Herbal Delights - Tisanes, Syrups, Confections, Electuaries, Robs, Juleps, Vinegars, and Conserves

C. F. Leyel

Description

This wonderful volume is an encyclopaedia of herbs and spices that can be used to make various conserves and confections.

First published in 1937, Herbal Delights details various forms of herbs and spices that can be used to make tisanes, syrups confections, electuaries, juleps, vinegar, and conserves. Accompanying information such as the herb’s habitat is also included in this volume.

This volume’s contents include:

- Aromatic Tisanes

- Cordial Herbs

- Cooling Herbs

- Refreshing Herbs

- Pot Herbs

- Spices

- Natural Perfumes

- Cosmetic Herbs

- Witch Hazel

- Strawberry

- Quince

- Lupins

Sujets

• Cuisine
• Cuisine par ingrédients
• La cuisine et son histoire
• Cooking

Informations

• Publié par: Read Books Ltd.
• Date de parution: 27 septembre 2016
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781473357945
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 3 Mo

Extrait

HERBAL DELIGHTS
Tisanes, Syrups, Confections Electuaries, Robs, Juleps, Vinegars, and Conserves
by
MRS. C. F. LEYEL
with drawings by
M. E. Rivers-Moore
Copyright 2013 Read Books Ltd. This book is copyright and may not be reproduced or copied in any way without the express permission of the publisher in writing
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
A Short History of Herbalism
Herbalism ( herbology or herbal medicine ) is the use of plants for medicinal purposes, and the study of such use. It covers all sorts of medicinal plants, natural remedies or cures, traditional and alternative medicines. Modern medicine tends to categorise herbalism firmly as an alternative therapy as its practice is not strictly based on evidence gathered using the scientific method. Modern medicine does make use of many plant-derived compounds however, as the basis for evidence-tested pharmaceutical drugs. Phytotherapy also works to apply modern standards of effectiveness testing to medicines derived from natural sources.
Medicinal plants have been identified and used throughout human history. Archaeological evidence indicates that the use of medicinal plants dates at least to the Paleolithic age, approximately 60,000 years ago. Written evidence of herbal remedies dates back over 5,000 years to the Sumeranians, who created long lists of useful plants. A number of ancient cultures wrote on plants and their medical uses. In ancient Egypt, herbs are mentioned in Egyptian medical papyri, depicted in tomb illustrations, or on rare occasions found in medical jars containing trace amounts of herbs. The earliest known Greek herbals were those of Diocles of Carystus, written during the third century BC, and one by Krateuas from the first century BC. Only a few fragments of these works have survived intact, but from what remains scholars have noted that there is a large amount of overlap with the Egyptian herbals.
Seeds likely used for herbalism have been found in archaeological sites of Bronze Age China dating from the Shang Dynasty, and herbs were also common in the medicine of ancient India, where the principal treatment for diseases was diet. De Materia Medica (an encyclopaedia and pharmacopoeia of herbs and medicines), written between 50 and 70 AD by a Roman physician, Pedanius Dioscorides, is a particularly important example of such writings; focused on the diet and natural remedies. The documentation of herbs and their uses was a central part of both Western and Eastern medical scholarship through to the eighteenth century, and these works played an important role in the development of the science of botany too. Dandelion for instance, was used as an effective laxative and diuretic, and as a treatment for bile or liver problems, whilst the essential oil of common thyme was (and is) utilised as a powerful antiseptic and antifungal. Before the advent of modern antibiotics, oil of thyme was additionally used to medicate bandages.
The fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth centuries were the great ages of herbal remedies; with many corresponding texts being published. The first Herbal to be published in English was the anonymous Grete Herball of 1526. The two best-known herbals in English were The Herball or General History of Plants (1597) by John Gerard and The English Physician Enlarged (1653) by Nicholas Culpeper. Culpeper s blend of traditional medicine with astrology, magic and folklore was ridiculed by the physicians of his day, yet his book - like Gerard s and other herbals, enjoyed phenomenal popularity. Natural medicines gradually waned in popularity as the 1900s progressed however, and the twentieth century also saw the slow erosion of plants as the pre-eminent sources of therapeutic effects.
