I’ve been seriously enjoying making my own home remedies. It’s amazing how much you can do with a few simple ingredients, and after I made my first batch of homemade cough syrup, I knew that I had to follow it up with homemade cough drops. I’m a huge believer in the power of cough drops on those bleh nights when you need to soothe a cough.
Probably the biggest drawback with making home remedies however, is that it can get expensive really fast.
I tend to fight that tendency by using the most common ingredients I can.
Would it be better to use coltsfoot and elderberry flowers? Theoretically, yes. But most of us don’t have those things sitting around in our pantries, nor can we pick them up at a local grocery store. And ordering specialty herbs gets expensive fast.
Here’s the herbs I’ve included, and why:
Peppermint
Aside from the fact that peppermint tea tastes awesome, it’s a common cold and flu remedy. Studies have shown that it kills bacteria and viruses. It also has a numbing effect. It also dulls the pain of an aching body. The menthol in peppermint effectively thins mucus and breaks up phlegm. It provides relief from coughs and congestion. You will find menthol as a common ingredient in decongestants.
Chamomile
Chamomile contains immune boosting, and antibacterial properties.
Cinnamon
Cinnamon contains anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-fungal properties.
Ginger
Ginger has been shown to be a powerful natural pain killer, and contains anit-inflammatory properties.
Did you notice anything about that list? All of those herbs have powerful healing properties, and every single one of them is available at almost any grocery store, and are inexpensive to boot. Who says high quality herbal remedies have to be expensive?
There are many different ways you can make your hard syrup into cough drops, you could even make them into lollipops with lollipop sticks and molds.
Homemade cough drops
1 Tablespoon (or one teabag) peppermint tea leaves
1 Tablespoon/teabag chamomile tea
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
¾ cup boiling water
¾ cup honey
Directions
Steep peppermint, chamomile, cinnamon, and ginger in boiling water for 10 minutes or more.
Strain off water, and pour into a small saucepan.
Add honey. Add a few ice cubes to a small glass, fill the glass with water, and set aside.
Heat over medium heat until mixture begins to boil.
Clip candy thermometer to the side of your pan.Then you do some whisking to make sure syrup are thoroughly mixed together
Continue boiling until mixture reaches 300º. (Fahrenheit) This should only take a few minutes
Watch carefully, it is really easy to burn when it gets this hot! Once the honey has reached 300 degrees put a few drops into the ice water (step 3). If the honey hardens immediately upon touching the surface of the water, it’s the right temperature.
One thing you should know is that the water content in honey varies, so sometimes the mixture won’t heat up as much as it should. If that happens, you can add small increments of honey until it gets to 300 degrees.
At this point you can add a few drops of any other herbs you might want to add.
Once it’s done, you use your dropper to put the mixture into your silicone molds. Or you can drop it onto parchment paper where it will form nice little round disks.
Let mixture cool for 5-10 minutes, until it starts to get syrupy.
Once they’ve cooled, you put them on parchment paper. They’re very sticky at this point. We dusted them with cinnamon powder (optional) because it makes the cough drops less sticky and it tastes delicious.
Refrigerating them also helps with the sticky part – and a cold lozenge can feel so good on a sore throat.
Let the homemade cough drops to harden for several hours and then store them in an airtight container in the fridge.
Use as needed to sooth sore, itchy throats, and coughing.
Note you can make this with Honey using many other different herbs of your liking as well using the same steps. Another great way I love to make is with only elderberry syrup, and honey with sprinkled cinnamon.
Ingredients
8 oz Organic Elderberry Syrup
¼ to ½ cup raw honey
Powdered cinnamon for dusting (optional)
Recommended Equipment
Candy Thermometer
Gummy Bear Molds
InstructionsDid you make this recipe?
1. Bring 8 oz of organic elderberry syrup to a boil.
2. Add ¼ cup honey.
3. Whisk the mixture together.
4. Heat over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil.
5. Clip candy thermometer to the side of the pan and heat until 300 degrees. Watch carefully as the mixture can be burn easily.
6. If a few minutes goes by and the mixture is not reaching temp, add small increments of honey until mixture reaches 300 degrees. (The water level in honey varies and you will need to adjust accordingly which means each batch may vary slightly.)
7. Let mixture cool for about 5 minutes.
8. Use a dropper to place in silicone molds or drop by the spoonful on parchment paper.
9. Let cool completely.
10. Place cough drops in bowl or plastic bag.
11. Completely dust with cinnamon for extra flavor and to prevent sticking.
12. Store in an airtight container (I like a glass spice bottle) in the refrigerator for optimal freshness. Refrigeration is not necessary, but I’ve found they don’t get as sticky in the fridge.
Please leave a comment on the blog
Have you tried this honey drops recipe? Or want to give it a try, If so, I’d love to hear what you thought! Also, please share any other homemade health remedies you might have on the blog!