or 1 braided wreath, about 20 servings.

To make cardamom sugar, take 1-2 pods cardamom and in food processor grind well with sugar and use to sprinkle over bread, or toast almond slivers in the oven to top. To make an orange sugar take a tablespoon of orange zest and quickly grind a few times in food processor and use to sprinkle over bread.

Speculaas or Dutch Windmill Cookies (slightly altered from here)

• 1/2 cup (1 stick or 113 g) cold unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (75 g) white granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup (165 g) packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 1 3/4 cup (235 g) all purpose flour

Prep a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking sheet. Then:

Cut the butter into 1/2 inch cubes. Place in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the sugars, baking soda, salt, and spices. Cream butter and dry ingredients together on medium speed for 30 seconds or until the batter is uniform in color. Scrape down the sides with a large spatula and add the vanilla extract and egg and beat on medium speed until incorporated (about 30 more seconds). Scrape down the sides again and add the flour. Beat on medium speed until incorporated (about 30 more seconds)

If you are lucky enough to have all the traditional implements follow the quoted text if not skip down past that.

Split the cookie dough in half. If you using the springerle rolling pin, roll the dough out until 1/2 inch thick with a plain rolling pin. Liberally dust the springerle pin with flour then roll over the dough, pressing firmly to make a 1/4 inch thick cookie dough, with imprint. Cut the dough along the springerle grid lines with a sharp knife or pizza cutter and place on the baking sheet. If using a traditional speculaas cookie mold, roll the dough until 1/2 thick with a plain rolling pin. Lightly spray the mold with cooking oil, then liberally dust with all purpose flour (knocking out any loose flour once you’ve dusted it). Press the dough into the mold, remove excess dough of the back of the mold and then carefully unmold it onto the baking sheet.

If you don’t have all that fancy stuff, or some awesome family heirloom shortbread mold, use a cookie cutter and you can cut them into any shape you want. You can also roll it into a log and cut it into evenly spaced discs, roll each into a ball and press with the bottom of a glass if you have one with a nice design, or the old standby used for peanut butter cookies of pressing a fork into an X shape works as well. If you have one a cookie “gun” or a cookie stamp would work a treat to make these (I recently acquired a cookie stamp and am making these cookies again just to try it out). You want to roll things fairly thick so the unbaked cookies are at least 1/4 of an inch thick.

Chill for about an hour, but for at least 30 minutes. Then heat your oven to 375°F and bake for 9 to 11 minutes, you want to remove them when they just start to brown at the edges, do not let them brown all the way. Cookies as a rule should err on the side of underdone, instead of overdone. You can always bake them a tad longer, you can’t un-bake them. Also you should always allow them to cool in or on whatever they baked in for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. These cookies are no different, but taste oh so delicious.

It isn’t Christmas really without these next cookies, and they are a Southern favorite. Sadly less and less people are familiar with them, but these are one of my favorite cookies to whip up as gifts during the holidays and this has a cardamom addition for some exotic flare.

Cardamom Molasses Cookies

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup coconut oil (seriously just trust me use this and nothing else, you could use shortening or butter but it doesn’t come out the same)
• 1/4 cup molasses (find the darkest least processed you can find, you want as much dark rich flavor as possible)
• 1 egg
• 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• optional: 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• garnish: 1-2 tablespoons sugar

Cream coconut oil, brown sugar, egg, and molasses in a stand mixer or in a bowl with an electric beater. Stir in spices, then add in flour in batches, salt and baking soda. Mix well until fully combined, dough should be slightly dry, but forms easily into balls like peanut butter cookie dough. It is easiest to use a 1-2 ounce ice cream scoop to portion out the dough but you want to have about a tablespoon of dough for each cookie. Roll each by hand into a ball then dip top half in sugar. Place sugar side up on baking tray with parchment paper, with 2 inches at least between each ball. Bake for 12-15 minutes, let cool for 10 and then move to cooling rack. These are a delicious and aromatic cookie, that will become your favorite once you make it.

Cardamom Coffee

• 1 cup Coffee beans, whole (pre-ground if you have no other option)
• 1-2 Cardamom pods
• Optional – cinnamon sticks, orange peel, carob nibs, cloves, saffron, and caraway seeds, fresh vanilla
• Coffee Grinder
• French Press (preferred but not required)

It is technically more “traditional” to use a lighter roast, or roast your own beans. Even I don’t have time for all that jazz. So find a roast level you like, and use that. Most grinders hold about a cup of coffee beans, add in your cardamom pods, and grind you don’t want a fine grind but fairly chunky. Follow your normal routine for brewing coffee in a french press, if you never have check out this guide. You can add in other things to your grind like the optional spices, or you can just do plain cardamom and coffee. All of them taste amazing. Guests will be wowed that you blended your own special grind and you will forever be known as the hostess with the most-est.

Some cardamom, cinnamon and orange peel spiced coffee, in my beautiful Christmas present from my fantastic MIL ❤ I couldn’t help but brag a wee bit!

Warning: I have put 3 cardamom pods in about half a cup of coffee and ground it, and it is some pretty strong knockout juice. So please do not drink loads of cardamom and drive!

Cardamom Tea

• 2-3 pods, slightly crushed
• 8 ounces of Hot water (not boiling)

Steep for 10-15 minutes, and drink. You may need some honey to help this out since it can be quite strong tasting. This is good for pain, or extremely stressful days. If you are having stomach issues, increase to about a teaspoon of crushed seeds and steep for the same amount of time. This should help with cramping and abdominal pain that comes with medications, IBS, lactose in tolerance and so on.

ProCompressTip: You can steep for 20 minutes, and then soak a towel in this and apply directly to the forehead, or head where migraine hurts most. Or even to cramped muscles to help ease spasms and pain.

 Cardamom Tincture

• 1 part Cardamom seeds, slightly crushed
• 2 parts Vodka (or other clear alcohol)
• Mason jar or airtight jar

Put crushed seeds in a jar, cover with alcohol. Allow to sit, giving a shake once a day or so for about 4-6 weeks. Strain and bottle and store out of sunlight. This is a great cure for stomach cramping, and intestinal distress. It is also good to take after a heavy meal to prevent those issues in advance. A few 1-10 ml (10-60 drops) in honey or in a tea, or under the tongue. This can also be a good way to help yourself sleep on a restless night, or when a migraine or pain is keeping you awake.

It is great paired with Tulsi and lavender in a tea too!

Mike Tyson Level Knock Out Tea

• 1-2 pods of Cardamom, with seeds removed (more if you like the taste adjust to your liking)
• 1 tablespoon of Tulsi
• 1 teaspoon dried Lavender flowers
• Optional: 1 teaspoon of dried Chamomile flowers

You could reduce the Tulsi to a teaspoon but, I say go big or go home. Plus this tea pretty much ensures that within a half hour you will be counting sheep in dreamland. Steep in water for about 10-15 minutes, add honey if you need some sweet, strain and drink! This is a great tea also if you are up stressing about something, since it will put your mind at ease and bring healthy restful sleep. Seriously you have no other options but to sleep when cardamom is in the mix.

Cardamom Massage Oil

• 30 drops Cardamom essential oil
• 1 ounce good oil (jojoba, almond, olive, etc)

Mix well and store in and store in a dark bottle, massage into spasms, or temples, neck and shoulders for migraines. This is also good for a generally allover body massage to alleviate stress and anxiety. Give it a go, you will love the smell and the relaxation.

Cardamom Epsom Salt Bath

• 5 cups (40 oz) Epsom Salts
• 5-20 drops Cardamom essential oils
• Optional: any other oils you would like to add, just remember to reduce your cardamom oil by the number of drops of your other oils.

Mix well, and store in an airtight container, add a cup to a hot bath and soak for 20-30 minutes. You can always use the cardamom tea, and throw in some epsom salts too if you are unable to get your hands on the oil.

Ok, now I have to get out my soapbox.

*gets on soapbox*

Before I get into this second chai recipe, because who can have too many chai recipes? I want to explain something that seems to have as much fear and superstition surrounding its use and adoption, as the gas stove did when it was first introduced (for more on the gas stove see the footnotes). So I would like to clear up some things about Microwaves from things I have heard.

• Microwaves “change” the molecular structure of water. Wrong. If it did – it wouldn’t be water, secondly this has been pretty solidly debunked by pretty much everyone out there, and their doge, not the least including Snopes. The day some 9 yr old’s science project overturns major accepted views in physics and chemistry, you aren’t going to read about it in some email forward from one of your crazier relatives. Critical thinking people, lets use some.
• Microwaves give you “radiation and therefore cancer.” Wrong. Microwaves are not going to give you radiation poisoning like if you walked into a nuclear reactor in full meltdown. You are getting more radiation flying in an airplane, or eating a banana – than you do using a microwave. Think about that. Please stop spreading this rumor it is old and tired, and that horse died at least 50 years ago. Stop. Beating it. Microwaves use electromagnetic waves to excite the food’s water molecules, cooking it from the inside basically by steam. That is why it doesn’t brown, or do well with breads like an electric or gas oven that uses heat conduction and convection to cook food. A microwave is not radiating food, or giving anything radiation that will kill you to stand in front of one (except if you are heating a hotpocket, then yes, it may actually be part of killing you, but 90% of that was the hotpocket). Electromagnetic waves also power your computer/car speakers, and many other things, so unless you also shun speakers and pretty much every other electronic device, your argument about microwaves being some “radiation cancer machine,” sounds really rather silly. But if you don’t believe me, here is the FDA on microwaves explaining why they are safe, and American Cancer Society on why microwaves won’t give you cancer, or the bad sort of radiation.

I get that not everyone aced chemistry and physics, but pretty much all the myths and fear surrounding the microwave are just another sad case of history repeating itself. We fear what we do not fully understand, and invisible waves that heats things up does seem pretty magical. So in the hopes that people will better understand, please read this explanation on how microwaves work. Or if you need a more quick and friendly explanation check out this video from the Smithsonian, they are people who know stuff.

*gets off soapbox*

Failure (and Idiot) Proof Chai Tea

• ¹/3 cup of water
• 2/3 cup of Milk
• 1 teaspoon – 1 tablespoon Black Tea
• 1-3 Star Anise pods, whole
• 2-4 Green Cardamom pods, crushed
• 2-5 Peppercorns, crushed
• 1 stick True Cinnamon, whole
• 3-6 Cloves, crushed
• 1 inch (thumb sized) piece of Fresh Ginger, crushed, or a heaping teaspoon of candied
• Optional: teaspoon of Turmeric paste or powder, or fresh vanilla include seeds and pod itself.

Crush the spices except for the star anise and cinnamon you add those whole, and the ginger if you are using fresh. You don’t want to grind this to a powder just make sure things are slightly broken and the ginger is flat-ish, you want it broken up but not completely ground to a paste – though you can grind it to a paste if you really, really want to. I didn’t have fresh ginger this time since I just made ginger ale the day before, so I am using some candied ginger I got as a gift, which I love the jar it came in and will be storing my home-made candied ginger in it once I am done! Since I actually remembered for once to take pictures as I am making it, there are now pictures to follow along 🙂 and I am going to try to be really good this year about taking more pictures of things so hopefully I remember to!

Spices in my cute little molina

Throw everything except the milk into a pot, exclude the candied ginger if you are using it, I find that using a spoon to scrape out the spices the easiest way since lifting my stone mortar is difficult with my strength issues. Bring the water tea and spice mix up to a simmer and allow it to go for 3-4 minutes, or until it becomes fragrant with smell of the tea and the spices.

My candied ginger that was a gift! It is my trusty backup, and my plain black tea, you can use Earl Grey, or lipton (ugh!) if you have to, if you can’t find plain black tea.

Turn off heat and leave the pot on the burner to get that last bit of heat out while you heat your milk.

