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Newsletter>
A Basil Band-aid?
July 17, 2007
Hello Friends!
Nearly everyone I know who grows a kitchen herb garden for
fresh seasonings includes basil! It is probably one of the
most commonly grown herbs around. I use basil in several of
my favorite dishes and often add it to green salads in the
summer. It is used to make delicious pesto and it blends
with tomatoes like nothing else. One of my favorite summer
suppers is LTC's...lettuce, tomato, and cheese
sandwiches...with a big leaf of basil added for an extra
special flavor!
Those of you who drink kombucha tea should try adding a
large basil leaf along with some ginger for a very
refreshing beverage (you add the ginger and basil at the
begining of the fermenting period and leave it until your
kombucha is ready). If you don't do kombucha, try adding
basil to a jug of green tea with a dash of cinnamon...or
just use cinnamon basil!
Another treat is to whip softened butter together with
chopped basil for a fantastic spread. Smear some of this
herbal butter on a slice of warm, homemade bread.
Basil may be a culinary delight, but it has several
medicinal uses, as well! It is recommended for nausea and
has antispasmodic properties. It also assists the body in
digesting food properly.
Basil contains folic acid and is a good source of
potassium, iron, and calcium. A good, strong basil tea can
be sipped during respiratory infections and is soothing to
sore throats.
Maybe the most surpising thing about basil, is that it has
strong antibacterial properties that help prevent infection
and speeds the healing of wounds. I have found myself now
using basil leaves as band-aids! I am not joking! My sons
run around with basil leaves sticking to their skinned
knees! Let me share a little story with you to prove just
how effective basil leaves are...
My daughter Savannah was bitten last week by a brown
recluse spider. The bite was on her face and it was one of
the most disgusting wounds I have ever had the displeasure
of treating. For those of you who have never seen a brown
recluse spider bite, count yourself blessed. I mixed up a
salve to use externally and began treating her with
internal herbs, as well. I also periodically spread a
bentonite clay paste on the bite to draw out the infection
and venom. The first night she slept with just the
Intensive Care Herbal Salve on the bite. The bite looked
better the next morning, but we still had a long way to go.
The following night we smeared on the salve and covered it
with a large basil leaf. The next morning we were stunned
at how much improvement we saw! After only three nights of
sleeping with the basil leaf covering the salve, the bite
had cleared up so much that I do not expect to see so much
as a scar by the end of this week. For those of you who
are familiar with this type of spider bite, you will
realize just what a miracle it is that she has recovered so
quickly. In less than one week, the bite is practically
gone with just a small pink circle where the flesh is new.
Praise The LORD!
If you do not yet have a tin of Herbal Intensive Care Salve
in your medicine cabinet, consider placing an order today.
You never know when someone will need it. When you cover
the salve with a basil leaf, you have a very powerful
healing agent! If you don't have a clump of basil plants
growing in a pot on your porch, it isn't too late to pick
some up this season. Many garden shops have marked down
the vegetable and herb plants, so now is a good time!
Blessings!
Jennifer Ferris
www.fromfieldsandgardens.com
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