Garlic & Ginger Infused Honey

I’ve been baking, cooking, parenting, and doing a lot of hiking and walking in the wake of the mandated social distancing we are all experiencing with the coronavirus. My friends at Nimbo Alto asked me to contribute to their See/Make/Do newsletter and I decided to make something in the kitchen that would act as a gentle anti-viral and anti-microbial helper for our current times. This recipe for infused honey is so easy and I love it as a vehicle for loads of garlic. Raw Honey has anti-microbial properties of its own, and when you combine it with the warming spice of ginger - a wonderful herb for aiding digestion - and garlic, which also has major anti-microbial action, you have a powerful immune concoction on your counter. Garlic acts effectively upon bacteria, viruses, and parasites. The volatile oil is largely excreted through the lungs - which makes it especially useful in infections of the respiratory system (hello covid-19!). Garlic is a hot-natured food, so if you have a big problem with acid reflux, indigestion, or leaky guy it could be too irritating for your GI tract to handle when eaten whole. The good thing about this honey is that the garlic is only infused into it, making it easier for most people to consume without issue, and still retain the anti-viral benefits of this powerful herb. Our digestion is a pre-cursor to our immunity, and the sweet taste of honey activates the Earth element (realm of digestive organs), while ginger helps to keep that digestive fire burning. I use this honey by the spoonful as an immune tonic - mixed into a cup of warm water with lemon is the easiest option. A Garlic Ginger Lemonade recipe is also included here, which is especially soothing for stomach bugs or food poisoning - but is adaptable for many immune situations. I find comfort in these small ways of supporting our bodies during stressful times.

Ginger & Garlic Infused Honey //

1 C raw honey (a runnier raw honey is best here, rather than a very thick one)

5 garlic cloves, peeled

1.5” piece of ginger root, sliced into thin strips (about 6 slices)

Place ginger and garlic into a sealable jar like a canning jar, and cover completely with the honey. Close the jar and place the honey mixture in a shady spot on your counter. Leave it there for at least 6-7 days (up to 2 weeks), shaking the jar daily, whenever you see it. Strain out the herbs and keep the honey in the pantry as usual. Honey is naturally preservative and this mix will stay good for a long time (some say indefinitely).

Garlic Ginger Lemonade by the glass //

Combine 1 TBSP of the infused honey with 1/2 C hot water into a measuring cup, stir to combine well until the honey dissolves. Add juice of 1 whole lemon. Add more filtered water (another 1/2 C or so, room temp or cold) into the cup and stir well again. Pour over ice into a large glass and serve immediately. Some fresh ginger juice is also really nice for an extra kick - grate 1” of a ginger knob and then, with your hand, squeeze the juice from the grated ginger root straight into your glass.

Extra immune add-in:

1 tsp Astragalus powder (to the warm water step, stir until dissolved) - Astragalus is an adaptogenic herb good for stress, but especially for how stress affects our immune system. Astragalus is only recommended to use preventatively - not for acute illness - but that being said, is a powerful herb to build qi and blood and prevent respiratory illness.

Take care out there!

Getting Sick? My Acute Self-Care Ritual

We all have supplements & vitamins we take on a daily basis for our individual needs… products we swear by and use daily for our health & beauty regimes, but what about when you are dealing with a sudden onset cold, or when you wake up with a golf ball-sized sore throat? At the VERY first signs I may be coming down with something acute - I start a very purposeful, emergency wellness ritual that I have refined over the years. There are so many useful tools for treating a cold or easing acute allergies or ear infections, so as Fräulein Maria would say - these are a few of my favorite things!

Hydrogen Peroxide / I trust using Hydrogen Peroxide almost 100% of the time when I notice an acute cold coming on. I gargle with it, and I also put a few drops down each ear for 5-10 min, then drain onto a towel. You can dilute it by 50%, but I just use it straight and rinse with water after gargling. This is just one of those measures I swear by. It will kill many bacterial microbes and pathogenic viruses that have entered the ear canal. H2O2 is always best to use right away when you notice symptoms in the first 12-24 hours. 

Elderberry, Echinacea, C, Zinc / You can take all these individually, but man that sounds like a lot of pills & I don’t do that very well. So I get these lozenges and have them in the house at all times. They are a powerful blend of healing agents - echinacea, zinc, elderberry & Vitamin C to help reduce the duration of disease and prevent illness from taking hold if you catch it early enough. 

Yin Qiao San herbs / Best Chinese herbs for warding off illness in the initial stages - I take it at the first signs of a sore throat, especially one that feels swollen, hot, raw, or burning. I take 3 capsules 3x/day. 

Raw Garlic Paste / aka my Warrior Wellness Paste. This stuff probably deserves its own post. I mix together 2 cloves of mashed raw garlic, 1 inch of raw grated ginger, 1 big Tbsp raw honey, & ½ tsp turmeric powder into a paste. I use 1 tsp of this paste in a mug of 1 C hot water (I actually put it inside a teaball and pour the water over it like making tea - that way it is pre-strained and you don’t have bits of garlic floating in your mug) and add the juice of ½ lemon to it. I drink this 2x day until the paste is gone. 

What are your self-care rituals? Would love to hear your tried & true remedies!