That’s right let that stuff sit and marinate.

Milk, besides sugar, is one of the most evil things to cook with. I say evil because they will turn on you faster than an evil step-sister in a Brother’s Grimm fairy tale. If you look away for a second, or have to tend to some urgent situation, while making chai with milk on the stove, you could end up with some really horrible chai curds and whey. Not pleasant, or drinkable.

So the best way around this is to heat the water with the tea and spices on the stove, and then heat your milk (30 seconds to a minute) in the microwave. Microwaves since they excite water molecules only, will heat the milk (or other liquids) without bringing it to a visible boil (another reason it has such mistrust, how can it make something boiling hot without it looking like its boiling?! And scalding is, I believe, the number one way most people hurt themselves with microwaves). So it is extremely difficult to destroy, or curdle, your milk with this method, and it is heated to a precisely so that the chai is drinkable sooner rather than later.

Strained and ready to go! Yum!

You can even heat the milk right in the mug you are using, then strain the tea mixture into the heated milk, stir to fully combine and add the candied ginger if you are using it. I also find that I overall get a better colored chai, and if I want to try to squeeze a second brewing out of my tea and spices it isn’t all gross with milk. Waste not, want not. Right?

Cardamom is also a mild laxative, and as we have discussed previously everybody poops, but sometimes we have difficulty pooping. Cardamom is a good addition to a senna or other herbal laxative recipe, as well as fennel, since both will help ease the cramping that can come with taking over the counter laxatives or herbal ones.

Cardamom & Senna Tea To Make You Go

• 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of senna pods (half as much if you use leaves)
• 16 ounces Boiling water
• 5-6 Cardamom pods, crushed
• Optional: Honey, fennel, or ginger can be added to help things along.

Steep for 3-5 minutes in a covered tea pot, and drink about 8 ounces, if you need a stronger tea let steep for longer. But the longer you steep it the stronger this will be when it comes to cramping, and while the cardamom does help it will not eliminate the cramping entirely. This will also make you sleepy, and senna works best overnight, so drink this before bed.

Remember, everyone is different and every body’s chemistry is different so do your own tests, see what your body works best with. Do the smart thing and check for interactions with other things you are taking on places like WebMD. And as always if you are in doubt in the slightest, ask a professional!

ProCardamomConversionTip: 12 seeds = 1 pod; 10 pods = 1 ½ teaspoons of Cardamom powder

For more information on the fear of adoption of gas stoves, as well as the history of cooking implements and eating as well check out Consider the Fork.

If you are interested in a quick history of Venice, and some of their food go here.

If you are a coffee addict aficionado, like me, you should check out all of these variations by making them at home since they are fun to make, can be made with inexpensive means and little addition to your kitchen unless you want to, and more fun to drink especially if you follow the tradition of using it to socialize with friends and family. We all need more socializing with good people, it lifts the spirits and it is something we have lost in our rush-about modern culture. Also, the habit of hospitality (at least in the US) has been lost, and we should definitely bring that back! If you are afraid to try grinding or roasting it on your own, seek out a local Arabic market, and ask people in the store and the owners what they do, what they use and what they like. I find that when I do this I get fantastic advice, recipes, sometimes a delicious sample with them, and often a new friend. I have yet to meet a person that does not appreciate someone trying to learn about, understand and enjoy something of their culture’s traditions.

There were so many recipes I wanted to include but just ran out of steam and space. So here is a little link storm of things if you are looking to have some more cardamom in your diet. These may sound out of your comfort zone at first but trust me, good things are in your future if you make one of these.

Cardamom Link Storm

• Mango Lassi or Saffron Cardamom Lassi
• Rosewater and Cardamom Kheer
• Thandai Kulfi
• Shrikhand with Saffron Poached Apricot and Cardamom (run this through the ole google translate)
• Persian Almond Milk Jelly
• Coconut and Cardamom Semolina Puddings
• Coconut Laddu
• Sweet Wheet Pinni
• Cardamom and Pistachio Cake

Fishfuddle Befuddles Pain

Oh life, you always throw a spanner into the best laid plans. Between migraines coming back (getting topped up again with botox soon so they will be hopefully be gone for a month or two again) and cramming as much life into the days I don’t hurt, due to birthday’s and other social events, I just have not found the time to sit and write as much as I want to. But you must always make time for the things you love 🙂 and I love writing!

Piscidia piscipula, or sometimes known as fishfuddle, or the Florida fishpoison tree, is a tree that is native to Florida, Texas, Caribbean, Central and South America. This is as you can tell from the name, not a remedy to be trifled with, and I am strongly recommending you talk to your doctor(s) before embarking on using this remedy. I actually had some internal turmoil over whether or not I should write about this since it is very much use at your own risk sort of thing, and you should be very careful with this remedy. It is not something you shouldn’t just start up willy-nilly, even though it is a great medication, in small amounts, for pain especially nerve pains. But like I always say, you should always respect all things you put in your body, herbal medicine, or otherwise. Remember that if it is strong enough to good, then it can be strong enough to do bad. Always be mindful in all things you ingest, over the counter pills, essential oils, anything in the wrong amounts or used improperly can be dangerous, and even water can poison you.

Jamaican dogwood in all of its glory!

Now that I have gotten the stern warnings out of the way, this is a powerful analgesic and sedative, and as a bonus has anti-inflammatory properties as well. Its Latin name roughly translates to “little fish killer,” usually in places it grows the indigenous people use the shrub to create a strong fish sedative and poison which can be added to small ponds or swamps. Thus allowing easy collecting of fish for small family groups. Its poison isn’t long lasting and therefore not detrimental to the environment since it breaks down if exposed to sunlight for more than 6 days. It has been successfully used in some cases to remove invasive species from lakes, and may be a way to prevent destructive species invasion of aquatic environments. It is also a powerful insecticide, which if you are fighting the ravages of caterpillars. Which I don’t mind a few having a snack, always plant some extra for nature, but decimation is an act of war! And a solution containing a bit of Jamaican dogwood tincture is a very effective way to prevent them from eating all your plants. Other than obliterating your garden with fire.

Take that you greedy caterpillars!

While it can be detrimental to the finned water friends, since it affects their gills, it can be a powerful pain reliever, especially in the case of nerve pain, as well as sedative for humans. It is really not well studied since it fell out of fashion after the 1800’s, mostly due to the dominance of opiates and then mass produced pain medications. Also there was some bad PR it got due to the claims of possible carcinogenic chemicals (but not enough studies to back it up, just like the same bad PR safrole), and it makes this remedy is a bit more difficult to write about. There have been studies in the early days of Western medicine that do confirm its ability to alleviate pain and ease tense muscles, but not years of studies that would give definitive and detailed information and results. The chemical interactions that lead it to being good for treating human pain, as well as being a sedative, anti-spasmodic, and anti-inflammatory, are unstudied by modern science to a degree that we could not truly pinpoint what chemical is is causing what. One of the known chemicals in Jamaican dogwood is rotenone, which is deadly to fish since it affects their gills, but is not as poisonous to warmblooded animals, though in large amounts Jamaican dogwood can still be toxic to humans. Traditional uses that went beyond fish hunting were generally for the sedation and pain relieving side of the plant. Though later alternative medicinal practices used this plant to treat migraines, and other painful conditions, with patients that could not tolerate opium, or opiates. It has also been used by many cultures to treat moon time issues, and ease painful cramps since it relaxes muscles as well as easing pain.

Generally the bark of the roots is what is used and you can buy this online, try to buy locally if at all possible from a reputable dealer that harvests in a sustainable manner. If you live in one of the areas that Jamaican dogwood grows naturally in, you should have a go at harvesting it yourself. There is a really good article to use here, she goes into identification and how to harvest as well as drying and her own recipe for a tincture. There is also a lot of commercial preparations, such as extracts that can be used as well. If you opt to go the extracts route make sure you know the strength of the extract you are purchasing and it is always best to start with the smallest amount and work up taking tiny steps. Some people experience an adverse reaction to this remedy and it is best to make sure your stomach is not upset by it before you take larger amounts. Another option is to use the bark of the root to make a tea.

Jamaican Dogwood Tea

• ¼-½ teaspoon Dried Jamaican dogwood root bark
• 8 oz of water

Add the root bark to the water, and boil for 10 to 15 minutes. Start small here and you can eventually increase to 1 teaspoon all the way up to 2, though this should be done with caution and only after stepping up a 1/4 teaspoon at a time. This is great for all sorts of pain – nerve, joint, lady type, migraines, etc. It also is a pretty strong sedative, even more so than valerian, and is a great way to make sure you get your z’s. It also helps to ease painful cramping and spasms. It also helps to relieve anxiety and stress in the smaller doses and if you are quite anxious this may be a good way to deal with some of the worse days.

Jamaican Dogwood Tincture

• 1 part Dried Jamaican dogwood root bark
• 5 parts Grain alcohol
• Mason jar or other seal-able glass jar

Make sure you have enough room at the top of the jar when you put all the root bark and grain alcohol into your jar. Make sure the root bark is covered and seal. Make sure you shake it every so often, and leave it to sit for 4-6 weeks. On the site I linked previously she suggests blending the bark, which if you don’t have something as powerful as a Vitamix you can use pruning sheers or other strong cutting implements to chop it into little pieces to increase surface area. 5 drops in honey, tea or directly under the tongue, and increase as needed. No more than 30 drops, in my opinion, some sites though recommend 2 droppers, which is about 2.5 ml, and equates to about the same amount. Again, this is good for migraines, spasms, sleeping issues, all that good stuff.

 Jamaican Dogwood Bug Spray

• 5-10 drops Jamaican dogwood tincture
• Spray bottle
• Enough water to fill the spray bottle

Add everything to the spray bottle, and shake well before use. Spray on plants, and make sure you rinse anything you eat from them very well before consuming them. This really should only be used in extreme circumstances of bug, or caterpillar invasion, you should always plant extra for the animals.

If you purchase a powdered version or if you are using extract you can always make these into a pill form and if you need instruction on how to do so there is a good one at the end of this post on turmeric, which just so happens to work really well as a companion to dogwood in a pain pill preparation. Hops and valerian are also good companions for Jamaican dogwood. Depending on the percentage of concentration of the extract you may need to use less, but the dose for powdered Jamaican dogwood is about 1-5 grains (65 mg – 324 mg), I would definitely not suggest using more than that.

Remember educate yourself before taking this drug, and do not start a treatment without consulting a physician. Always check places like WebMD to make sure it won’t interact with your medications or any conditions. In this case, even if you don’t have any doubts about this remedy you need to ask a professional before starting it.

St John’s Wort, Works Like A Charm

This will probably show my age, but in the 90’s I was in High School and the new rage in herbal fads was St John’s Wort. It was the “new” thing to put in drinks and the like, sort of like açai berries, and goji now. Times change but the world always stays the same!

Even though it was a fad, it was with good reason it is more than just the “anti-depression” drug it has been advertised to be. St John’s Wort, or Hypericum, has many uses and many useful species, and is a really useful herb to have handy for all sorts of situations. It is a native to Europe but quickly has spread globally following trade and later colonialism until it was almost universally known.

It’s Latin name of the species we have the most interest in is Hypericum perforatum, comes from its believed ability to banish spirits, in Greek hyper means above, or over, and eikon means image, effigy, apparition. It was used as a charm against evil spirits as it’s first recorded use. Eikon is the root of the word icon, and has all of the spiritual meaning you would expect. It was thought that suspending the herb over an image of a saint, or icon, it would ward off everything from evil spirits, to lightening strikes. It’s scent was thought to be so vile smelling to evil spirits they simply couldn’t stand to be around it.

