"Natural Healing with Herbs for a Healthier You"
THE BENEFITS OF THE USE OF LEMON BALM
IN HERBAL PREPARATIONS
KNOWN HERBAL FORMULAS OF LEMON BALM
IN HERBAL PREPARATIONS
KNOWN HERBAL FORMULAS OF LEMON BALM
It is with great benefit to modern herbalist that some of our more thoughtful herbal ancestors took time to write down their formulas. Without these formulas, and their additional commentary within, our modern herbal knowledge and our start in creating living medicines would have been slow indeed.
In the case of lemon balm, definitive recipes and formulas reflected is popularity, or lack there of, in history. Some of the more popular formulations containing lemon balm are still held secret today by monasteries or distillers who were given the recipes by the monasteries for mass production. Originally these herbal formulations started out as complex cure alls used in times of rampant plagues and have evolved into what we know as aperitifs and liquors.
Many of the formulas found come in the form of receipts or what we now call recipes. Many were passed from herbal to herbal, most from female heads of households. These women, in their day, were responsible not only for the administration of the house but also in the application of herbal medicines to those around them. So in many cases these following formulas were found in cookbooks, as cookbooks were the book of reference for these stalwart women herbalist and housekeepers.
Many of the formulas for lemon balm and other sweet herbs were in the form of fermented wines. Part of this was due to lemon balm’s flavorful nature but also in part because wines were considered easy keepers. Rarely, if made properly and well, would these wine medicines spoil or lose their potency as compared to the dried or fresh herb. This form of medicine was also a very agreeable method of taking herbal preparations for most patients.
We need to consider that this wine making process could very well have made more potent the effects of the lemon balm in a way that standard infusing, decocting, or tincturing would not have. Fermentation increases enzymatic action and actually predigests the material being used, therefore quite possibly extracting more from the herb in a steady controlled manner. The added extraction potential is something for the reader to consider trying as a form of herbal medicine making with the following receipts as historical guides and teachers.
These receipts are in the language and construct commonly found in their time. The receipts may at first be difficult for the reader to understand and may take some research on equipment used in that time period, to bring the receipt’s application into the 21st century. Just remember that the basic elements the average housewife had in her kitchen laboratory is not very different from what is found in our kitchens today.
“A Refreshing Drink in Fever”
Put two sprigs of Balm and a little wood sorrel, into a stone jug, having first washed and dried them; peel thin a small lemon, and clear from the white (pith); slice it and put a bit of peel in; then pour in 3 pints of boiling water, sweeten and cover it close. (1)
“Claret Cup”
One bottle of claret(wine), one pint bottle of German Seltzer-water, a small bunch of Balm, ditto of burrage(borage), one orange cut in slices, half a cucumber sliced thick, a liquer glass of Cognac, and one ounce bruise sugar-candy.
(Claret Cup) Process: Place these ingredients in a covered jug well immersed in rough ice, stir all together with a silver spoon, and when the cup has been iced for about an hour, strain or decanter it off free from the herbs, etc. Francatelli’s Cook’s Guide (2)
The following recipe formulas are for the famous Carmelite Water. They are taken from two different sources written about 100 years a part. The reader will notice a difference of ingredients as well as complexity in the rendering of the final product. It is unknown by this author if either one is the true formula of the secretive Carmelite monks, but both formulas should give the reader a general idea of the possible scent and flavor of this formula.
One recipe recommends the use of a “balneum mare” for steeping and distilling. This would most likely have been a ban marie water bath to which our modern day equivalent would be a low heat double boiler. Carmelite Water or “Eau de Melisse de Carmes” was used internally as a treatment for just about everything from headache to wrinkles to arthritis and gout. Externally it was used to treat skin problems but most especially cherished as a perfume/ cologne for covering the stench of unwashed bodies, the smell of over crowded cities, and the resulting odor of decay and disease from various plagues.
“Eau de Melissa de Carmes”
“Take of dried balm leaves, 4oz., dried lemon-peel 2do., nutmegs and coriander seeds, each 1 oz., cloves, cinnamon, and dried angelica roots, each 4 dr., spirit of wine, 2 lbs., brandy, 2 ditto., Steep and distill in balneum mariae, re-distill, and keep for sometime in cold cellar.
