Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

I love salty and sweet snacks. Salty and Sweet is my favorite snack food category. When Popeye and I got married his sweet grandma sent me a recipe for a salty and sweet snack he loves. When I read the recipe I was thinking it sounded a little odd, but it isn't. It's really perfect.

Pretzels Before Being Microwaved

Salty and Sweet - Cinnamon and Sugar - Crunchy Salted Pretzel Nuggets.... What gets better than that? Basically nothing. One of the best things about it is that it is gastroparesis-friendly, or at least enough for my GP. The one problem with this snack is I always manage to eat too much of it!

This recipe is ridiculously easy.

Ingredients:

1 pound pretzel nuggets or whatever 1/3 cup sugar 1-2 tsp cinnamon 2/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions:

Mix oil, sugar, and cinnamon. Pour over pretzels in a microwave safe bowl.
Stir until all the pretzels are coated with the sugar mixture. Microwave for 2 minutes. Stir.
Microwave again for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir after each 30 seconds or 1 minute. They will probably need 5-6 minutes total in the microwave.

Awesome Microwave Steamer

This silicone steamer by Zoie + Chloe is really cool. I love steaming vegetables, but often when I want to steam things I either don’t have time to steam them on the stovetop or I have pots on all the burners are full of other things. This fold-able steamer works quickly and easily in the microwave. 

Some of the cool features of this steamer are that it folds up easily and takes up very little space to store. It also makes steaming much quicker and easier than on the stovetop. The steamer is made up of three parts that are all dishwasher safe and easy to clean.

This steamer did not come with any instructions or guides for steaming things in the microwave. I love steamed squash. I put a little bit of water in the bottom of the bowl, just enough to cover the entire surface but not enough to seep into the bottom of the steamer bowl. I started with 3 minutes on the squash. Since it was not fork tender, I added it for another minute. This was a little bit too done for the thinnest slices and perfect for the slices that were a little thicker. The power of your microwave will also make a difference in how long things take. I recommend starting with less time than you think it needs so you do not end up with overcooked vegetables.

Little Bear's Favorite Broccoli

Little Bear loves to use this steamer to make broccoli with a little lemon zest. We cut up our broccoli into florets and fill the steamer. Put a little water in the bottom of the bowl and set the full steamer basket in. Put  Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the broccoli. Then zest about half of a lemon over the top. Close the steamer and microwave starting around 3-4 minutes depending on the power of your microwave. Check the broccoli for tenderness. When it is cooked squeeze your lemon over the top. This is one of Little Bear's favorite vegetable dishes. 

The inner bowl can also be used as a colander. This set is oven, microwave, and dishwasher safe. I have hard water at my house and it does show spots when it gets run through the dishwasher. It is overall easy to clean and easy to use. The parts fit well together. Do be careful when removing the lid so you do not get steam burns. I really like this set. It makes it really easy to steam vegetables.

You can buy the Zoie + Chloe silicone steamer here. 

I received this product free. All opinions expressed here are honest, unbiased, and 100% my own. 

Echinacea - Beautiful and Useful

Echinacea, specifically echinacea purpurea, is a wonderful healing herb. It is also great for cold and flu season. One of the best things about echinacea is that it is easy to grow and can be grown across much of the country as a perennial. This plant is not only useful, but a beautiful plant to grow in your garden or flower beds.

Echinacea is a purple coneflower native to the United States. Plains Indians used this plant for all kinds of things, such as snake bites, fevers, and many kinds of wounds. Today it is used for fevers, wound care, respiratory infections, colds, flu, and arthritis, among other things.

Growing & Harvesting

Echinacea can be grown from seed or from a plant bought in a nursery. I have grown echinacea both ways. Seeds should be planted in early autumn. In 2014, I planted echinacea seeds. For weeks they did nothing, not a sprout in sight so I bought two plants from our local nursery.

2 year old plant from a nursery and a seedling 1 year old

A few days after I planted my new plants I saw several seedlings sprout. These seedlings grew extremely slowly the first year. The second year they took off. I also have lots of new plants sprouting up around the plants I bought from the flowers I did not cut back. I now have quite a crop of echinacea. Each winter echinacea will die back completely so do not be dismayed if your plant disappears during the winter.

Echinacea roots, leaves, and flowers can be harvested for use.  They can be used in teas and tinctures. It can also be used in poultices as well as infused in oil and added to salves. The roots of the plants can be used dry without any other preparations. Native Americans chewed the roots for coughs and sore throats.

Harvesting echinacea leaves and flowers can be done when the flowers are just beginning to open. These flowers and leaves can be clipped off the plant and dried on screens or in a dehydrator. If you are planning to let your plant continue growing for another year do not cut all of the leaves off.

Self-sprouted Echinacea about 6 months old

To harvest echinacea carefully dig up the plant after the first frost of the year. If you are replanting your plant only clip some of the roots. For home use, I only harvest a little of my plant's roots each year. After harvesting, place your roots on screens and dry in the sun. You can also dry on a low heat in a dehydrator. Make sure the roots are completely dry before storing. If they are not they can grow bacteria and fungus. Store your dried plant parts in a cool dry place until you are ready to use them.

