A Sore Throat Elixir that Works!

Earlier this month I had a cold. It started with coughing and then runny nose and then a severe sore throat.  I think in the past, it normally started with a sore throat when I was catching a cold. Lately it's always been the cough first.  Very often the cough would just go away after a couple days but not this time. My voice became hoarse after I started coughing for 3 days. When the sore throat kicked in, I had to take my first sick day at my new job.  By this time, I had already squeezed 4 fresh lemons for making hot turmeric lemon tea and drank it for several days. That was one of the home remedies someone gave me. It might have kept me hydrated but certainly didn't cure the cough.  As I laid in my bed, I figured there had to be other home remedies I could try. There had to be something that would actually work.

I stumbled upon a youtube video of a woman making a raw garlic, cayenne pepper, and honey elixir to cure her sore throat. I also watched a woman who swallowed a tablespoon of pure honey, and a few other video clips which all claimed they would work. I have tried the pure honey method in the past. It didn't cure my sore throat. After watching a few more videos, I wanted to see the raw garlic video again but could not find it.  I started to Google the internet for any reference of that remedy and found an article on Dr. Christopher's Herbal Legacy. I remembered that woman in the youtube video saying that Dr. Christopher was the person who she learned the remedy from.  At this time I had taken extra strength Tylenol for several days. I also took some cough syrup.  I figured that I had nothing lose to try this safe home remedy.  I quickly walked to the grocery across the street in my pajama to get the ingredients I needed and made the elixir.  Below is the formula:

* One tablespoon of pure honey
* ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper
* Four cloves of garlic pressed through a garlic press

Those are the proportions, but you’ll need more than that, so take four tablespoons of honey, one teaspoon of cayenne pepper and sixteen pressed cloves of garlic, and mix that all together.  Take ½ teaspoon to one teaspoon of the formula every 30-60 minutes.
Don’t wash it down - let the honey coat the throat.

I do not have a garlic press, so I just minced all 16 cloves of garlic with a knife. I swallowed this elixir every 30 minutes until the whole thing was gone. I felt the heat in my face and inside of my ears after swallowing the garlic and cayenne pepper; however, it was not unbearable due to the sweetness of honey.  It felt like something was actually working with the burning sensation.  Before I finished it all, my throat no longer hurt. It actually worked like a miracle just like the article says. I was very excited. Now knowing this magic potion, I shall not suffer from sore throat anymore.

Potatoes and Garlic

Potatoes are sprouting

Potatoes and garlic are cheap to buy. I have wondered whether it was worth my efforts to grow them. Now, three years into growing my own food, I decided it is always nice to have potatoes and garlic right in the backyard. Both are super easy to grow, and they will regenerate themselves year after year. I don't have to drive down the grocery store for potatoes or garlic, which saves time and gas and better for the planet.

After I cleared out the patches, I decided to pick out the potatoes so I can add compost to the soil. If I left the potatoes in there, I would puncture them as I turn and loosen up the soil. I have both red and purple potatoes. They are great as country fries for breakfast and/or brunch.

cluster of sprouting garlic cloves

Garlic cloves are all sprouting, so I need to separate them for each one to grow into a big bulb. Now I realized that I'll never run out of garlic as long as I keep propagating them. Garlic is perfect with potatoes.  How about some garlic fries or garlicky mashed potatoes or roasted garlic and potatoes? Are you hungry yet?

I love being able to step out of my backdoor to pick my meals.

Garlic cloves are separated for replanting

Garlic and Onion

First bulb of garlic

I grow a lot of onion. Besides onion, I also grow chives, garlic chives, and garlic. They are all related to onion and belong to Allium genus. I grow them for several reasona: 1. They are easy to grow, 2. They are essential in cooking, 3. They offer many health and medicinal benefits. "In in vitro studies, garlic has been found to have antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal activity. However, these actions are less clear in vivo. Garlic is also claimed to help prevent heart disease (including atherosclerosis, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure) and cancer. Garlic is used to prevent certain types of cancer, including stomach and colon cancers. In fact, countries where garlic is consumed in higher amounts, because of traditional cuisine, have been found to have a lower prevalence of cancer." (For more info, see Wikipedia)

Garlic patch

Last night my best friend asked me if I have a couple onions to spare. This morning I went out there to dig up some onions. The onions I have now are smaller than commercial onions because I didn't leave enough spacing. I just planted a bunch of seeds and didn't take the time to separate them. Since they were covered in dirt, I cut off the long roots and peeled off the outer layers. They are very pungent, so I am leaving them outside of the car until I am ready to drive up to visit my friend. Onions are very nutritious. Below is the nutritional chart of onion. For more info, please see Wikipedia.

Onion

I planted the garlic bulbs more than a year ago. Initially, they seemed to have died. Suddenly I saw them growing, so I proceeded to separate them. Now the green parts are drying up, so I know they are ready to harvest. Have you ever roasted garlic? A few years ago, I got several pounds of garlic bulbs from a Gilroy grower. I roasted about half of them and squeezed out all the roasted garlic pulp into a glass jar. I kept the roasted garlic mixed with olive oil in the fridge and used it for cooking. It always made the food taste and smell better. It's super easy to roast garlic. This is the recipe I used - Roasted Garlic Recipe.

For a brief period, I wondered whether it was worth my time to grow onions and garlic since they are very affordable in grocery stores. With all the food contamination outbreaks in recent years, I say it's well worth it. I know exactly how my vegetables are grown and what's in the soil. Additionally, who wants to go to the grocery store just for a few cloves of garlic?

Green onion patch