Anise Hyssop Medicine + fragrant herbal projects

I am planning to grow Anise Hyssop again this year, in my tiny garden. I love its fragrant broad leaves and gorgeous purple floral spikes. This beauty is definitely one of my favourite pollinators and it’s a joy to watch the buzzing bees who agree that this is a special plant friend. Anise hyssop medicine is fragrant and offers many benefits.

I use Anise Hyssop as a tea, in a tea blend, or as a tincture. Any remaining flowers + leaves? I make herbal projects like the ones below. All tasty + fun to make!

Anise Hyssop Medicine:

This lovely fragrant herb offers digestive support and can alleviate uncomfortable gas and bloating.  We can use Anise Hyssop in a delicious tea to help to relieve congestion and to relieve bouts of harsh excessive coughing. With anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory attributes, Anise Hyssop (tincture or tea) combines well with licorice root to soothe bronchitis and help to clear up respiratory infections. As a gentle cardiac herb, Anise Hyssop is a wonderful addition to a supportive formula to strengthen a weak heart.

Anise Hyssop Medicine ~ Infusion

Such a well-loved tea herb,  this special fragrant plant lifts up anyone when enjoyed hot or cold! It's an easy herb to grow and such a pretty addition to your garden. I hope you'll grow this one, even if space is limited to a large pot on the balcony.

Anise Hyssop Projects:

The edible flowers find their way into floral ice cubes and make a delightful addition to festive tea parties with my girlfriends! They impart a light anise flavour and can serve as a beautiful edible garnish as well. Separate the tiny flowers from the stem and elevate the presentation of a chilled summer soup or fruit salad. Last year, a chilled Vichyssoise soup was adorned this way and very impressive!

We can enjoy anise hyssop much the way we use other mints. The leaves smell like black licorice with the addition of delicate hints of black pepper, camphor, lemon, pine and sage.
I sometimes enjoy this herb ‘solo’ in an infusion but tend to combine with other herbs as I like ‘licorice’ but personally, prefer it mellowed in with other flavours.
My current favourite is lemon balm, with anise hyssop and milky oats from Healing Spirits Farm*

There’s a local “farm to table” restaurant which uses the leaves in fatty meat dishes as the chef believes that the complex flavours cut though the lamb or pork dishes to bring balance. I’ve not tried this myself but at some point, I will chop up some leaves and try this idea.

We can infuse it to make a delightful ice cream that is quite lovely if you enjoy floral slightly licorice scented frozen desserts. I have enjoyed gelato made with anise hyssop too.
I have not made either but have tasted both and plan to make this summer as I now own an ice cream maker!

I am a fan of infusing herbs throughout the growing season and if you are too, here are 5 more ideas to embrace this lovely anise scented purple spiked perennial wonder!

Those who are big licorice fans may like to infuse sugar with the leaves. This is an easy herb project:

“Anise Hyssop Sugar”
Place some sugar in a glass jar.
Place some anise hyssop leaves in the jar, layering with more sugar.
Keep leaves apart, not touching, if possible.
Add a light layer of sugar and another layer of leaves
The idea is simply to get a few leaves and some sugar in a closed glass container for a month or so, which gives the sugar time to embrace the anise flavour. After a month, the infused sugar is ready to use in desserts or cocktails as an ingredient in another simple syrup concoction!

“Anise Hyssop Cordial”

Harvest enough fresh leaves to ½ fill a glass jar.
Top with good quality vodka. Fill the jar completely.
Use a wooden chopstick to poke through the leaves so that air bubbles escape
Allow to macerate for about 1 month.
Strain the liquid into a 2^nd glass-canning jar.
Make a simple syrup and add this to the anise hyssop tincture
Voila! It’s ready to enjoy.
The measurements in this recipe will depend upon the size of the original glass jar and amount of vodka used, as well as the desired sweetness of your finished ‘cordial’.
Typically, I am not organized enough to make the simple syrup above but for big licorice fans, why not make this cordial with anise-infused vodka AND anise-infused simple syrup.

I have made this concoction several times and have experimented with different ingredients to create another family favourite called "Carol's Anise Hyssop Deep n Dark Cordial" ~~ You can find that printable recipe here. 

I hope that this little ‘skip through the kitchen garden’ with Anise Hyssop will inspire you to grow this special aromatic plant friend – and if you already have some in your garden, I hope you will try some of these ideas which may inspire some new herb projects. Here’s to experimenting with new ideas and planting fabulous pollinators to support our bees!
#save our bees!

Source:

* Healing Spirits Farm offers superlative herbs for sale ‘by mail’. http://www.healingspiritsherbfarm.com

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