Mackenzie’s 5000 Receipts, 1829 (3)
“ Eau de Carmes or Eau de Melissa”
Leaves of Lemon Balm 2 ½ oz Crush together and add alcohol at 70 deg. Let stand 8 days and filter .
Lemon Peel, yellow only 2 oz
Nutmeg 1 oz
Cinnamon and Cloves ½ oz each
Used for rubbing. (4)
The following recipe was recommended for alleviating muscle soreness and the pain of gout and arthritis.
“ Aromatic Water for Rubbing”
Leaves of Sage 2 oz, Leaves of Balm 2oz, Leaves of Rosemary 2oz, Leaves of Peppermint 2oz, Flowers of Lavender 1oz, Seed of Fennel ½ oz, Stick of Cinnamon ½ oz.
Cover with alcohol of 90 deg. and let stand several days tightly corked. Then filter and add half as much water as you have liquid. (5)
You will notice in the next recipe that it is similar in its construction as the first fever drink recipe in this chapter. It is a good example of the passing on of herbal knowledge with personalized formulation changes. This following recipe was taken from “The Ideal Cookery Book” by Mrs. Anne Clarke, 1889.
“Receipt #1265 pg 340 - A Fever Drink”
Ingredients- A little tea sage, 2 sprigs of balm, a very small quantity of wood sorrel, a small lemon, 3 pints boiling water.
Put the sage, balm and wood sorrel into a stone jug, having previously washed and dried them, peel then the lemon, and clear from the white; slice and put a piece of the peel in; then pour on the water, sweeten and cover.
It is hard to conclude which of the fever drink recipes came first as one had no date. But the close similarities reveal a recipe that the author, through experience or admiration, felt the need to include in the medical section of her cookbook.
The next recipes are for wines and “Balm” water. The balm water is the oldest of the three recipes. The reader will notice it is more a cordial liquor than an actual wine, the difference being in the cordial there is no fermentation; it is more like a rich sweetened tincture. The wines are an actual fermented product with some need of aging for palatability.
“Balm Water”
Take of Spirits ten Gallons, Water five Gallons, Aniseeds one pound, Bawm Leaves eight handfuls, mix and distill them, draw nine Gallons of Water, and sweeten it with D.L.S. (double refined loaf sugar)The Family Dictionary, 1710 (6)
“Balm Wine”
Take 40 pounds of sugar and 9 gallons of water, boil it gently for 2 hours, skim it well, and put it into a tub to cool. Take 2 pounds and a half of the tops of balm, bruise them, and put them into a barrel, with a little new yeast; and when the liquor is cold, pour it on the balm. Stir it well together, and let stand 24 hours, stirring it often. Then close it up, and let it stand 6 weeks. Then rack it off and put a lump of sugar into every bottle. Cork it well and it will be better the second year than the first.
Mackenzie’s 5000 Receipts, 1829 (7)
“White Mead Wine”
Take of cold soft water, seventeen gallons, white currants, six quarts. Ferment. Mix Honey, 30 pounds, white tartar, in fine powder, 3 oz. Add balm and sweet briar, each 2 handfuls, white brandy 1 gallon. This will make 18 gallons.
Mackenzie’s 5000 Receipts, 1829 (8)
Aside from these beverage recipes no other formulations were found. Most of the older (1800 to 1940) material medicas and herbals gave short shrift to lemon balm in any medicinal formulations. This author found when lemon balm was mentioned it was for use in culinary dishes (soups, sauces, custard, salets) or as a single herb tea for digestive disorders and fevers. It seems the simple power of lemon balm could not compete with more glamorous pharmaceutical formulations using exotic or imported herbs.
More recently some herbals and herbalist are beginning to give lemon balm some attention. They mention in passing lemon balm can be blended with a few other herbs, again for digestive problems or nervousness, but no true formulation seems worth the effort of the authors of the herbals. It could be a case of today’s herbalist falling into the same philosophy of “allopathic” herbalist of the past; which is the herb that comes from far away is the best or most potent (and profitable) and the herb that grows easily outside one’s door is the least potent in medicinal qualities (less profitable).
