Today I was planning to make a batch of Supertonic for the oncoming winter season. It’s a powerful germ fighting mix that I made for the first time last year (I think the recipe comes from Dr. Schultze) and was glad to have on hand. Several of my littler kids have runny noses and it’s a reminder to me to get some Supertonic in the works fast! I bought almost all the ingredients I needed at the vegetable store last week, but still needed to get some echinacea leaves for it so today I popped into the health food store to buy some.
The price for the echinacea wasn’t marked, and to my good fortune, I had to wait a long time for the person who knew what the price was to become available. Finally I decided to put it back and order it online instead (though I did buy three homeopathic remedies once I was there – arnica – I keep one of these in my purse all the time; spongia tosta – for my dd who tends to get a croupy cough in the winter; thuja- for my 2 year old who has warts). The good fortune part of the clerk not being available is that by buying from www.bulkherbstore.com I can spend much less and get much more!
I haven’t ordered bulk herbs since I got a huge amount of pregnancy herbs, I think when I was pregnant with my 2.5 year old. I had enough to last me through the pregnancy after that, too, and in fact, I bought so much that I still have a large bag of red raspberry leaves. I was very happy with their prices and quality. Most of the herbs I bought today I’ve never gotten before, though I’m familiar with a number of them from reading – here’s what I got: alfalfa, bentonite clay, comfrey, echinacea, fennel, lobelia, mullein, olive leaf, Pau d’Arco bark, spearmint, stevia leaves, spirulina, and some salve (one small container to keep in the car, and a larger one for the house) – they were out of peppermint and chamomile, which I really like, but I did get some Jasmine green tea. I also got some arrowroot powder, which I need to start using more of since my ds15 has announced last week that he doesn’t want to eat gluten.
Some people like to load up on over the counter medication in preparation for the winter, but I’m not a fan of allopathic medicine and I don’t touch any of them. I’d rather learn more about how to take care of my family safely and in ways that build up and strengthen their bodies. Each of the herbs some in a half pound bag (though a couple of them I bought more than one bag full), so this order that should last for quite a while. I spent a little over $100 for all of it, and would have spent several times that if I bought it all at the health food store.
Here’s the recipe for Supertonic:
- 1 part fresh chopped white onions
- 1 part fresh chopped garlic cloves
- 1 part fresh chopped grated ginger root
- 1 part fresh grated horseradish root
- 1 part cayenne pepper
- 1 part dried echinacea
Put it all in a glass jar, and fill with raw apple cider vinegar (I use Bragg’s) to cover. Close the jar and shake vigorously. Let sit 14 days or longer. Strain and keep in glass jar. Take 4 – 5 droppersfull (can use a teaspoon, too) in juice several times daily when first feeling sick.
I don’t usually give my kids juice, and we alternate between going through it very quickly when using it as a base for vitamin c powder or Supertonic, and not having any at all. So what I’ve decided to do this year is buy the juice concentrate, so I can keep several in the freezer and use it as I need it. I have about ten concentrates of different flavors waiting in the freezer for just this reason right now. 🙂
Avivah
I’m sorry but I do not understand how to follow this recipe and I’d like to make it.
Also, I am trying to get away from traditional medicine, but I am very uneducated in naturopathic/homeopathic remedies. Are there any books/websites thay you think might be helpful.
I’ll try to explain it better. I put each of the ingredients through a food processor, then put them all in a glass jar together. Fill the jar with raw apple cider vinegar until all the ingredients are covered. After it’s been sitting at least two weeks, you’ll need to strain it so that you don’t have pieces of anything in it – you’re going to end up with a very powerful vinegar that you can take by putting just a little bit in some juice. I use a piece of clean muslin to strain it. Does that make it clearer?
I wish I was well educated in homeopathics and herbal remedies, but I only know a tiny amount compared to what there is to learn. I like the site I linked above because they give a ton of useful information on how to use each herb – they try to help you educate yourself about herbs. They have several books on herbal healing, but yesterday I checked out a couple of library books on herbs and plan to take notes. I think homeopathics is more complicated, because each remedy is very specific, and the couple of books I’ve read haven’t been very helpful. So for now, sorry, no recommendations!
Ok, sorry, but I still have one more question. I tend to need very literal recipe directions. My question is how much a part is. If I know the size of a part for one of the items then I can figure out that everything needs to be that size. Not sure if this makes sense. Could you just tell me how much onion you use? Maybe then I can figure it out.
Oh, I see the confusion! A part is whatever measurement you decide to use – let’s say you put in a 1/2 cup of onions, then you put in a 1/2 cup of every other ingredient. I probably would make a bigger batch than what you would use, so my measurements wouldn’t be so useful.
Good mercy. We call that ‘fire cider’ and it’s frequently in use by herbalists as a tonic through the winter!
Is it imperative to filter out the pieces? I’m inclined to leave everything in the jar and just use a spoonful once in a while.
Not imperative, just more pleasant to use when strained!