My friend gave me an amazing present for my birthday recently. Among all the other gifts tucked into the bag was a jar of organic dried rose petals. Of course, I had to find something delicious to do with it and my first thought was an infused honey. But it is not just delicious...it's medicinal!!!
Honey has been used as a medicine for centuries. It treats a wide array of symptoms and diseases such as eye diseases, bronchial asthma, throat infections, very healing for ulcers, and a great wound healer. The best part about it? Evidence suggests the use of raw honey is therapeutic because it has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Scientific research has even found it useful in treatments of diabetes mellitus, respiratory system problems and for the gastrointestinal tract. And even more amazing, it seems to last for thousands of years as evidenced from finding viable honey buried in the pyramids.
By combining it the healing qualities of various herbs or flowers, you can really pack a punch. This rose infused honey can be used as a cough syrup, and sore throat soother, is helpful for upset tummies, and stimulates digestion, has a bit of vitamin C to it (not as much as the rose hips but still a bit), calms and relaxes the body, is an expectorant and helps loosen phlegm, and has antibacterial and antiviral qualities good for helping reduce a flu attack. And did I say delicious? You can use it anywhere where you would normally use honey. Add it to tea, desserts, your oatmeal, plain yogurt or on toast.
In my case, I had my dried rose petals, and I had raw honey, and I had an empty mason jar on hand, so I had all the ingredients I needed. I put the honey in the jar and set it in a pan of boiling water to gently warm. Add enough dried rose petals to completely cover. Seal the jar and set it aside for a few days to let steep. At that time, you can either warm the honey again to strain out the petals or you can leave the petals and serve it with the honey. It has a light delicious, sweet taste.
If you have no rose petals on hand, no worries. You can add any type of culinary herb. Try adding a few sprigs of rosemary to the honey to infuse. After infusing, you can easily remove the sprigs. In addition to the healing qualities of honey, rosemary also has antioxidants and anti-inflammatory qualities to boost the honey even more. Rosemary helps the immune system, is a digestive, and studies have shown it to improve mood and concentration, and recent studies have shown it might be beneficial if someone has had strokes by helping brain function. Lavender spikes (flower or just the leafy branches) could also make a lovely honey. Lavender infused honey helps with headaches, is relaxing, helps dispel nausea, gas, upset tummies and swelling. Just make sure the herb is covered by the honey completely and wait a few days for the herb to infuse into the honey. The combinations are endless and can be tailored to suit your tastes and health situation.
It's a great way to have a handy medicinal on hand that lasts and can be used in multiple ways.
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