Despite this, today the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that eighty percent of the population of some Asian and African countries use herbal medicine for some aspect of primary health care. Pharmaceuticals are prohibitively expensive for most of the world s inhabitants, half of which lives on less than two American dollars a day. In comparison, herbal medicines can be grown from seed or gathered from nature at little or no cost. In actual fact, many of the pharmaceuticals currently available to physicians have a long history of use as herbal remedies, including opium, aspirin, digitalis and quinine. As is evident from this incredibly short history of herbalism and natural plant remedies - it is an aspect of human medicine with an incredibly long, varied and intriguing record. With many such traditional cures still used in the present; the multifaceted uses of plants continues to surprise us. We hope the reader enjoys this book.
NOTE
The herbs that are traditionally used medicinally fall more or less into two groups; those that are pleasant to the taste and are used either for culinary purposes or for brewing, distilling, flavouring or for making tisanes, and those that are used for their more definitely medicinal properties.
In this book I have included only those herbs that belong to the first class. In a future volume I propose to treat as fully those herbs that come into the second category. I shall not include any of the poisonous herbs, as that knowledge is too dangerous to be disseminated in a book intended for the general public.
H. L.
CONTENTS
I NTRODUCTION
I. A ROMATIC T ISANES
Angelica
Arbor-Vitae
Arenaria
Asarabacca
Lady s Bedstraw
Bergamot
Birch
Buchu
Camellia
Camomile
Ceanothus
Chaste Tree
Costmary
Couch-Grass
Golden Gorse
Golden Rod
Ground-Ivy
Holly
Hyssop
Lavender
Lovage
Meadowsweet
Rosemary
Speedwell
Sweet Vernal Grass
Tansy
Wood Betony
II. C ORDIAL H ERBS
Avens
Balm
Borage
Burnet Saxifrage
Butterbur
Calamint
Carnation
Marigold
Melilot
Motherwort
Pansies
Roses
Viper s Bugloss
Woodruff
III. C OOLING H ERBS
Adder s Tongue
Arrach
Beech
Cucumber
Docks
Groundsel
Horsetail
Kidneywort
Melon
Pear
Purslane
Ragwort
Sarsaparilla
Stonecrops
Succory
Violet
IV. R EFRESHING H ERBS
Apple
Catmint
Chickweed
Currants
Gooseberry
Houseleek
Lemon
Mints
Mulberry
Orange
Parsley Piert
Pellitory of the Wall
Pineapple
Pomegranate
Raspberry
Sorrel
Tamarind
V. P OT H ERBS
Alexanders
Arrowhead
Ash
Basil
Bay
Brooklime
Bur Marigold
Butcher s Broom
Buttercup
Campanulas
Clivers
Cochlearia
Colewort
Corn Salad
Crowfoots
Glassworts
Goat s Beard
Good King Henry
Marjoram
Mugwort
Nettle
Onion
Parsley
Peony
Radish
Rest Harrow
Rocket
Sage
Samphire
Savory
Saxifrages
Shepherd s Purse
Spurges
Stitchwort
Stocks
Sunflower
Sweet Cicely
Tarragon
Thyme
Watercress
Willowherb
VI. S PICES
Allspice
Aniseed
Broom
Canella
Capsicum
Caraway
Cardamom
Cascarilla
Cassia
Cinnamon
Cloves
Coriander
Cumin
Dill
Galangal
Ginger
Juniper
Mustard
Nasturtium
Nutmeg
Peppers
Persicaria
Saffron
Sweet Gale
VII. N ATURAL P ERFUMES
Gum Benjamin
Sweet Calamus
Camphor
Frankincense
Scented Grasses
Irises
Myrrh
Myrtle
Opopanax
Patchouli
Sandalwood
Storax
Tonquin Bean
VIII. C OSMETIC H ERBS
Avocado Pear
Broomrape
Burdock
Butterwort
Cuckoopint
Elder
Fumitory
Gromwell
Henna
Ivy
Jaborandi
Lady s Mantle
Lupins
Osiers or Dogwood
Quince
Rhatany
Soapwort
Solomon s Seal
Southernwood
Strawberry
Witch Hazel
I NDEX OF B OTANICAL N AMES
I NDEX OF E NGLISH N AMES
I NDEX OF C OUNTRY N AMES
I NDEX OF F RENCH N AMES
I NDEX OF I TALIAN N AMES
I NDEX OF G ERMAN N AMES
ILLUSTRATIONS
Arenaria- Arenaria rubra
Asarabacca- Asarum Europaeum
Chaste tree- Agnus-castus
Costmary- Tanacetum balsamita
Couch-Grass- Triticum repens
Hyssop- Hyssopus officinalis
Lovage- Levisticum officinale
Wood Betony- Betonica officinalis
Avens- Geum urbanum
Burnet Saxifrage- Pimpinella saxifraga
Butterbur- Petasites vulgaris
Calamint- Calamintha officinalis
Melilot- Melilotus officinalis
Motherwort- Leonurus cardiaca
Viper s Bugloss- Echium vulgare
American Adder s Tongue- Erythronium Americanum
Stinking Arrach- Chenopodium olidum
Purslane- Portulaca sativa
Ragwort- Senecio Jacob a
Sarsaparilla- Smilax ornata
Succory- Cichorium intybus
Parsley Piert- Alchemilla arvensis
Pellitory of the Wall- Parietaria officinalis
Alexanders- Smyrnium Olusatrum
Bur Marigold- Bidens tripartita
Butcher s Broom- Ruscus aculeatus
Clivers- Galium Aparine
Glasswort- Salicornia herbacea
Yellow Goat s Beard- Tragopogon pratensis
Good King Henry- Chenopodium bonus Henricus
Mugwort- Artemisia vulgaris
Garden Rocket- Hesperis matronalis
Samphire- Crithmum maritimum
Shepherd s Purse- Capsella bursa-pastoris
Sweet Cicely- Myrrhis odorata
Caraway- Carum carvi
Cascarilla- Croton eluteria
Coriander- Coriandrum sativum
Cumin- Cuminum Cyminum
Lesser Galangal- Alpinia officinarum
Persicaria- Polygonum amphibium
Sweet Gale- Myrica gale
Myrrh- Commiphora myrrha
Patchouli- Pogostemon patchouli
Butterwort- Pinguicula vulgaris
Gromwell- Lithospermum officinale
Henna- Lawsonia alba
Jaborandi- Pilocarpus jaborandi
Lady s Mantle- Alchemilla vulgaris
Osier- Cornus sericea
INTRODUCTION
Vegetation is the primary source of food for every form of life.
If the earth were not covered with its green growth it would be uninhabitable because the violence of the elements would reduce its surface to powder. Without the shade of trees, shrubs and herbs, the earth would be a desert. The moisture absorbed by plant life is given out again and keeps the surface of the earth from getting parched.
Plants bind the soil together and prevent tempests and floods from washing it away, as grasses bind the sand dunes on the seashore.
All living t