Homemade Plantain Salve

Goodbye, Neosporin.

It's nothing personal.

I just found something I like better. And I can make it myself, with 3 simple ingredients.

You can, too! Here is the recipe I use for simple, homemade Plantain Salve.

Use it to soothe bee stings, bug bites, minor cuts and scraps... it even helps my mama with her eczema, which has plagued her elbows and ankles for years.

It's a common backyard weed. If you're outside and you get stung, you can use it straight up from the plant- simply pick a plantain leaf, chew it for a second, and rub it on your sting. Instant relief. It will reduce inflammation and help promote healing.

If you would like to harvest some to make an easy ointment, it's super easy.
All you need:

1-2 cups of Fresh Plantain leaves
1-2 cups of Olive Oil
2 ounces shredded Beeswax

Pick your plantain when it is DRY. Brush off the dirt, with a dry paper towel. You don't want any extra moisture, it will shorten the shelf-life of your salve. You want them as clean and dry as possible. Sort out and discard any leaves with noticeable decay or bug debris. Fresh, clean, dry leaves.

Chop up the plantain in a food processor or blender. Remember, don't add water, we want to get rid of moisture, not add it. The plant itself is going to naturally have moisture in it.

Infuse olive oil with the chopped up plantain. You can do this in a few different ways. I just low-low heat, (NOT BOIL) carefully stirring the oil with the leaves in it for about an hour. Some people let the oil sit in the sun with the leaves for several days.

Next, you'll want to use a cheesecloth, or jelly bag with fine-mesh strainer and strain all the plant pieces out of the oil.

Now, shave off a couple ounces of beeswax. A good rule of thumb is to measure 1 ounce of beeswax per cup of infused oil. Finely shred it and slowly, slowly melt it in a saucepan. Do not let this cool, keep it in melted state on low, low heat.

Gently add the plantain oil to the wax.

Next, you'll want to pour this mixture directly into whatever containers you are using, because it solidifies as it cools. It will be really dark when you first pour it, then it lightens as it cools.

Small mason jars work well, and I like to use small plastic bead containers, because they make perfect to-go ointment cases for carrying in your purse or day bag on summer hikes, camping and picnics. And they fit nicely in small first-aid kits. Let it cool completely before lidding it.

This salve will easily last a full year.

Happy healing!

"Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them,
and reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth." -Jeremiah 33:6

Homemade Elderberry Syrup, A Recipe for Wellness

It is super easy to make Elderberry Syrup. It is a wonder of wellness against cold and flu symptoms!

All you need:
Elderberries
Filtered water
Honey

Boil down the elderberries (rapid boil) with a ratio of approximately 1 cup of berries to 4 cups water. Mash them up, strain them, and FINELY strain it, either through a jelly bag or very fine mesh. (I use a tightly knit spice ball and funnel), because the stems are actually poisonous. Once you have all the stems and pulp removed, add in about 1 cup (or more) of honey and bring it back to a gentle boil. Pour it into canning jars and can it. Keep refrigerated. One batch is good for 3 months.

If they are sick, give 2-3 teaspoons twice a day, at the FIRST onset of symptoms for best results. If just for daily immunity building, then 1-2 teaspoons once daily is fine.

It works wonders! My kids absolutely LOVE it. They ask for it continuously. I love that we can make our own medicine and remedy their colds from the comfort of home. I have my friend Melissa to thank for knowing and trying Elderberry Syrup---she makes it and gifted us some when we were sick a couple of years ago, and I couldn't believe what a difference it made in their symptoms after 24 hours. Now I pick them fresh and freeze them, for when I need to make another batch. You can also order dried elderberries in bulk. With their natural antioxidants, they truly are a wonder of wellness. May you be blessed by this simple recipe, and may God bring you healing and peace.

Elderberry Syrup: a wonder for wellness

My friend Melissa just wrote up a great piece about the benefits of elderberry syrup. She mentions me in it because I needed another batch for our most recent round of sickness last month. It's totally true, I swear by it now. It works WONDERS to ease the symptoms of bad colds and flus. I can't believe the difference it makes in just a 24 hour period when it comes to turning my kids around. Start it right at the onset of symptoms. Elderberry syrup folks---a true wonder for wellness!! Its natural antioxidants truly make a difference. We just do two teaspoons, per kid, twice a day as soon as they start coming down sick. They LOVE the taste of it, too! http://grandrapidsnaturalliving.com/how-to-make-elderberry-syrup/