“Trefoil, vervain, John’s Wort, dill,
Hinders witches of their will.” ~ “The Nativity Chant”, Sir Walter Scott

It’s species name, perforatum, derives from the small window-like holes in the leaves of the plant. Some of the chemicals in St John’s Wort are toxic to cows and sheep, and can be considered a pest species in some ranching areas. It is a small plant that tends to inhabit meadows, and its bright sunny flowers were possibly associated with sun worship in the past in the places it grew.

Bright yellow and full of  the start of summer sunshine.

It is colloquially known as Klamath weed in California and Oregon from its prevalence there, sometimes goatweed, chase-devil (again for warding off evil), Tipton’s weed and rosin rose. It was widely used in antiquity documented in classical medical texts, medical texts from the middle ages, and even some scant documentation on its use by Native Americans though the uses may be lost to time.

It’s present name, St John’s Wort comes from a lot of possible origins, possibly from the practice of hanging the herb above the picture of St John, or that the flower tends to bloom on the day of the feast of St John, June 24th (which is also said to be the birthday of the saint as well). There is also legend that St Columba carried a sprig of the herb, the red spots that appear on the plant were symbolically said to show the blood of St John on August 19th the date of the Saint’s beheading in some Christian traditions.

There is also folk magic that said if you step on a St. John’s Wort plant you will be stolen by a fairy horse, and by fairy I mean The Little People of folklore. And was a charm to ward off most evil intent as evidenced in the old English rhyme –

“St. John’s wort doth charm all the witches away.
If gathered at midnight on the saint’s holy day.
And devils and witches have no power to harm
Those that do gather the plant for a charm:
Rub the lintels and post with that red juicy flower
No thunder nor tempest will then have the power
To hurt or to hinder your houses: and bind
Round your neck a charm of a similar kind.”

It also kept you from being “fairy-led,” like following a will-o’-the-whisp, or being confused and unable to find your way home in an “enchanted” forest. Another folk magic use for St John’s Wort was divination, hanging a sprig over the bed, or just one sprig for each member of the house, and waiting over night would tell by how wilted the herb was how soon, or whom next, would die. Or a sprig under your pillow would bring a dream vision of St John who you could request a promise from him that you would live another year. If he doesn’t show, it would not be the time to make long term investments. Usually these rituals are tied to mid-year solstice festivals, that were then adopted into local Christian traditions as the areas converted, but retained their association with life and the sun since St John is often represented as or associated with light.

This plant was well valued and its usefulness is what drove its expansion and was often used to treat burn and skin issues like sunburns, small abrasions and burns. Dioscorides used many species of Hypericum to treat burns, chest complaints and when mixed with honey great for sciatica pain and neuralgia. It was name dropped by all the famous medical writers of classical history – Pliny, Hippocrates, Galen, and even Theophrastus. And they unanimously recommend this herb for mostly the same uses, healing wounds, burns, nerve pain and of course warding off demons.

Later, Middle Ages up to Renaissance herbalists frequently mentioned this herb, Gerard uses it in wound ointments saying St John’s Wort was a –

“most precious remedy for deepe wounds…there is not a better natural balsam…to cure any such wound.”

But it was also widely used for neurological complaints, sciatica pain was well documented in most historical medical texts, and one of the most common remedies was to use St. John’s Wort. Neurological pain and other disorders related to the brain and nervous system were often treated with this herb since it seemed to sooth the illnesses that were mysterious at the time. Culpeper, the infamous renegade doctor of Tudor England, used St. John’s Wort for all the normal uses of healing burns, wounds and other common injuries but also for

“sciatica, the falling sickness and the palsy.”

Then in the 19th and 20th century it mostly fell out of fashion, but even with it’s lack of attention in the later part of the 19th century, it is mentioned as being used to treat spinal irritation, shocks, concussions, wounds and hysteria. Then there was a huge return to popularity for fighting depression, naturally, in the 1990’s a great era of filling all ages full of psychological drugs that we still have no idea what those drugs really do (even though they are still prescribed). St John’s Wort has been shown to alleviate some symptoms of mild depression, which everybody gets a little down sometimes. But that does not mean it is a good option for self medicating for chronic depression. It can help lift the spirits if you are feeling a bit bummed out, but if you are having symptoms of depression frequently, you should consult a physician or trained professional and discuss the options available for you (I don’t think medication is always the answer for depression, cognitive therapy, diet, and other non-prescription therapies should be attempted first, I speak from experience not as a medical professional /rant).

Overwhelmingly though, in history, is the use of St John’s Wort for neurological pain, and that is really what it does best. Of course it is good for burns, and minor wounds since it has a mild antiseptic quality and is great for the skin, which means it is a great addition to skin creams and soaps. But it is also a mild sedative, analgesic and anti-inflammatory that make it a fantastic fighter of nerve pain, muscle pain and inflammation, and helps bring relaxing sleep. It can be taken daily, like with chamomile, ginger, turmeric, Holy Basil (Tulsi) and lavender, to help reduce inflammation and help with nerve pain. Or at night with Tulsi, chamomile and lavender to help bring on restful sleep, relax spasmed muscles, or just relax nerves raw with stress or anxiety. This is a very easy herb to grow, in fact it can quickly become a pest (like that wily lemon balm) so I highly suggest you plant this in a container, to contain its wanderings.

It contains chemically a lot of stuff we have mentioned before, the usual volatile oils for pain, mild sedation, and antibiotic properties – α & β pinene, myrcene, limonene, caryophyllene etc. Flavinoids are present the most important is rutin, like in rue. Then there is a new set of chemicals we haven’t discussed, anthraquinones, like hypericin. Hypericin is a possible antibiotic as well as antiviral (which is why it has also drawn the interest of researchers for the Herpes spectrum of viruses), and it is the chemical in St John’s Wort that may be causing the increase in dopamine, this is that “reward” or “feel good” chemical everyone seems to talk about these days, which can improve moods significantly. Dopamine may also be the key to reducing pain chemically, since some pain conditions cause reduced dopamine levels. St John’s Wort’s is packed with all sorts of other chemicals and vitamins, and as I said before is just an all round useful plant for more than I have gone over.

The oils, bright red and full of healing goodness, are in the leaves and flowers.

The oil in the flowers and leaves add to the plant’s mythos that it is related to the beheaded saint since it is dark red. It is that oil that is packed with the above chemicals, and what you would want to use from the plant so leaves and flowers (preferably just bloomed) are what you would want to collect if you grow this plant at home. If you are buying pre-made versions of dried St John’s it tends to be just leaves, but some pre-made preparations will include flowers and are not as effective since the dried version is less potent as the oils are lost in the drying process. All of the below recipes use fresh St John’s Wort, or the essential oils.

St John’s Wort Relax & De-Stress Tea

• 2-3 teaspoons St John’s Wort
• 8 ounces Boiling water
• Honey to sweeten

Pour boiling water over fresh herb (or over dried herb in tea bag if pre-made) and let steep for 4-8 minutes in a covered teacup (or teapot). Allow to cool and I advise adding honey to improve the taste as this can be bitter. This is a great daily drink if you suffer from Fibromyalgia, since it is something you can safely take almost every day for nerve pain.

ProTip: You can add turmeric and a pinch of pepper to help with inflammation and pain. Or you can add Tulsi or lemon balm, to reduce anxiety, you could add lavender or hops (with LOTS of honey) for relaxing spasms and sleep, or chamomile for sleep and relaxing painful muscles as well. For migraines combine it with passion flower, or skullcap for relief and reducing of the inevitable anxiety they cause. You could even add St John’s Wort to the prevention tea too.

St John’s Wort Compress – for Nerve & Muscle Pain

• 1-2 tablespoons St John’s Wort (or 2 large pinches)
• 16 ounces Boiling water
• bowl
• towel or rag

Throw the herbs in a bowl and cover with boiling water, cover with towel, plate or pot lid while steeping. Soak towel or rag in liquid once it is cool enough to have on the skin, wring until damp and apply to painful area. This is a great remedy for nerve pains, achy muscles, and spasms. It is a great compress for the head during a migraine as well, since it can help ease the pain and applies lovely soothing heat during an attack.

ProBathTip: You can also just chuck all of the liquid in your bath and have a nice soak, though the oil can stain so you may want avoid using white towels unless you want them to look like they were previously used to clean up a murder scene.

ProOilTip: If you don’t have fresh St John’s Wort, this can be made just as easily from essential oils, a drop or two in water that is warm but not scalding and applied to the painful area will work just as well.

ProTip: This can be combined with rue, rosemary, valerian (for sleep), clary sage (for migraines), chamomile, eucalyptus, juniper, and pretty much any other bath soak or compress we have discussed.

St John’s Wort Bath

• 5 cups (40 oz) Epsom Salts
• 5-15 drops St John’s Wort Essential Oils

Mix well and store in a water proof container, add about a cup of mixture to a hot bath and soak in delicious muscle relaxing bliss. This is a great soak for nerve pain, muscle pains, and helps with migraines from muscle tension or spasms.

St John’s Wort Honey (or Oil)

• 1 part St John’s Wort, fresh rough chopped (flowers and leaves preferred, 2 parts if you use oil)
• 3 parts Honey (or a good quality oil)
• Large mason jar with lid
• Sunny windowsill (oil only)

Add 1 part of the well cleaned fresh St John’s Wort to the jar, cover with 3 parts honey (or oil), seal tightly and place in an undisturbed location for a week or two. If you are using oil, place on a sunny windowsill and wait two weeks, shaking every so often, then strain and add the second part of fresh, roughly chopped St John’s Wort. Re-seal and wait another two weeks. Strain again and store in a cool place, it should be a beautiful red color, almost scarlet, when done. This is a great oil to massage into aches and pains that you get from day to day life, muscle spasms, areas of nerve pain, sun burns, wound care, pretty much if it needs healing St John’s Wort will do the trick. It is even safe for pets and is a good addition to their wash or spray on treatments.

ProTip: You can make this into a tincture by just switching the honey or oil to alcohol (vodka, grain alcohol), and you need just enough to cover the herbs. The tincture dose would be a about 1/2 a teaspoon twice a day dissolved in honey, tea, water or under the tongue. You could go as high as 3/4 of a teaspoon 3 times a day

 St John’s Wort Salve

• 1/3 c Oil (Sunflower, Almond, Apricot, any good quality oil)
• 1/3 oz Beeswax, granulated or grated
• 15-30 drops of St John’s Wort Oil
• optional: 2 ounces Raw honey

In a double boiler heat oil, add beeswax slowly stirring to combine fully. Remove from heat and stir in the St John’s Wort oil from the recipe I listed above, or St John’s Wort essential oils (if you do use less 10-15 drops) and the raw honey if you are using it. You can always cool a small piece and make sure it is the right consistency, and add more beeswax or honey/oil to thicken or loosen it respectively. Pour into small seal-able containers and allow to cool. This is a great on the go solution for nerve pain, or really any pains. Massage it right into the painful area, or if you have wounds or burns you can massage it into them as well. You can also combine other herbs we mentioned previously in this article for other properties as well.

You can buy all sorts of store bought preparations, if you do so make sure you follow the doses provided on the box/bottle. Also if you are taking St John’s Wort daily for mood elevation, you would want to “ween” off of it, as after regular use of any herbal (or otherwise) products can lead to physical addiction to the chemicals. Weening off any drug you use for an extended period of time is needed, that is why you can’t quit coffee cold turkey, caffeine is a drug. A delicious coffee flavored drug, mmmm coffee.

Remember to treat this herb with respect, it is “mostly harmless” but just like water becomes poison when you have had too much, too much of anything is bad. Make sure to check for any interactions with present medications, since St John’s Wort can affect a lot of medications so check it out and make sure. Places like WebMD are always a good place to start, but if you have any questions or have any doubt about anything in the slightest, ask a professional!

Vetiver, the Root that is Dug

Looks like I may actually dodge a surgery for Carpel Tunnel!