1.pg 77, “ A Modern Herbal” by Mrs. M. Grieve
2.pg 77, Ibid
3.pg70, “Early American Herb Recipes” by Alice Cooke Brown
4.Appendix-“What to do with Herbs” by Mary Cable Dennis
5.Appendix- Ibid
6.pg 132, “Early American Herb Recipes” by Alice Cooke Brown
7.pg 133, Ibid
8.pg 134, Ibid
In the case of lemon balm, definitive recipes and formulas reflected is popularity, or lack there of, in history. Some of the more popular formulations containing lemon balm are still held secret today by monasteries or distillers who were given the recipes by the monasteries for mass production. Originally these herbal formulations started out as complex cure alls used in times of rampant plagues and have evolved into what we know as aperitifs and liquors.
Many of the formulas found come in the form of receipts or what we now call recipes. Many were passed from herbal to herbal, most from female heads of households. These women, in their day, were responsible not only for the administration of the house but also in the application of herbal medicines to those around them. So in many cases these following formulas were found in cookbooks, as cookbooks were the book of reference for these stalwart women herbalist and housekeepers.
Many of the formulas for lemon balm and other sweet herbs were in the form of fermented wines. Part of this was due to lemon balm’s flavorful nature but also in part because wines were considered easy keepers. Rarely, if made properly and well, would these wine medicines spoil or lose their potency as compared to the dried or fresh herb. This form of medicine was also a very agreeable method of taking herbal preparations for most patients.
We need to consider that this wine making process could very well have made more potent the effects of the lemon balm in a way that standard infusing, decocting, or tincturing would not have. Fermentation increases enzymatic action and actually predigests the material being used, therefore quite possibly extracting more from the herb in a steady controlled manner. The added extraction potential is something for the reader to consider trying as a form of herbal medicine making with the following receipts as historical guides and teachers.
These receipts are in the language and construct commonly found in their time. The receipts may at first be difficult for the reader to understand and may take some research on equipment used in that time period, to bring the receipt’s application into the 21st century. Just remember that the basic elements the average housewife had in her kitchen laboratory is not very different from what is found in our kitchens today.
“A Refreshing Drink in Fever”
Put two sprigs of Balm and a little wood sorrel, into a stone jug, having first washed and dried them; peel thin a small lemon, and clear from the white (pith); slice it and put a bit of peel in; then pour in 3 pints of boiling water, sweeten and cover it close. (1)
“Claret Cup”
One bottle of claret(wine), one pint bottle of German Seltzer-water, a small bunch of Balm, ditto of burrage(borage), one orange cut in slices, half a cucumber sliced thick, a liquer glass of Cognac, and one ounce bruise sugar-candy.
(Claret Cup) Process: Place these ingredients in a covered jug well immersed in rough ice, stir all together with a silver spoon, and when the cup has been iced for about an hour, strain or decanter it off free from the herbs, etc. Francatelli’s Cook’s Guide (2)
The following recipe formulas are for the famous Carmelite Water. They are taken from two different sources written about 100 years a part. The reader will notice a difference of ingredients as well as complexity in the rendering of the final product. It is unknown by this author if either one is the true formula of the secretive Carmelite monks, but both formulas should give the reader a general idea of the possible scent and flavor of this formula.
One recipe recommends the use of a “balneum mare” for steeping and distilling. This would most likely have been a ban marie water bath to which our modern day equivalent would be a low heat double boiler. Carmelite Water or “Eau de Melisse de Carmes” was used internally as a treatment for just about everything from headache to wrinkles to arthritis and gout. Externally it was used to treat skin problems but most especially cherished as a perfume/ cologne for covering the stench of unwashed bodies, the smell of over crowded cities, and the resulting odor of decay and disease from various plagues.
“Eau de Melissa de Carmes”
“Take of dried balm leaves, 4oz., dried lemon-peel 2do., nutmegs and coriander seeds, each 1 oz., cloves, cinnamon, and dried angelica roots, each 4 dr., spirit of wine, 2 lbs., brandy, 2 ditto., Steep and distill in balneum mariae, re-distill, and keep for sometime in cold cellar.
Mackenzie’s 5000 Receipts, 1829 (3)
“ Eau de Carmes or Eau de Melissa”
Leaves of Lemon Balm 2 ½ oz Crush together and add alcohol at 70 deg. Let stand 8 days and filter .
Lemon Peel, yellow only 2 oz
Nutmeg 1 oz
Cinnamon and Cloves ½ oz each
Used for rubbing. (4)
The following recipe was recommended for alleviating muscle soreness and the pain of gout and arthritis.
