Herbal Honey

Combine the microbial and nutrient rich sweetness of raw honey with those properties of herbs and you've got a potent and delicious medicine.

Raw honey is directly extracted from the hive with no heating or processing, leaving the enzymes, antioxidants, nutrients and microbes all intact, a healing food and medicine in and of itself. Adding herbs to honey and steeping in a warm place will create an herbal honey that amplifies the effects of raw honey while utilizing the properties of the herbs. *Infants should not be given honey due to the live bacteria that their gut is not ready to process. It is safe to introduce after 12 months of age.

Raw Honey Benefits

Antimicrobial, antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antiseptic
Provides an array of vitamins, minerals, and enzymes
Colds, flu and respiratory infections of all kinds
Sore throat, soothes inflamed, raw tissue
Boosts the immune system
Drawing agent for poisons from insect bites and stings or infection
Pink Eye/Conjunctivitis; dissolve honey in an equal amount of warm water, cool and apply as an eye wash
Cuts, wounds, burns, infections, ulcerations and impetigo, stimulate tissue growth
Skin care: acne, skin eruptions, softens (makes the best face mask and scrubs)
Joint pain and inflammation, when combined with apple cider vinegar
Digestion and gut health and healing

Ingredients

Raw honey that has been warmed, keeping under 100 degrees. If the honey is heated above 100 degrees the beneficial bacteria and enzymes are destroyed.
Herbs, spices or fruit, can be dried, powdered or fresh-dry wilted

Instructions

Fill a jar ¼ full of herbs, then add enough honey to stir and coat thoroughly.
Fill the remainder of jar with honey to 1" from top. Cover.
Let sit in a warm spot for two weeks. I like to sit them in a windowsill to be warmed by the sun. If the temperatures do not exceed 100 degrees they can also be placed outside in the sun for a solar infused honey.
The herbs usually float to the top of the jar, these can be scraped out or just stirred in each time it is used.
Herbal honey usually keeps indefinitely.

Uses

Use as a food adding to hot cereals, drinks, culinary creations and as a spread.
Make an instant tea: 1 Tbsp honey to 1 cup of hot water.
Take by the spoonful for acute or chronic issues. Adult 1 tsp, 3 x day, Children ½ tsp 3 x day, until symptoms subside.
Apply like a salve to cuts, wounds, sores, stings, impetigo, cold sores, etc.
Use as a face and skin mask to nourish and sooth inflammation, acne, rashes or other skin issues.

The book The Herbal Kitchen by Kami McBride has an entire section on different combinations of herbal honey - so yummy!

“I’ve wondered if the honey has medicinal properties and should be kept separate in different seasons...early spring, when plants and bushes that furnish the roots and barks of most of the tonics are in bloom, and the bees gather pollen, that honey should partake in a degree of the same properties and be good medicine.”

----The Harvester by Gene Stratton Porter