But may have a surgery different sort, possibly, that could reduce pain and medications needed since pain has really slowed me down lately. But! Good things are coming, good things. Or at least that is my mantra for now 🙂

Vetiver, also spelled as vettiver or vetivert, is a grass native to India but well known all over Asia. If you are familiar with Ayurveda it is a well known herb in that herbal medicine practice. It goes by many local names like ramacham in Malaysia,  or khus in some local Indian dialects, and has been valued by humanity for ages since it is such a versatile grass. Its name has been translated as “the root that is dug” or “hatcheted up” since it must be dug, and sometimes hacked up as the roots can reach down  3 to 4 meters (9-13 feet).

More root than plant, and it is rather hardy!

It is a relative of Sorghums, so it is related to things you would hopefully be familiar with, you would know them as lemon grass, palmarosa, and citronella. It only grows in tropical climates, but in those areas it is being used to help with soil erosion since the roots go so deep for grasses. Its leaves can be used for weaving and thatch, and animal feed, as a straw replacement. Its roots are even more valuable and were used for making mats or curtains to help keep the room feeling cool and smelling pleasant. They only need an occasional misting with water to keep the room cool and smelling lovely.

*spritz spritz spritz*

It has a long history of use in Ayurveda, but is relatively unknown in the western cultures. All of Asia seems to know and have their own beloved recipes and uses for this plant. It has been a major player in aiding with soil erosion due to its deep reaching roots, it has been an integral part of the perfume industry due to its complex oils. It is even used in evaporation units in air conditioners, since it prevents mosquitoes from breeding as well as makes the house smell lovely. Since vetiver is a bug repellent, and cooling, it can be used for making fans (bug repelling fans! fantastic!), loofa scrub things, blinds, screens, bed matting (sometimes woven with lemon grass as well) sun shades, tassels, woven balls and even handbags. I don’t know why this hasn’t caught on in Texas during summers with all the mosquitoes we have, these would go over great. Literally a plethora of things you can buy made of vetiver root. And if you purchase some and the smell stops being as potent it just requires a soak and a dry in the sun to re-open its pores and the fragrance to return. I have even seen that putting a small muslin bag in an earthen jug (or pitcher) of water keeps it tasting fresh and cool in hot weather, and there is also khus syrup for milkshakes or for a delicious khus lassi.

The smell of the root and the oil it produces, is loved by some, and disliked by others. It was widely used in the perfume industry past and present, Middle Ages perfumers would mix lime and rosewood with vetiver root to make perfume. In perfumes it sometimes is listed as ruh khus, since ruh is the word for essence in Arabic. It is such a complex and sought after oil since the roots take up the characteristics of the soil around it, truly is the smell of the soil, like Krishna said in the Bhagavat Gita “I am the fragrance of the soil.”

This is one of those plants that I can not say enough on all of its properties, it just has so much it can do. Besides its wonderful cooling properties, and coveted oils for perfume, vetiver has many medicinal properties. Benzoic acid is a large component of vetiver, and it is not acid that will hurt you. In fact it is a really helpful acid, it has a long history of usage in everything from antiseptics, analgesics, to decongestants. Benzoic acid is a large component of Friar’s Balsam, which has been used for it’s antiseptic properties to help with healing, as well as it being a great way to treat skin issues like acne. Cadinene, vetiverone, vetiverol, vitivene, and many others (there is actually a full list here on this useful site if you are into perfumery) these all add up to an oil that not only has analgesic qualities but also mild sedation, anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmodics. Since it is very cooling to put on, it can feel nice on inflammation that does well under coolness, such as right after an injury or on a burn like a sunburn. I am mostly interested in its pain and relaxing qualities, since it is a great oil to treat spasms, migraines, anxiety or stress (pain caused, or otherwise), muscle pain, nerve pain and even lady cramps pain.

Since massage is the best way to deal with a lot of muscle pain, and inflammation lets start there.

Vetiver Massage Oil

• 15-20 drops Vetiver essential oil
• 1 ounce Carrier oil

Mix well, store in dark container. Massage into painful areas to help alleviate pain, or sore muscles after a work out. If you have lady cramps, massage into the abdomen. This is also great for migraines massaged into the shoulders, neck and temples, especially so if it is a migraine brought on by stress.

Now, I do like to be a wild child and sometimes just do a drop or maybe 2 directly onto the skin. Remember though, essential oils are a concentrate, and powerful stuff so do a patch test to make sure this isn’t too strong for your skin, you should always do this with anything you apply to your skin. Massaging a drop into the temples on a hot day with a bad headache is relaxing and so refreshing.

Pro-Tip: You can mix in any migraine oils, or pain oils to help add additional benefits to the massage oil. Just make sure to reduce the drops of Vetiver to 10 and add 10 of any other oils you would like. Lavender and woody scents go well with this, as well as some earthier scents like you get from oil from tree sap or resins. Play around with smells and properties and find what works best for you.

You can also make a great salve out of this oil, it is really best for on the go wound applications but could also be a great way to treat migraines you might have on the go.

Vetiver Salve

• 20-30 drops Vetiver essential oil
• 1/2 ounce Bees wax, granulated or grated
• 1/2 ounce of Oil (any vegetable oil)

Heat oil in double boiler, and slowly add in bees wax until it is melted and combined, remove from heat and hand stir in essential oils, pour into containers and allow to cool. Again this is a good antiseptic for wound treatment, like if you go camping, but is also great to keep in gym bags for pain from workouts. It is fantastic for sunburns, especially if you add in some lavender to it. Really any painful swollen area will feel much happier when rubbed with this, and just like the massage oil it can be mixed and matched with other oils. Just reduce the vetiver to 10-15 drops, and add the same amount of any other oils you like.

Oh stress, stress, stress. You are always lurking, and it is really hard to combat the daily stress of just navigating life when you are already stressed due to the amount of pain you have. This root is a great way to reduce stress, relax, make sleep easier and even loosen muscle spasms. You can have it one of two ways, as a cool summer drink, or a hot cup of tea.

Vetiver Infused Water

• 4 cups Cold water
• 1 handful Vetiver roots, washed thoroughly and roughly chopped
• Optional: Lemon slices, ginger slices, whatever you like to add really

Throw it all in a pitcher, let the vetiver steep for at least 2-4 hours in the fridge before drinking. This is a great addition to summer lemonades or any cooling summer drink. You can also freeze this water as ice cubes and add to drinks to slowly release the vetiver as you enjoy your drink. It also helps the mind to relax and “unwind” after a stressful day or week, and is the perfect evening drink to help sleep come faster.

I like to during the summer throw enough ice to fill a glass container with a spout, fill with water and herbs, vegetables, or fruits. It is great for outdoor entertaining, or just as a way to jazz up water to make sure you are getting enough water. It is also a nice addition to gin or vodka for a cooling summer cocktail.

Vetiver Tea

• 4 cups Boiling water
• 1 handful Vetiver roots, washed and chopped
• Optional: same here, lemon, ginger, pretty much sky’s the limit do what you like.

Add the roots to water in a saucepan and bring it to a boil on the stove, when the water has reduced by half remove from heat, strain and serve. Sweeten as you like, and enjoy its relaxing benefits on a winters day or any day you feel a bit stressed. It is a good herb to have before bed, known in oil form sometimes as the “oil of tranquility” for the peaceful feeling it brings. There are some herbs that are good to add for even more stress reduction (and would some would go well in infused water) are: tulsi, lavender, lemon balm, chamomile. Really you could add anything like with the infused water, as long as it is safe and you do research, feel free to get really creative here.

Sharbat (the origin of the word sherbert) is a type of drink made with a syrup in some places, khus syrup is often used to make these drinks. The syrup is long storing and easy to use, you mix it with a bit of water (sort of like a cordial) to make a drink. But it is also good on ice creams, in milkshakes, cocktails or used in cold drinks in place of whole vetiver. It is really great mixed with some fresh lime juice and some soda water for lime vetiver soda, or one part of the syrup to two parts of water or milk for a lovely cool drink. I have been giving recipes for whole vetiver which looks like this when you purchase it whole –

Vetiver roots ready for sale, make sure you wash them!

But if you want to go the easy route, you can purchase all sorts of ready made syrups at most Asian markets. Follow this guide for purchasing.

Vetiver Syrup (Khus Syrup)

• 50-70 grams of Vetiver roots
• 5 cups Water
• 4 cups Raw sugar
• 1 lime
• Optional: a few drops natural green food coloring (the color is traditional)

Wash roots well, make sure there is no dirt or grit left on them, and roughly chop. Add to water bring up to a boil and remove from heat, let steep overnight. Then strain, squeezing all moisture from the roots, and return to heat stirring in sugar and juice of one lime. Be sure to stir this all the time since sugar burns in the blink of an eye. You want to reduce the liquid until it starts to go to a syrup. To test to make sure you have it at the right consistency put a slightly cooled drop on your finger and press your thumb against it if there is a string when you pull your fingers apart, its ready. Store in a clean jar or bottle, and refrigerate.

ProTip: To make this you have to use sugar, the less processed the better though, but you need sugars properties here to make this correctly.

There are literally tons of things you can do with this stuff, here are a few extra drink recipes here.

Finally, you can’t mention lassis and not give a lassi recipe, cause they are amazing! You could go super traditional and use your own hung curd (wikihow to make hung curd here) or you can use drained yogurt (how to here), or you can just use Greek yogurt pre-made all of the amounts would be the same.

Vetiver Lassi (Khus Lassi)

• 17.5 ounces (500 grams) Hung curd (or above mentioned substitutes)
• 14-16 ounces (about 2 cups) chilled Milk
• ½ cup Vetiver (Khus) Syrup
• Optional: green food coloring, additional sugar, honey or other sweetener

Mix all ingredients in a bowl, and make sure to blend everything completely you want a totally blended mixture. Put in glasses and chill for 30 minutes to 2 hours before serving. You can garnish with additional syrup, candied nuts or fruits, or regular nuts and dried fruits. Fantastic for a hot summers day or night.

Remember, always do your research and make sure this is the right thing for you to be using. Everyone’s body is different and somethings work better for some that don’t for others. Experiment see what does and go with that, always check for interactions with other things on places like WebMD. As always, if you are in doubt even in the slightest, ask a professional!

 

Rue, the Herb of Grace

Oh the fickle Texas weather! It is wrecking havoc with my nerves and muscles, not to mention giving me some wicked migraines. But at least we only shut down for a day unlike Atlanta! 🙂 Very soon the delicious warm spring will be here. Aaaaah warm sunny days!

This sort of weather makes it a great time to talk about rue. Rue is a plant not well known outside gardening circles usually, and sometimes not even known at all since it isn’t the prettiest of plants, and it has lost some popularity in modern times. Ruta graveolens has yellow flowers and seemingly unassuming blueish green leaves, and tends to be better known in its Mediterranean homelands. Rue is still eaten in salads in Italy, Ethiopia, and Greeks were well known for using it in culinary ways, as well as medicinal. Though it seems unassuming this little plant has a lot of uses, and I suggest not passing it by!

If you skip it you will rue the day, see what I did there! 😉

Many of the Greeks believe that rue is a charm against magic, and ate it at meals with strangers so they wouldn’t get cursed, or as we would say – get wind. Aristotle mentions he thinks this is absolute rubbish, and that the Greeks just didn’t like strangers, ate too fast, and got wind that way. Pliny says, or is said to say, that it improves poor, or over-strained eyesight, and this is why it was consumed by painters. Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci were supposed to be some of its more famous consumers, this is questionable though and may be just historical hear-say. Many cultures also used it to treat strained eyesight, and is really quite soothing when applied to the forehead for eyestrain headaches, or tension headaches.

