By Emma Merritt

In the wintertime, especially in the Northeastern U.S., it is a time when care for our skin and hands in particular becomes important.  And in 2020, with all the extra hand-washing even more so!  Here's a recipe to make your own hand balm at home.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sunflower oil (or other liquid oil of choice)

• 1/2 cup herbs (comfrey, calendula, and/or chamomile, to your liking)

• 4 tbs coconut oil

• 1 tbs beeswax

• 1 tbs cocoa butter

• 2 tbs shea butter

• Essential oils (optional)

Steps:

1. Combine oil and herbs and heat in a double boiler for at least 20 minutes (alternately use oven or sun method)

1. Strain oil

1. Clean out glass vessel and return oil to it

1. Add solid ingredients and stir until everything is melted

1. Remove from heat and pour into glass jars

1. Label, date, store in a cool, dark place or next to the sink

Use liberally as needed. Works great for dry hands.

For a thicker salve, use more beeswax.

Want to learn more?  Check our our brand new "DIY Herbalism" online medicine making course where you'll find more recipes and instructional videos.

Have fun, and let us know if you have any questions!

Emma Merritt is a clinical herbalist and educator with over eight years of experience. She graduated from Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism’s Three Year Clinical Training Program in 2012. Emma believes that connection to the earth is where healing begins. She teaches classes on medicine making and basic principles of herbalism. As a clinical herbalist, Emma works with people with a variety of health goals. Many of her clients are interested in improving digestive health, relieving stress and anxiety, hormone balancing, allergy relief, and better sleep. She takes a gentle, client-centered approach to healing.  You can book an herbal consultation with Emma here.

By Susan Staley

No matter how you plan to spend this winter holiday season from now until New Years Day, it is bound to be as bittersweet as a bar of dark chocolate. A mix of longing, new territory, and various pressures with creative ways of connecting with others, celebration, and hopefully some peace. Whatever this season is like for you, we’ve compiled a short list of herbs and practices you can lean into during this time.

With the shortness of the days everything can be touched with a feeling of reflection, which may be both challenging and beautiful.  We hope that the following list, and the suggestions therein, will be a kind of helpful friend along the way.

1. Drink Tea. Hey, it’s cold, it’s the season of ‘drink hot tea any time of day’! A cup of aromatic herbal tea may be just the thing you need to support nerves, digestion, lethargy, and immunity right now. Look towards herbs like tulsi, lemon balm, lavender, chamomile, ginger, licorice, milky oats, and peppermint. Herbal teas also help us to stay hydrated, crucial when spending more time inside of heated buildings. 
2. Skip the sugar. No, not all season necessarily (balance people, balance). Simple sugars are a big immune suppressor, and also a way many people express love for others in the form of gifts and tradition (bittersweet, right?). If you know there will be many of your favorite sweets coming in your near future, focus on the savory now. When the time comes, go ahead and indulge, give thanks, and enjoy. But, have some bitters and practice moderation otherwise. 
3. Make these Bliss Balls*.  These delicious bites are good to have on hand when a sugar craving strikes or energy dips. Including adaptogenic herbs like ashwagandha, reishi, or licorice in your recipe is nourishing and increases your resiliency to stressors and challenges that will arise. Bliss balls are sort of like a simultaneous warm blanket and brisk walk in herb form. We’ve included astragalus root in the recipe below for extra immune support. 
4. Get to Bed or Give Yourself the Gift of Time. Nights are long, take advantage of the still darkness. Clean your sheets. Put your phone on airplane mode. Take a bath if you like. Grab a book or a notebook. Get creative. Consciously transitioning out of “working”, and into rest/ relaxation/creativity mode can have huge effects on mental health, immune function, and general well-being. ‘Tis the season. 
5. Be Generous. Think of others. Everyone is going through it one way or the other. Some of us are struggling more profoundly than others, both in our communities and around the world. Consider others and ask yourself what you might do with your resources to contribute to a more just and kind world. Be easy on yourself and others. 

Warming Adaptogenic Winter Bliss Balls Recipe

Tools: 

• Measuring Cup
• Tablespoon and Teaspoon
• Small -sized bowl
• Medium-sized bowl (or double boiler, can be make-shift)
• Mixing spoon

Ingredients:

• 1 cup nut butter (tahini with almond or peanut butter work well. Use what you like/have)
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds (optional)
• 1/2 cup raisins or other dried fruit- if using larger pieces, chop them smaller (optional)
• 1-2 tablespoons maple syrup- can help with mixing if “dough” is stiff (optional)
• One cup mixed herb powder:
  • 1 oz/~3 heaping tablespoons  ashwagandha root powder
  • 1 oz/~3 heaping tablespoons astragalus root powder
  • 1 oz/ ~3 heaping tablespoons carob/ cacao powder
  • 1 tablespoon licorice root powder
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon powder
  • 1 tablespoon ginger powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg  
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

Method: 

1. Combine herb and spice powders and whisk together in a small bowl. 
2. Depending on how stiff your honey and nut butters are, either mix together in a medium sized bowl or use a double boiler method to just soften. Blend together. Add vanilla extract and maple syrup if using. 

3.  Add in herb powders and mix into a stiff dough.

4.  Add slivered almonds and dried fruit. Mix well.

5.  Use your hands to form into balls the size of large cherries.

6.  Store in an airtight container up to a month outside of the fridge.
7.   Eat 1-3 balls/day with a cup of hot herbal tea. Salud!

Susan Staley is a clinical and community herbalist and staff member with Railyard Apothecary. She deeply values those herbs and plants commonly available in most grocery stores, and the where the edge blurs between food and medicine. She works with individuals with a variety of health goals including immune, digestive, and mood support. You can schedule a conversation with her or other members of Burlington Herb Clinic here.