“ Aromatic Water for Rubbing”
Leaves of Sage 2 oz, Leaves of Balm 2oz, Leaves of Rosemary 2oz, Leaves of Peppermint 2oz, Flowers of Lavender 1oz, Seed of Fennel ½ oz, Stick of Cinnamon ½ oz.
Cover with alcohol of 90 deg. and let stand several days tightly corked. Then filter and add half as much water as you have liquid. (5)
You will notice in the next recipe that it is similar in its construction as the first fever drink recipe in this chapter. It is a good example of the passing on of herbal knowledge with personalized formulation changes. This following recipe was taken from “The Ideal Cookery Book” by Mrs. Anne Clarke, 1889.
“Receipt #1265 pg 340 - A Fever Drink”
Ingredients- A little tea sage, 2 sprigs of balm, a very small quantity of wood sorrel, a small lemon, 3 pints boiling water.
Put the sage, balm and wood sorrel into a stone jug, having previously washed and dried them, peel then the lemon, and clear from the white; slice and put a piece of the peel in; then pour on the water, sweeten and cover.
It is hard to conclude which of the fever drink recipes came first as one had no date. But the close similarities reveal a recipe that the author, through experience or admiration, felt the need to include in the medical section of her cookbook.
The next recipes are for wines and “Balm” water. The balm water is the oldest of the three recipes. The reader will notice it is more a cordial liquor than an actual wine, the difference being in the cordial there is no fermentation; it is more like a rich sweetened tincture. The wines are an actual fermented product with some need of aging for palatability.
“Balm Water”
Take of Spirits ten Gallons, Water five Gallons, Aniseeds one pound, Bawm Leaves eight handfuls, mix and distill them, draw nine Gallons of Water, and sweeten it with D.L.S. (double refined loaf sugar)The Family Dictionary, 1710 (6)
“Balm Wine”
Take 40 pounds of sugar and 9 gallons of water, boil it gently for 2 hours, skim it well, and put it into a tub to cool. Take 2 pounds and a half of the tops of balm, bruise them, and put them into a barrel, with a little new yeast; and when the liquor is cold, pour it on the balm. Stir it well together, and let stand 24 hours, stirring it often. Then close it up, and let it stand 6 weeks. Then rack it off and put a lump of sugar into every bottle. Cork it well and it will be better the second year than the first.
Mackenzie’s 5000 Receipts, 1829 (7)
“White Mead Wine”
Take of cold soft water, seventeen gallons, white currants, six quarts. Ferment. Mix Honey, 30 pounds, white tartar, in fine powder, 3 oz. Add balm and sweet briar, each 2 handfuls, white brandy 1 gallon. This will make 18 gallons.
Mackenzie’s 5000 Receipts, 1829 (8)
Aside from these beverage recipes no other formulations were found. Most of the older (1800 to 1940) material medicas and herbals gave short shrift to lemon balm in any medicinal formulations. This author found when lemon balm was mentioned it was for use in culinary dishes (soups, sauces, custard, salets) or as a single herb tea for digestive disorders and fevers. It seems the simple power of lemon balm could not compete with more glamorous pharmaceutical formulations using exotic or imported herbs.
More recently some herbals and herbalist are beginning to give lemon balm some attention. They mention in passing lemon balm can be blended with a few other herbs, again for digestive problems or nervousness, but no true formulation seems worth the effort of the authors of the herbals. It could be a case of today’s herbalist falling into the same philosophy of “allopathic” herbalist of the past; which is the herb that comes from far away is the best or most potent (and profitable) and the herb that grows easily outside one’s door is the least potent in medicinal qualities (less profitable).
1.pg 77, “ A Modern Herbal” by Mrs. M. Grieve
2.pg 77, Ibid
3.pg70, “Early American Herb Recipes” by Alice Cooke Brown
4.Appendix-“What to do with Herbs” by Mary Cable Dennis
5.Appendix- Ibid
6.pg 132, “Early American Herb Recipes” by Alice Cooke Brown
7.pg 133, Ibid
8.pg 134, Ibid
[Table of Contents] [History] [Location] [Chemical Constituents] [Medicinal Qualities] [Contra-Indications]
[Known Herbal Formulas] [Dosages & Applications] [Personal Experience] [Bibliography]
[Known Herbal Formulas] [Dosages & Applications] [Personal Experience] [Bibliography]
LEMON BALM
by Melissa Morrison
by Melissa Morrison