In the Middle Ages this was another bittering herb that was used to add that bitter note to beers before hops became popular. Many of the other uses of rue in the Middle Ages were, like the Greeks, for warding off, or working witchcraft. But it was thought to ward off plague, and for this it is part of the Four Thieves vinegar, and is featured in many other plague preparations. It possibly got this witchy tradition has carried down from the Greeks, but also possibly came from its rather pungent smell that can be unpleasant to some and bad smells were thought to drive certain spirits away. I find it has a smell much like citronella, and works great in a garden to ward off deer, cats, and other unwanted garden guests. Like many plants it has multiple “vulgar” names, it is known as rue, common rue, and herb of grace. It probably got its herb of grace name from being used to sprinkle holy water during the Roman Catholic ceremony of Asperges. After it crossed the Atlantic to the New World, it became used in spiritual cleansing and sweeping away of “negative vibrations” in the Catholic influenced Latin American shamans called curanderos. Its leaves are thought to have inspired the clubs suit symbol in modern playing cards, which originated in France, and its shape even graces the coat of arms of Saxony.

Its young shoots are quite good in a salad. But harvesting is difficult, this herb that seems so mild actually has a rather effective defense. Cutting into this plant releases its sap, which has the fascinating ability to cause almost poison ivy like symptoms if it is exposed to sunlight (well technically ultraviolet light) while on your skin. This ability has the fancy name of phytophotodermatitis (phyto – plant, photo – light, dermatitis – disease of the skin), if you are going to grow and harvest your own be sure to treat rue like a citrus tree. Wear long sleeves, gloves, and use soap and water, and dark spaces to treat if any sap gets on the skin. If you choose to use fresh in a remedy, be careful and test for allergic reactions first.

It is that bitter note of rue that is what makes it good medicine, it contains rutin which is an anti-inflammatory chemical. This is probably where its early association for the treatment of sciatica pain came from. Rue can be applied as a compress to painful areas, and can alleviate swelling in sore muscles. It also contains pretty high levels of coumarin, which we discussed in the cinnamon post, and other chemical compounds that make it great for relieving nerve and muscle pain, as well as reducing inflammation.

Rue Compress

• 16 oz Boiling water
• 2-3 tablespoons Dried rue (you can use fresh in the same amounts)
• Towel

Steep in the boiling water for 5-10 minutes, and allow to cool enough to be comfortable to apply to the skin. Soak the towel, or a rag, in the liquid and apply to painful area. Traditionally this is used to treat sciatica pain, and sometimes eyestrain, but it can also be applied to swollen areas, painful muscles, or areas of nerve pain. It works great for treating these pains, and the smell can be rather relaxing for some people. It is kind of musty smelling, but some people like it a lot. If you use fresh rue, do a test patch first to make sure it wont irritate your skin. Again, this is a great forehead compress for tension headaches, headaches from eyestrain, or just generally overtired eyes.

Rue Massage Oil

• 20-30 drops RutaVaLa (I recommend using only this specific oil, since it is difficult to find pure, safe rue oils)
• 1 oz Carrier oil

Mix well and store in a container that prevents light exposure. Massage directly into painful area for muscle relaxation, sleep, and stress relief. This is a great massage oil to alleviate pain and discomfort right before bed time, and the valerian and lavender in the RutaVaLa will help to bring sleep quickly. There is a Roll-On version that is already diluted that is good for an on the go solution.

Like skullcap, rue quickly runs over into the toxic levels if you add too much to internal preparations. For this reason I suggest avoiding taking rue in teas or tinctures, even if you prepare them yourself. If you absolutely want to use rue internally I recommend 2 things. First, never more than 1 teaspoon of rue per 8 oz of water, and do not take more than 1 time every 8 hours. Second, consult an herbalist, and a physician, for advice and approval of your use of rue internally. Otherwise I would suggest, most of the time, using external preparations for pain and inflammation.

Now that said, I do recommend cooking with rue. You still must stick to the sparing use rules you would in herbal medicine but the amounts combined with heat of cooking (or heat from friction in a blender) will help to break down some of the more noxious chemicals that cause so much worry.

Moretum (Roman Garlic Herb Cheese Dip)

• 4 garlic bulbs (Roasted whole, or if you like Garlic raw)
• 1 1/2 cups Feta Cheese
• 3 Celery sticks, roughly chopped
• 1/2 to 1 cup Cilantro, roughly chopped
• 1/4 c Fresh young rue leaves, roughly chopped (you can use dried about 2-3 tablespoons)
• 2 tablespoons Olive oil
• 4 tablespoons White wine (drier the better)
• 1 tablespoon wine vinegar (red or white works)
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Add garlic, herbs, cheese, and celery into a food processor (or sturdy blender) and start to puree. Mix the oil, wine and vinegar in a measuring cup, or easy to pour from vessel, and drizzle in slowly. You will want to see a smooth evenly mixed paste form. You may need to scrape the sides down of the processor a few times. Serve with additional drizzle of olive oil on top with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. This goes great with crackers, pita bread, or just with some crusty bread to dip in it. Since cilantro is hated by some people you can substitute parsley or even sage for it in this dish. If you want to be sure your rue is safe, you can quickly blanch them and sprinkle with salt to help break things down further, and rid it of some of its bitterness. This is one of those dishes you can eat when you have gotten tired of other ant-inflammatory foods, since food is the best way to take your medicine!

Rue Omelette

• 2 tsp dried Rue, or fresh rue finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon dried Parsley
• 1 tablespoon Oregano (Dittany of Crete, or Marjoram I have seen used here as well)
• 2 large Eggs
• 1-2 tablespoons Milk
•  Salt & Pepper to taste
• Oil for cooking (butter works great too)

Whisk eggs and milk together until creamy yellow in color. Add in herbs and wisk to combine. In a heated skillet with oil or butter melted, pour in egg mixture and rotate pan ensuring that the egg coats the whole bottom of the pan. Once the bottom has cooked, tilt the pan forward and roll furthest corner over, tilt again and roll center over, creating the triple fold. Cook until egg is firm, garnish with additional parsley if desired. Again you can use salted, blanched rue leaves for this too.

I can not stress enough to treat this herb with respect and care, as you should all herbal medicines. Anything can become a poison if taken in the wrong amounts. So do your research, do your own trials since everyone reacts differently, and make sure to educate yourself. Remember no one will do it for you! As always make sure you check WebMD for interactions and if you have the slightest doubt, ask a professional!

There is a great list of rue recipes here, and they have a great recipe for a Rue Mead, better known as English Sack. I highly recommend you trying one of them.

 

Sweet Marjoram, the Herb of Aphrodite

Lesser known than it’s cousin oregano, marjoram has never quite gotten its time in the limelight. While both are members of that ever useful plant family mint, oregano gets top billing. But the humble little marjoram is no less important in mythology, cooking, or herbal medicine than oregano.

The uses of marjoram, like many herbs, seem to be so old as to be lost in the mists of time, we do know this great little plant originated in the Middle East and Mediterranian areas. It spread West from there, and was well known to all of the big name historical cultures – the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians and many others. Most people will know it best from its flavor in blends, like Herbs de Provence and Za’atar. But nothing in life is every easy, so to make things more confusing, in antiquity marjoram and oregano were sometimes referred to interchangeably. Due to this it, can be confusing to read older texts about marjoram, and while they didn’t mind the change out, you though, do want to avoid using the wrong species. Marjoram (Origanum majorana) is usually called Sweet Marjoram, and Oregano (Origanum vulgare) is usually listed as Oregano or Wild Marjoram, it is important to distinguish between the two since they do have different properties. Marjoram is sweeter and more mild than oregano, and they look slightly different.

Make sure you could pick marjoram out in a line-up!

Marjoram has been used for centuries by humans in many ways. An early reference to marjoram is its depiction on Hittite tablets, and there is another record of the use of marjoram in the Ebers Papyrus. Which if you aren’t hip to ancient Egyptian Medical papyri, is the oldest and all around awesome Egyptian medical papyrus. The Egyptians were using marjoram oil as a way to treat ear infections, as an antiseptic, and was used in their embalming, and worn in rituals for the god Osiris. In Greece it was more associated with Aphrodite (Venus), who was supposed to have created oregano and marjoram and loved them greatly, which means both were included in wedding and funeral rituals. It is said that if marjoram grows on a grave the deceased is happy, or will have a pleasant afterlife. Greeks, Romans and even during the Middle Ages in Europe marjoram was used to crown couples, or the bride, during marriage ceremonies. Also during the Middle Ages it was used as a “strewing” herb, meaning one of the many herbs, like other herbs I’ve mentioned, that were added to reeds or straw on the floor to produce a sweet smell when stepped on, think early air fresheners. Marjoram was also added to beers before hops use became prevalent, since it is a good antiseptic. There was even a belief in Prussia that thunder could cause milk to sour, which was remedied by placing a sprig of marjoram next to the milk.

Marjoram is one of those herbs that never seems to not work with meat, it pretty much goes with every sort from fish to beef. It does go well with breads and vegetables, but desserts are not its strong point. Otherwise it is a highly useful herb. It’s popularity in America has to do with returning GI’s and their taste for Italian food, and of course marjoram came along with that. Another well known use is for vocalists, or singers, they are known to use the herb as a tea, or an inhalant, to help to preserve the voice, or treat laryngitis. It probably worked so well since it has an anti-inflammatory nature, is an analgesic, and has antiseptic qualities, this means it is a great addition (as an oil) to sore throat sprays for colds, laryngitis, or just a seasonal scratchy throat.

Chemically marjoram contains many compounds that make it great for herbal medicine uses. Marjoram contains carvacrol for anti-fungal, and antibacterial, as well as champor, borneol and various terpenoids for numbing and analgesic properties. Its analgesic qualities make it great for topical or internal use for pain of all sorts, and this is one herb that is fairly safe in small quantities over a long period of time. Its oils have been used for centuries to help treat inflammatory pain in joints and muscles, most frequently used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Topical application of these oils definitely helps with muscle spasm pain, and brings healing warmth to it as this is another warming oil. Remember bringing additional blood to an injured area helps it to heal faster, this is using the body’s natural healing system to help things along. It is also an antispasmodic so it helps to tell tight muscles to relax and release the tension from spasms, stress, or just over exertion.

Marjoram Massage Oil

• 1 oz Carrier Oil (Sweet Almond, Avocado, Olive, etc)
• 20-30 drops Sweet Marjoram oil (use 10-15 for this and additional oils if you decide to make a blend)

Mix well and store in a dark container, massage directly into sore muscles or joint. Avoid sensitive areas, this is a warming oil and can irritate. This is great for muscle pain and spasms as well as muscles exhausted and sore from exercise, as well as lady cramps. Since this is a warming oil

ProTip: To the above recipe instead of 20-30 drops add 10-15 of marjoram, and then add 10-15 of one or a few of these oils lavender, chamomile, and eucalyptus. These will all add to the existing calming, antispasmodic, anti-inflammatory and pain relieving properties of marjoram.

SleepyProTip: A great sleep blend is a drop of lavender and a drop of marjoram rubbed into the temples.

Since marjoram its an antispasmodic it also helps to sooth and calm a cramping digestive tract. Used internally or rubbed into the abdomen, it can relieve stomach and intestinal cramps. This is a great way to treat lactose intolerance as well! For stomach complaints, or just as an internal pain remedy, you can add 2-3 drops of marjoram oil to a gel capsule and take it. You can combine it with other oils like fennel or chamomile for stomach complaints, or with frankincense or lavender for spasms and pain.

If you are going to take an essential oil internally only use therapeutic grade essential oils, I recommend this one.

Or you can make a tea infusion, it is rather nice like a rosemary tea. Very fresh and vegetative tasting, remember though making it with fresh marjoram is usually preferred, but dried works just as well here.

