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Practical use of peppermint for healing, magick, cooking
Peppermint is another common, easily obtained, yet very useful herb. Peppermint tea can be purchased easily in tea bags or as loose tea. Most people are familiar with the aroma and flavor of peppermint since it is found in candies, toothpaste, chewing gum, and many other commonly used products. The essential oil also has many uses and is usually one of the least expensive oils found in natural foods stores and health stores.
Magickal Peppermint:
Peppermint has been used in healing and purification spells and is believed to raise the vibrations of an area. For this purpose it has been rubbed against furniture, walls and floorboards. It has been used in pillows to promote sleep, and has been believed to make dreams pre-cognitive. It is also believed to be useful in mixtures for love spells. One of it's amazing traits is that even though it's scent is stimulating it is still soothing. Peppermint's strong uplifting scent can be a powerful tool in raising our awareness and clarifying our purpose.
Peppermint For Health: One of the most common medicinal uses for peppermint is to aid in digestion and calm nerves. A good cup of peppermint tea can bring relief from indigestion, nausea, acid stomach or just nervousness and stress.
The secret to good peppermint tea:
Peppermint Bath & Body:
Peppermint Hair Rinse:
Peppermint Bath:
Peppermint oil:
Be sure you test a bit of the oil on your skin to be sure you are not overly sensitive to it.
Peppermint For Cooking: Peppermint is a flavor that is usually associated with candy. But this wonderful herb can be a culinary delight if used in the right dishes.
Salads:
Steamed Vegetables:
This is wonderfully refreshing, lo-cal dessert, and a welcome change from all the heavy holiday sweetness!:
Peppermint History: Mint has been around for a long time. It is also in Greek mythology and according to legend, "Minthe" who was originally a nymph, and Pluto's lover, angered Pluto's wife Persephone, who in a fit of rage turned Minthe into a lowly plant, to be trod upon.
Peppermint is actually native to Asia but was also used by Egyptians. Spearmint grew wild in the United States after the 1600s, and peppermint was cultivated commercially before the Civil War.
One of the most successful and prestigious businesses in the world, the H.G. Hotchkiss International Prize Medal Essential Oil Company was founded by Hiram Gilbert Hotchkiss in 1839 in Phelps, New York. By 1841, the business had been moved to Lyons to be nearer the Erie Canal. It was found that Hotchkiss oil was purer than any other oil available. The oil sold for more per pound than any other, and the Hotchkiss Essential Oil Company became the largest of its kind in the world. It was said that travelers on the Erie Canal could always tell when they were nearing Lyons -- they could smell the peppermint. The long, successful history of the H.G. Hotchkiss Company made Lyons the peppermint capital of the world for many years.
One pound of mint oil can flavor 13,000 sticks of chewing gum. The peppermint oil produced in the United States last year alone could flavor 117 billion sticks of chewing gum. The United States produces about 70 percent of the world's mint supply.
One More Use: Peppermint can also be used as an insect repellent. Use the dried leaves to discourage bugs from getting into stored grain. Fill a nylon stocking with dried peppermint and put it right into your grain.
Good quality peppermint will have enough volatile oil in it to be useful for most needs. Getting the best of this oil depends on preparing the tea properly and protecting the delicate oil from evaporating. The simple secret is DON"T BOIL IT! it. Also steep it in a container with a well-fitting cover. If you ever accidently boil your peppermint tea, you might want to consider throwing it in the compost and starting over.See How-to page for teas, infusions and decoctions
See How-to make iced tea teapot style, sun tea and refrigerator tea.
Peppermint Facial:
To help cleanse the pores, stimulate circulation, and enhance a healthy glow in the skin, use your peppermint tea as a steam facial. Put a towel over your head and hang over your pot of tea for 10 minutes or so. You'll also be surprised at how uplifting it is!
Again using a simple batch of peppermint tea use it as a hair rinse, leaving in on for a minute or two before rinsing. This is a great stimulating tonic for the hair and scalp.
After a long day's work, there is nothing like a peppermint bath to cleanse and strengthen your personal energy. You can make a pot of tea and pour it directly into your bath, throw a muslin bag full of peppermint right into the water, or a few drops of peppermint oil will all give you this great effect.
Peppermint oil can be both energizing and soothing. This isn't as contradictory as it seems if one takes into account peppermint's unique aroma and the constituent menthol. At first cooling and bracing, then warming and comforting, the body and mind seem to tune into and benefit from the needed characteristics.
The oil has a very decongestant effect due to the menthol it contains. You can feel this just by inhaling it's aroma. Try rubbing a drop of oil on the temples, forehead, behind the ear, or back of the neck for a headache. If you know you are having mild trouble with a congested digestive system you can rub a drop or two right on the affected area, (liver, stomach), as well as drinking some tea.
Fresh leaves are good with salads. Mint is great in a mixed greed salad and perfect when chopped finely and added to a fruit salad. Mixed with bulgar, red onions, tomatoes, parsley, and a lemony vinaigrette, it becomes Tabbouleh, a Middle Eastern salad perfect for summertime picnics.
Mint is most commonly used with peas. Carrots, potatoes, eggplant, white or black beans, and corn all pep up with the addition of freshly chopped mint. Add the herb at the end of the cooking process.Lemon Mint Granita
1 C. sugar
3 C. water
1 C. lemon juice
2 sprigs mint, gently bruised
1. In a nonreactive med. saucepan, combine sugar and water. Bring to boiling, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat. Simmer 5 minutes.
2. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon and mint sprigs. Cool to room temperature. Strain into 2 9-inch pie pans, or shallow dishes.
3. Freeze for 1 hour. Stir well, crushing lumps of ice with the back of a fork.
4. Return to freezer for 2 hours, scraping into flakes with fork every 1/2 hour until a flaky slush forms.
5. For serving, grate the granita with a fork into small chilled goblets. Garnish with mint sprigs.
Makes about 6 small servings.
Also dab some peppermint oil onto a bandana or scarf to wear around your neck to keep some biting bugs from having you for dinner!
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