Marjoram Tea

• 1 teaspoon Fresh Marjoram (2 teaspoons dried)
• 8 oz Boiling water

Steep in a covered teacup for 5-10 minutes, and drink. If you want to up its stomach calming power add in fennel seeds, chamomile, or ginger. You can also substitute a drop of sweet marjoram oil in warm water, or cool.

Marjoram not only helps with pain and stomach complaints it is also a great tea to have before bed time. It has a slight sedative quality, since it contains linalool, and if you need to be super sharp it is probably not the day time herb for you to use for pain or otherwise. Night time though, is its time to shine! It helps to calm the mind, like Tulsi (Holy Basil), and helps the mind to relax as well as the body. This means that sleep will come easier for those that have a hard time shutting down, and if all you can focus on is pain, sometimes helps the mind let that go so sleep can take hold. For stress reduction, it pairs extremely well with lemon balm and really helps to release stress.

SleepyProTip: Add a teaspoon of one or a few of these – Tulsi, lavender, or chamomile for a more relaxing sleepy tea.

I have brought up a few sleep aids before, and I can not stress enough how very important an adequate amount of sleep is. Sleep is your rest, repair, and recharge cycle for your body. This is when repairs and housecleaning is done, think of it like a computer defragging every night, the body asseses things, does some spring cleaning and if repairs are needed they can be done. Your body requires this time to function normally and it also has a great effect on your mental well-being. Sleep deprivation can cause irritability, depression, anxiety, moodiness, and even hallucinations. If you are in pain why add all of those issues to your existing ones? This is why I find that finding and using gentle, non-addictive, herbal sleep aids, since these are better than me up roaming the house at all hours of the night, because I can’t shut off.

Sometimes though, all you need is a hot calming bath, to shut off your mind or to ease pain in muscles and joints. Marjoram is a great bath addition, and it is so lovely smelling, you will want to bathe with it all the time. Its scent was used to freshen the air in the past, like I mentioned above, and is widely used in perfume and soap making. Believe me once you start, you will see why it is so widely used. After you use it, there is no going back, and it will be hard to go without a bit of marjoram in your bath.

Marjoram Epsom Salts

• 5 cups (40 oz) Epsom Salts
• 5-15 drops Sweet Marjoram Essential Oils
• optional: 1 tablespoon of dried marjoram, or any other oils to increase stress reduction, reduce pain, or give sleepiness

Mix well and store in a dry, airtight container. Add a cup to a hot bath and soak that pain away! You can throw in a tablespoon or so of the dried herb as well in this to boost the potency. If you are suffering from some heinous lady cramps, this is a great way to help you through the pain, and it also helps if you have inflamed muscles from over exertion. It can make you drowsy though so this is best done at night, or when you have time to take a nap if you need it.

Marjoram Bath Tea

• 2 tablespoons Marjoram, fresh or dried
• 16 oz Boiling water

Brew like you would tea, in covered pot or cup and add to hot bath water. Just like the Epsom soak above this is also a great soak for sore muscles, lady cramps, muscle spasms, joint pain and inflammation.

Marjoram Compress

• 2 tablespoons Marjoram, fresh or dried
• 16 oz Boiling water
• a towel or rag, large enough to cover the painful/sore area

Prepare like you would the bath tea above, but instead of adding to a bath allow to cool enough to be tolerable. Soak the towel in the infusion and apply to affected area, repeat as necessary. This is a great option if you are on the go, or don’t have access to a tub to soak in.

I am always a big fan of taking your medicine in your food so here is a few recipes that are great ways to integrate marjoram into your diet. First up is a delicious soup that is good for a cold winter night to lift your spirits and keep you warm.

Marjoram Lentil Soup

• 2 cups of Puy Green lentils, soak for an hour prior to starting soup
• 1 Yellow onion diced
• 2 Stalks celery diced
• 4-6 White or Red potatoes, diced
• 2-3 Carrots diced
• 2 cups of Broccoli florets
• 2 teaspoon Marjoram, dried or minced fresh
• 1/2-1 teaspoon Black pepper, ground
• 2 teaspoons Cilantro fresh (may be omitted, or reduced to 1 teaspoon)
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tablespoon Olive oil
• 8 cups Water (you can use Chicken or Beef stock instead for a more hearty soup)

In a heavy soup pot, or dutch oven, add olive oil and heat until hot. Add onions and cook until clear, add in water and lentils. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 1 hour, after the hour add potatoes and celery.  Add broccoli and carrots after potatoes begin to soften, then add in herbs, salt and pepper. Simmer for a few minutes to combine flavors. Serve warm with crusty bread, or naan.

Since they are the most well known marjoram blends, I am going to give a za’atar recipe and herbs de Provence. Herbs de Provence are great for meatloafs and other meaty dishes, it goes great sprinkled over potatoes then roasting them, and loads of other delicious culinary things.  Za’atar is possibly lesser known in the west, but it is just as awesome. It is a common spice blend in Middle Eastern and North African cooking. It goes great in meat, vegetable, rice and bread dishes, I find it is fantastic rubbed onto some flat bread and baked. Or just a teaspoon or so of it with some olive oil, and some bread for dipping, is a good snack for having a drink with friends or right before the main meal. Not only do they both taste great, but these are both great ways to have your food be your medicine, as I said above.

Za’atar

• 1/4 cup Sumac (you will find this in most Middle Eastern style markets, it has a citrus flavor and you can in a pinch use some lemon zest but real sumac is best)
• 2 tablespoons dried Thyme
• 2 tablespoons dried Marjoram
• 2 tablespoons dried Oregano
• 1 tablespoon Roasted Sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon salt

Grind sesame seeds in mortar and pestle with the salt, or grind them in a food processor or blender. Add the remaining ingredients and give a quick pulse in a blender or processor, or a few good grinds with a pestle until you have a fairly uniform chunky mixture. Store in an airtight container for 3-6 months.

Herbs de Provence

• 2 tablespoons and 1 teaspoon dried Oregano
• 2 tablespoons and 1 teaspoon dried Thyme
• 2 tablespoons dried Savory
• 2 tablespoons dried Lavender
• 1 teaspoon dried Basil
• 1 teaspoon dried Sage
• 1 teaspoon dried, crushed Rosemary

Mix well and store in an airtight container, stores for about 3-6 months as well. This goes great as a crust for roasts, on roasted potatoes, even in bread! And like za’atar, is a great way to get an extra boost of marjoram and its healing properties in your diet.

Marjoram while considered to be “mostly harmless” can have some reactions with medications or if you are pregnant. So do make sure that you always check, even the mostly safe herbs, on WebMD just to be sure there will be no interactions with medications and so forth. Remember even water becomes poisonous if you have too much of it, so always use herbal medicine sensibly, with caution and respect. As always if you are in doubt about anything, ask a professional!

Valerian the Pied Piper of Sleep…and Cats

Valerian, while a fairly pretty plant to look at has a rather foul smelling root. It’s name was, in historical texts, generally rendered as Phu or Foo, speculated to have been called such, due to the distinctive smell. Pew! This means it is possibly the source of all laser cat powers…

Pew Pew Pew!

The smell is quite seductive to cats and rats (like Anise for dogs), and was supposedly Valerian was used by the Pied Piper, either rubbed on or secreted about his body, to lead the rats from Hamelin. During most of its historical continental European use, it was thought of more as a spice than a herb and was frequently used for cooking and even used in perfumes! There are supposedly more pleasant smelling versions but that sounds, to me, quite a smelly perfume idea.

It was used in some places to protect a person from thunder and lightening, also for ridding people of “demons.” Which could possibly be taken to mean that it eased symptoms of epilepsy, since possession was often the diagnosis for sufferers of epilepsy and other mental disorders before they were fully understood. Valerian would definitely provide a calming effect for nerve issues, agitated people, those suffering from general nervous disorders, and was often used to treat hysteria. But surprisingly for most of early history medicinally, it was not held in high regard, it was mentioned by Hippocrates, Dioscorides, and others for various complaints and ailments almost in passing. It was only Galen that remarked on its sedative effects, and it took many centuries before that was re-discovered in the West.

Valerian was also known as nard, Amantilla, “Capon’s Tail”, and Setwall (or Setewale). It’s present name is thought to come from the Latin for courage (valere), or possibly strength (valeo) or “good health” (valere), but there is no definitive answer on the name origin. Arab doctors knew of its uses and post-Crusades, as Arab knowledge filtered west, more knowledge of this plant grew and usage grew. A great recipe mentioned in the 14th century capitalizing on its relaxing properties was “Men who begin to fight and you wish to stop them, give them the juice of Amantilla (Valerian) and peace will be made immediately.”

More recent historical usage was for during bleeding to calm the person, and promote healing (bleeding was commonly used up until the 19th century as a treatment for many issues), and as a nervine. It was even used during World War I for the stress trench combat, civilians for air raids constant stress, and was still used during World War II to treat “shell-shock.” It is also widely used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayerveda, and even the W.H.O. recognizes the nerve relaxing qualities of Valerian.

While Valerian is a pretty little plant, most preparations use the root, which just happens to be the smelliest bit. It generally helps most people sleep,  it can reduce anxiety, depression (from stress or nervous tension), works on the central nervous system to help relax the body, and also can help calm the lower intestine smooth muscle and alleviate gas and cramping. The main purpose I find it useful for it, is its antispasmodic properties, this is a great way to treat lady cramps, muscle cramps and pain, and will help with symptoms of cramps and spasms, like tension headaches. Since it helps muscles and nerves to relax, it helps with blood pressure by relaxing the vein and artery walls, improving circulation and reducing blood pressure.

It is pretty to look at, but smelly!

Tea is always a great way to take Valerian, you can prepare the fresh root, or what is more frequently available, dried roots. You can drink this tea about a half hour to two hours before bed time, and it should help bring sleep faster. You can also make a double batch to add to bath water, two cups, will help bring on sleep and help with painful muscles. This is also a great cup of tea (like Fennel Tea, Anise Tea, Ginger Tea, or Peppermint Tea) for this time of year when over indulgence leads to digestive distress. Now, like most good medicine this can be very bad tasting for some people and bitter, others not so much, but if you find it bitter bust out your favorite local honey when you make this.

Valerian Tea

• 1 teaspoon Dried (or Fresh) Valerian root
• 8 oz Hot water (just before boiling)

Steep for 5-10 minutes in a covered teacup, or teapot if you decide to make a bigger batch. Remember covering it helps to keep those essential oils that make this all work in your tea instead of in the air. Again this is great after exercise, to ease spasms, and to help you get restful sleep. Where you don’t feel sedated or fuzzy in the morning.

If you don’t want to have tea in your bath you can always make a relaxing bath salts with Valerian essential oils (remember therapeutic grade only!).

Valerian Epsom Salts

• 5 cups (40 oz) of Epsom Salts
• 5-10 drops Valerian essential oil
• You can add additional oils like Eucalyptus, Lavender, or others to help promote sleep or muscle relaxation. 5-10 drops of any additional oils.

Add a cup at a time to bath water and enjoy a lovely soak, in relaxing goodness.

Valerian is great teamed up with hops, they work well in concert with each other since Valerian is a more mild sedative hops give it that extra punch for a super knock out combo. Hops are thought to work on the body the same way melatonin does, and Valerian acts like adenosine which is a inhibitory neurotransmitter that helps with sleep. So when you combine the two you have a great combination that is non-narcotic, and won’t leave you feeling bad and groggy the next morning.

Super Knockout Sleepy Tincture – Hop & Valerian

• 2 parts Valerian root
• 1 part Hops flowers
• Large Mason Jar
• Vodka or other clear alcohol, enough to cover

Fill jar with the Hops and Valerian mixture, with gap at the top for expansion, cover with alcohol and seal tight. Let sit for at least 4 weeks, or up to 6 in a cool, dark, and undisturbed place, but shake once a week. Strain and store in dark bottles. You can take 1/2 teaspoon (6 drops) to 1 teaspoon of this about an hour or so before you want to go to bed.

You could make a straight Valerian tincture, make it the same way just leave out the hops, and you can take 1/2 teaspoon to 3/4 of a teaspoon daily (up to 3 times a day) for anxiety, and to help with circulation and blood pressure. You can take up to 1 teaspoon to assist with sleep.

You can also make a great headache and sleep aid by adding more herbs such as lavender, passion flower and chamomile.

Headache & Sleep Tincture

• 1 part Valerian root
• 1 part Hops flowers
• 1 part Passion Flower
• 1 part Chamomile
• 1 part Lavender
• 1 part Skullcap

Take about a 1/2 teaspoon at onset of migraine and increase if pain does not recede, not recommended taking more than 1 teaspoon. This will alleviate migraine pain and help bring sleep, which is great when you wake up at 2 am like I do with migraines.

With any tincture you can add it to a cup of hot water, or tea, if you are concerned about the alcohol. You can always do the under the tongue delivery, or even just into a cup of water or juice. If the taste is too bitter you can mix this into a tablespoon of honey and take it.

Since it is that holiday time of year! Valerian hot chocolate is a great way to ease the tension and stress that holidays can bring. I love this recipe from James Wong

James Wong’s Valerian Hot Chocolate

• 3 tablespoons fresh valerian root
• 3 3/4 cups full-fat milk
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon balm leaves
• 3 teaspoons fresh lavender flowers
• 6 leaves & 3 heads of fresh passion flowers (or 1 teaspoon)
• peel of 1 1/2 oranges
• 1 3/4 oz dark chocolate (min 50% cocoa solids)
• “dash” (1/8th or less of a teaspoon) of vanilla

Chop the top and bottom from the fresh valerian root, and then place in a saucepan with the milk, lemon balm, lavender, passion flower, and orange peel and gently heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Strain. Pour the infused milk back into the pan, and then add the dark chocolate and vanilla extract and stir until melted. Drink at once.

Colds and coughs are frequent this time of year and if you are sick while you are in pain it only makes things worse. A great cough syrup you can make is a variation of another of James’ recipes but it has my own special touches. Because Valerian works to relax and prevent spasms its great to help suppress coughs.

Valerian Cough Syrup

• 4 tablespoons dried Marshmallow root
• 2 dried Licorice roots, broken up
• 3 heads of fresh elderberries (if you can get them, if not about a tablespoon of dried or you can substitute 2 tablespoons wild cherry bark, or just leave it all out entirely)
• 1 teaspoon cloves
• zest of 1 orange
• 1 tablespoon Anise seed
• 1 tablespoon Fennel seeds
• 2 tablespoons Valerian root
• 2 c water
• 1/2 cup honey
• juice of 1 lime
• 5 tablespoons glycerin

Put everything except the honey and glycerin in a pot with the water and simmer unit liquid reduces by about a fifth. Remove the licorice, and pour mixture into blender and blend until smooth. Pour back into pan and add honey, lime juice and glycerin, stir and simmer for 2 more minutes. Store in bottles. Take 2 tablespoons 3 times a day for no more than 5 days. The Valerian in this helps to relax the smooth muscles helping to suppress the cough. Remember, if your cough persists you need to see a professional, don’t neglect colds and illnesses during the holidays!

You can find Valerian in a lot of prepackaged ways, tinctures, teas, but mostly as capsules. You can purchase these already made, or you can make your own, just like in the turmeric post.  You don’t want to exceed 600 mg a day of Valerian, also due to fillers some pre-made pills may work better than others.

ProTip: You should never take any sleep aid for more than 4 weeks straight, or you could have issues sleeping.

Mythbuster Tip: Valium and Valerian while sounding similar are different completely, and Valerian is much safer to use. Remember though, everything in moderation. Too much of anything is bad.

Each person is different and you will need to do your own trails to see what works best for you. Check for interactions with your current medications, and WebMD is a great resource as usual. Make sure you educate yourself on everything you take! If you are ever in doubt, ask a professional!

Ginger a Spicy Power Packed Punch for Pain!

Well, last week was pure madness. I made 3 costumes for the Renaissance Festival and worked my fingers to the bone. Foregoing sleep and other creature comforts to finish on time, all was totally worth it. But now they are done! Festival visited, and life can resume its usual chaotic pace!

yay!

Ginger, is a long known and widely accepted remedy for many things, and there has been a lot of modern research going into it, many showing its great ability to reduce pain and inflammation. There are even studies now happening looking into the possibility that ginger may help prevent the formation of tumors. Ginger is a rhizome like turmeric, or galangal (used in Thai cooking), and is even related to cardamom. It is mentioned in A Thousand and One Nights, and features in many ancient recipes for food and medicine. Ginger was one of those spices that commanded large sums of money in trade and could hold up to travel on the Silk Roads all the way to the farthest reaches of Western Europe, black pepper was the other major spice. In the 4th Century BCE in the Mahabharata it mentions meat stewed with ginger and spices. Marco Polo mentions it in his travels, and it was noted by early explorers of the Americas. Ginger was then and is now a very common spice, and is found in a lot of Fall foods. So that extra slice of pumpkin pie, or glass of mulled wine is medicine…or at least that’s what you can tell your family 😀

Ginger’s warming properties makes it a great addition to foods and drinks this time of year and it is a great addition to food year round, or if you get tired of turmeric. Most people have experienced it in Japanese food (that pink stuff next to sushi), or in other Asian foods. Or maybe you have just seen that weird lumpy, knobbly brown thing at the grocery store and said to yourself “what the hell is that….how do you even eat it?!”

Its Ginger! Put it in your face!

Ginger is famous for a reason, its fantastic! Ginger has been used in medicine for ages all over the world since at least 500 BCE. Asia has seen long use of it as additions to meals or as a side dish, and Confucius was rumored to never eat a meal without it. Our old friend Dioscorides recommended it for stomach issues, and it is mentioned in various other herbals for the same throughout the ages. It was the “Alka-Seltzer” of ancient Rome, as part of a Revolutionary War soldier’s diet, and was in the 19th century the digestive aid of choice for the US.  Even the infamous (that’s more than famous) University of Salerno said that for a happy life “eat ginger, and you will love and be loved as in your youth.” There are mentions in earlier writings that ginger is an aphrodisiac but it is unlikely, another case of “its rare, so it make you strong like bull.” [insert hand gestures here]

What it can do is sooth stomachs, is a better pain reliever for minor inflammation, or pain that can be treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAI) drugs, than Aspirin and the like, and helps keep you healthy with its anti-viral properties. What is great about it is unlike most of the OTC stuff you can get, ginger will not destroy your stomach, and actually tastes pretty nice. Ginger is also superior to those drugs in the way that it not only blocks the chemical formation of signals that cause inflammation like those NSAI drugs but also will attack the inflammation and break it down with its other antioxidant effects which the NSAI drugs lack. That means it does more to reduce inflammation overall, than anything you can buy in a drug store.

In my last post, An Ounce of Prevention Tea, I brought up Sam’s fantastic cold preventing tea, and ginger is a big component of it and that tea is not only good for keeping cold and flu at bay, but it is better than popping an Aspirin, Advil, Tylenol, whatever your drug of choice is, for a headache or other minor aches and pains. Plus it makes a great hangover cure, and is fantastic for lady cramps. Ginger’s anti-viral properties works well with the other ingredients in the tea, and when you toss in a few cloves (3-6 depending on your love of cloves, or pain) you have three pain relieving herbs in one go (cinnamon is the third). Want to increase its anti-inflammatory properties? Add in some turmeric! Plus if you add in a bit of Manuka honey you have a super, mega cold and flu defeating power punch! Nothing is worse than being in pain and sick, and this is definitely the way to keep that from happening. Multitasking! You know I love it!

Ginger is also great for stomach issues, it has been used for morning sickness, and any other stomach issues like indigestion and acid re-flux. It is even good for motion sickness, and helps keep all that queasy wibbly wobbly stomach stuff away. There are a few ways you can take ginger for nausea and for pain, there are pre-packaged ginger gums, candies and even ginger ale and tea, you do want to make sure that the product you are using has real ginger of some sort in it or it will not be as effective. You can also make ginger tea for yourself as a simplified version of the Prevention Tea.

Simple Ginger Tea for Headache and Upset Stomach

• 3 large Medallions of ginger – this could also be 1 teaspoon dried ginger, or even 1-1 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 8 oz Boiling water

Pour hot water over ginger, steep for 2-3 minutes and drink warm. Ginger can be a bit spicy or hot, so if it bothers you honey can help to tone that down. Ginger is one of those team player spices and it works well with a lot of other spices and herbs. You can add fennel seeds, about an inch of sliced lemon grass or 1/2 – 1 teaspoon of grated lemon grass, and a sprinkle of cardamom for a great after dinner digestive tea.

My favorite way to take ginger is Ginger Ale, I love Vernors if I can’t or don’t have time to make my own, but making your own is fun and quite delicious. If you have never made it, it is well worth the effort, the ginger makes it a spicier sweet drink than you might be used to, or if you;re feeling more British you can make Ginger Beer. For Ginger Ale I like Alton Brown’s recipe and it makes a really good one.

Alton’s Ginger Ale

• 1 1/2 ounces finely grated fresh ginger
• 6 ounces sugar
• 7 1/2 cups filtered water
• 1/8 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Place the ginger, sugar, and 1/2 cup of the water into a 2-quart saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat, cover and allow to steep for 1 hour.

Pour the syrup through a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl, pressing down to get all of the juice out of the mixture. Chill quickly by placing over and ice bath and stirring or set in the refrigerator, uncovered, until at least room temperature, 68 to 72 degrees F.

Using a funnel, pour the syrup into a clean 2-liter plastic bottle and add the yeast, lemon juice and remaining 7 cups of water. Place the cap on the bottle, gently shake to combine and leave the bottle at room temperature for 48 hours. Open and check for desired amount of carbonation. It is important that once you achieve your desired amount of carbonation that you refrigerate the ginger ale. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, opening the bottle at least once a day to let out excess carbonation.

For Ginger Beer this is a simple recipe that makes a 16 oz bottle, you can use flip-top bottles for both of these recipes. They’re sold everywhere, Container Store, Ikea, Brew stores, or you can resort to online purchase.

Ginger Beer

• 1 ounce ginger juice
• 2 ounces fresh lemon juice, finely strained
• 3 ounces simple syrup (see syrup notes) 
  
• 10 ounces warm water (not above 86 F)
• Yeast

Ginger juice you can make by passing ginger through a juicer or you can microplane it into a cheesecloth and squeeze the juice out. You could also use the ginger paste in the recipe and strain after fermenting. Mix all the ingredients together, and pour about 16 oz into the bottles, you do want to leave some space (an inch or 2) at the top or you will get exploding bottles. You can add champagne yeast to each bottle, or you can add about 25 grains of yeast to each bottle. Or you can mix your cooled simple syrup with the yeast and bottle this way. You want to store in a cool dark place for 48 hours, then refrigerate immediately this will halt the fermentation process. You can use non-champagne yeast you will want to use 1/8th of a teaspoon per bottle.

Simple Syrup – mix 1 part water with 2 parts sugar, dissolve sugar in water while stirring constantly over heat. Once dissolved remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool and thicken, bottle and store. You can add a tablespoon of vodka to help prolong the shelf life.

You can also make ginger cream to rub onto sore areas, ginger is warming and is quite soothing on sore or spasmed muscles.

Ginger Muscle “Cream”

• 1 hand sized (about 6 inches) piece of ginger, grated finely
• Honey (enough to make a paste with the ginger)
• 1/2 cup (or up to a cup) Coconut oil
• Pot and boiling water

Bring the water to a simmer but do not boil the hand sized piece of ginger until it is tender. Peel and grate into fine paste, or you can pulverize it as well. Mix in honey until a thick paste is formed. In a mixer with whisk attachment, whip the coconut oil until it creates a thick paste and add in the ginger and honey paste slowly making sure that it incorporates fully. Apply and massage into sore area and be sure to avoid sensitive skin areas in applying this. This is great for sore muscle pains after a hard workout or just to work out stiff sore muscles.

A good tea for sleep and soothing minor pains, and stomach upset that comes with pain or illness is a mix of ginger and Holy Basil. It helps alleviate the aches and pains of flu and colds, or sooth and alleviate pain that wakes you in the night.

Tulsi Ginger Tea for Sleep

• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of Holy Basil (Tulsi)
• 1/4 teaspoon dry (powdered) ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (1 small stick)
• 8 oz Boiling water

Pour boiling water over ingredients, steep in covered tea cup for 5-10 minutes, and drink warm. This will put you right to sleep!

You can also add ginger juice, ginger paste, or even Ginger essential oils (always use therapeutic grade!), to a bath, or rub them into the painful area. You can always make a massage oil with ginger for rubbing into sore muscles or a rub of it on the chest is great for chest colds. And a soak in a ginger bath is great for nerve pain, even more so when you include rosemary oil.

Ginger Rosemary Bath Salts for Pain

• 5 drops Ginger essential oils
• 5 drops Rosemary essential oils
• 1 lb Epsom salts

Mix all ingredients together and store in a cool dry place. Mix 1 cup of salts into a hot bath and soak that pain away.

Ginger Massage Oil for Sore Muscles and Pain

• Carrier oil of your choice
• 10-20 drops of ginger essential oil
• optional – add any additional oils for pain, or other uses

Mix up and store in a dark bottle, rub into sore muscles or painful areas.

Always one to enjoy medicinal foods I find that candied ginger is a great way to take ginger for stomach issues or pain. Plus, its candy! Again I will refer to the AB recipe (I do love him so) for this candied ginger.

Alton’s Candied Ginger Recipe

• Nonstick spray (I prefer to use olive oil, or rapeseed)
• 1 pound fresh ginger root
• 5 cups water
• Approximately 1 pound granulated sugar
• Spray a cooling rack with nonstick spray and set it in a half sheet pan lined with parchment.

Peel the ginger root and slice into 1/8-inch thick slices using a mandolin. Place into a 4-quart saucepan with the water and set over medium-high heat. Cover and cook for 35 minutes or until the ginger is tender.

Transfer the ginger to a colander to drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Weigh the ginger and measure out an equal amount of sugar. Return the ginger and 1/4 cup water to the pan and add the sugar. Set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar syrup looks dry, has almost evaporated and begins to recrystallize, approximately 20 minutes. Transfer the ginger immediately to the cooling rack and spread to separate the individual pieces. Once completely cool, store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Alton ProTip: Save the sugar that drops beneath the cooling rack and use to top ginger snaps, sprinkled over ice cream or to sweeten coffee.

You can use a piece or two of the candy for any ailment previously mentioned, I mean come on candy medicine? What is better than that? Nothing I tell you, nothing.

And since I also like muffins, here is a great one to get that ginger in your diet, plus its perfect for this time of year.

Pumpkin Ginger Muffins

• 1/2 cup light brown sugar (packed)
• 1 1/2 cup flour, whole-wheat pastry, (if you can’t find whole wheat pastry flour, may substitute regular whole wheat flour)
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger, or ginger paste
• 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt, or 1/4 table salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (from a can or fresh)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (you can use whatever oil you like)
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line with paper, or grease, 12 muffin cups with oil or shortening. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the brown sugar, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and salt. In a small bowl, beat the egg for 30 seconds, until foamy. Add the milk, pumpkin, oil, and orange zest. Beat well. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture, and stir until the flour mixture is moistened. Fill the muffin cups three-quarters full with batter. Bake for 15 minutes, until the tops spring back when you touch them with a finger. Turn out muffins onto a wire rack to cool. Once cool, you can freeze the muffins, tightly wrapped, for up to 2 months.

So next time you have that nagging headache, or some sore muscles reach for your ginger instead of a pill! Ginger is mostly safe but if you do suffer from extreme stomach issues you should be careful about the amount you intake. For people with stomach issues try to avoid exceeding 3-4 teaspoons in a day, for everyone else don’t go above 5 teaspoons. Remember too much of anything, is too much! Always use anything in moderation.

ProTip: A friend of mine showed me that it is super easy to peel ginger using a spoon, just scrape the skin of the ginger with it and discard the brown papery outer skin. Super easy!

Educate yourself and do your own trials to see what works best for you, always remember to check places like WebMD for reactions or interactions with your medications, and if you are ever in doubt, ask a professional!

Nutmeg, an Easy Nut to Crack

Been going through a lot of medical tests lately, but I am feeling really positive about all of it, and still a little in the goulish Halloween spirit, so I think it is time to talk about nutmeg. Thanksgiving and Christmas is almost upon us now, so it makes it an even better time to talk about nutmeg. It features in so many holiday dishes you can’t seem to get away from it this time of year. Also, fun fact, nutmeg and mace are major ingredients in delicious, delicious haggis.

Yes, haggis is delicious.

No, I will not hear slander against it.

If you feel you must speak ill against one of the most delicious meal of squiddly animal bits, here is my response –

That’s right Freddy, they gonna.

Now on to serious business.

Nutmeg is often mentioned with mace which grows with nutmeg, and we will possibly cover in later posts. Nutmeg is the small little nut part encased in mace’s scarlet tendrils, inside a peach, but not a peach, shaped fruit.

Remember, nutmeg inside mace, inside fruit. The nut is often dipped in lime water to prevent sprouting. No one likes a sprouty nutmeg.

So on to the history! Of all the plants and information we have gone over, nutmeg has probably the most fascinating, dark, sordid history of death and destruction, of all the previously discussed plants. A lot of its allure was due to its highly prized medicine and culinary uses, but mostly it’s rarity. The history of nutmeg starts in the fabled East Indies, you know the ones that everyone was trying to find a water route to? Columbus and all those guys. Up until the 1800’s there was a single group of islands called the Banda Islands that provided the world’s nutmeg as part of the fabled spice islands. Their location was closely guarded secret of the Arab traders, so they could continue to sell it at high prices to the Venetian traders. The Portuguese were the first Western culture that “discovered” the location of the islands, but were unable to monopolize the trade. It wasn’t until the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) rolled in, after chasing out the Portuguese, that nutmeg’s history became very dark. At first they were seen as liberators, but then, the islanders started to realize that these VOC chaps, might actually be big fat jerks.

Nutmeg was completely monopolized by the Dutch, and the VOC even went so far as to go on yearly raids to ensure that no trees made it outside of their control. A great example of this is the island of Run, a small island the British East India Company used for their trade in nutmeg. The commander of the VOC in Banda snuck onto Run, and burned all of their nutmeg trees. Frankly a pretty dick move, and very much the creepy “if I can’t have them, no one can” sort of thing.

As time passed there was the usual colonial oppression of the local people, an impossible not to violate contract between the VOC and the native Bandas, and the eventual near genocide of the Bandas native population. All while the VOC kept prices intentionally high by occasionally setting fire to nutmeg warehouses, just to create artificial scarcity and selling nutmeg at near a 6,000 time mark up. Which, do I even need to mention this does little to help their image of being big fat jerks? Yes, yes I do.

On to happier things, like the well known saffron, nutmeg was an expensive spice and was considered quite a luxury for many centuries. It was valued as medicine since the 7th century, and it was even worn around the neck to ward off the Black Plague. And, oddly, the use for warding off Plague might have actually worked since nutmeg helps to keep fleas, which carried the plague, away.

It has history of use as a hallucinogen, of which in certain doses it is actually a powerful one, and it scares the pants of William S. Burroughs, which really says quite a lot. Nutmeg is also supposedly aphrodisiac, which everyone says that about everything rare, so it is highly unlikely you will find that effect rearing its head. Pun intended.

In the 19th its was used as an abortifacient, and this unfortunately led to many cases of accidental nutmeg poisonings. Which brings up the point of it’s toxicity, yes nutmeg is toxic in high doses, but safe enough in small amounts. Never consume more than about a teaspoon of nutmeg in a day internally. Some sites, you may find, suggest more, which I disagree strongly with the large amounts for internal use, and it is always better safe than sorry. My suggestion is, if you really feel you must increase the dose, talk to your doctor first. But again, in small doses, nutmeg is a wonderful remedy for sleeplessness, nerve pain, indigestion (mostly flatulence and other discomforts from over indulgence) and muscle spasms.

Nutmeg can be used as a mild sleep aid, it isn’t as powerful as some of the others we have discussed, but a good one you can use frequently and without worry in small amounts. To make a simple sleepy time drink, and one that is extra good for winter, is nutmeg and warm milk.

Nutmeg and Milk for Sleep

• 1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
• 1 cup Milk (or milk substitute)
• Honey to taste (optional)

Heat the milk in a pan or microwave, being careful not to scald, and add freshly grated nutmeg. Stir thoroughly, and drink still warm. Since we are close to the holiday season, eggnog could be your liquid to use here. Which you don’t have to heat if you don’t want to, and I won’t tell anyone if you put a little splash of rum in it. 😀 And that will definitely help you sleep.

Eggnog leads us into our next use for nutmeg too since it is a great way to help ease stomach discomfort and flatulence. During the holiday season we all tend to over indulge and the addition of nutmeg in these holiday foods helps to keep some of the repercussions for all that food at bay. Grate a little into your eggnog before diving into that Christmas dinner, or make sure you have a slice of pumpkin pie with some real nutmeg in it. Don’t buy ground, really for any spice, they can be adulterated with inferior products or other species, or so old they are of no use. Your tummy will thank you later. I have read a few other recipes that involve combining nutmeg with other things, even coffee, to ease the stomach or diarrhea but this sounds like it would taste horrible to me and I haven’t tried it, let me know if you do, brave soul. I just recommend adding it to your dishes and drinks, or even using the milk and nutmeg recipe listed above.

Nutmeg oil, (remember use therapeutic grade only!) is a warming oil that is great for spasms and nerve related pain. It helps to ease the spasms and numb the nerves to ease the pain. Massage oil is a great way to apply this and it is easy to make, though you can apply always apply nutmeg oil directly to the skin. Remember though, this is a warming oil, so test to see how sensitive your skin is to it before direct application.

Nutmeg Massage Oil

• 1 oz Carrier oil
• 20-30 drops Nutmeg oil

Mix together and massage directly into affected area. You can always blend this with other oils like mentioned in the fennel post.

I use this oil for days when I am not in a ton of pain, but I still need something to work the stiffness and minor aches out, and it works great for this sort of application, or for sore muscles after sports or exercise. I find it works well for my minor muscle spasms and helps to numb the area a bit, and this effect increases if you combine it with cloves or other oils. The smell is woody and spicy, and rather pleasant. You can also take a drop or two internally in a capsule to help with pain and nerve issues too, I don’t recommend adding the oil directly to your beverage, it can be quite overpowering in flavor.

If you would like to purchase the Nutmeg Oil I use go here, remember to use 1453322 as your sponsor number.

There are some other skin uses for nutmeg, like using grated nutmeg and milk to make a paste to treat acne, or as a chest plaster with honey for a cold, and many, many savory and sweet culinary uses. I love nutmeg in food, and enjoy recreating medieval food where it is often used, as well as other current culinary styles.

Remember nutmeg, like skullcap, is good in small doses! Do your own research, check for interactions on sites like WebMD, and educate yourself. Do your own trials with it to see what works best for you. As always if you are in doubt, even in the slightest, ask a professional!

If you would like to learn more on the history of nutmeg you can read a quick version here, and a more in depth version here, and an amusingly honest one here.