Tinctures & Teas

To use your dried or fresh echinacea you can put it in high proof alcohol. You use one part plant and one part alcohol. Place this in a jar and shake it up. Then, set it in the sun for two weeks. Make sure to shake your tincture daily. After two weeks you can strain your tincture and store in a clean jar in a dark place. To use the tincture take about 20 drops in half a cup of warm water. This can be taken 2-4 times daily while symptoms persist.

To make teas with echinacea root use about half of a teaspoon of dried echinacea steeped in a cup of hot water. Let it steep 10-15 minutes. You can add ginger, lemongrass, and other healing herbs to taste in this tea. Honey makes a great sweetener and flavor enhancer as well.

Echinacea is a beautiful flowering herb that everyone should have in their garden. It will bring bees and butterflies to your garden. It can also help with colds, coughs, the flu, and many other ailments. The easiest ways to use your own echinacea are in teas and tinctures.

Echinacea in full bloom

Sources: 

ECHINACEA Echinacea purpurea. (n.d.). Retrieved October 27, 2016, from http://www.blessedmaineherbs.com/ececpu.html

H. (2015). How to Grow Echinacea (Coneflower) | Planet Natural. Retrieved October 27, 2016, from https://www.planetnatural.com/growing-echinacea/  

How to Harvest Echinacea for Tea. (n.d.). Retrieved October 27, 2016, from http://homeguides.sfgate.com/harvest-echinacea-tea-73456.html 

Loveplantlife, B. (2012). Echinacea: How to grow and use this powerful antibiotic and immune-stimulant. Retrieved October 27, 2016, from http://loveplantlife.com/2012/02/echinacea-how-to-grow-and-use-this-powerful-antibiotic-and-immune-stimulant/ 

  

10 Gifts For Your Favorite Cook

Images from Amazon.com

Every year there are new gadgets and tools for the kitchen. Sometimes home cooks love them and other times they are a waste of space and time. If you know someone that loves to cook here are ten great ideas for your favorite home cook.

1) Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook

This is easily the cookbook I use most in my kitchen. My mother gave it to me as a gift when I moved out of her house at 21. I have used it for years. If I ever have a question or am looking for a basic recipe I go to this Better Homes & Gardens Cookbook. It's red plaid cover is classic and will give you a wealth of basic cooking information and recipes. 

You can buy this cookbook here for about $30.

2) Knife Set 

I love ceramic knives. They are sharp and easy to clean. The last for ages as long as they are cared for properly. They also do not need to be sharpened as often as steel knives. The blades of ceramic knives are extremely sharp but need to be used and cleaned with care to avoid chipping them. They are much better than other knives in the same price range. 

You can buy ceramic knives here for under $20. 

3) Silicone Utensil Set 

Silicone utensils are extremely easy to clean. The problem is sometimes they are really expensive. This set is a great price and has a huge variety of utensils. It comes with a total of 8 pieces. It gives you basically everything you need to serve food and comes in fun bright colors. These silicone utensils are a favorite in my kitchen. 

You can buy this silicone utensil set here for around $25.

4) The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion: The All-Purpose Baking Cookbook

For people who love to bake or are interested in learning to bake "The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion: The All-Purpose Baking Cookbook" is an amazing book. It has lots of information about baking. It also has a wide variety of recipes. The recipes in here range from cookies, bread, pastry, and more. It is really an amazing baking guide. I use it often in my house. It comes in hardback, paperback, and flexibound. 

You can buy the book here for anywhere between $12 and $40 depending on the binding.  

5) Stock Pot 

Every kitchen needs a good stock pot. Stock pots are great for making stock, soups, huge batches of chili or spaghetti sauce. There are so many uses for a good stock pot. I love an 8 quart stock pot. It is a great stock pot without being too huge or too small. You need a good pot that is not too flimsy. If your favorite cook cans a larger stock pot may be better. 

You can buy a good stock pot here start at $25 and going up to $35 depending on the size. 

6) Grill Pan

A good grill pan can be a huge deal. There are lots of varieties of grill pans. You can get cast iron grill pans and non-stick grill pans. You also have choices of round and square shaped pans, as well as pans that are oven safe or not. When looking at grill pans, I wanted one that is non-stick and can be used on my glass top stove as well as in the oven. This grill pan is my favorite because it is dishwasher, oven, and stove top safe. It is easy to clean and can hold quite a bit of food. 

You can buy this 11 inch grill pan here for around $35. 

7) Spice & Seasoning Sets

Food Lovers are often open to trying new spices and seasonings. There are so many great seasoning mixes out there that cannot be found at your local grocery store. You can find some lovely spice gift sets with a wide variety of spices. These spice sets come in family favorite spices, with both sweet and savory spice mixes, a grilling spice set, a set of flavored salts, holiday seasonings, and even a spicy set. The best thing about these is they are made in the USA.

You can buy some great spice mixes here for between $25 and $30. 

8) A Recipe Journal 

At some point most cooks come up with at least a recipe or two of their own. When they do they need a place to write it down, besides a scrap of paper that will get lost soon. A recipe journal is a great place for that. It will also make a great item to pass down in the future. 

You can buy a recipe journal here for around $5.

9) Cookbook for Kids

Cooking with kids is often hard, but some of the best memories are made cooking with your children. Many of my treasured memories are cooking with my mom and many of my favorite recipes are things I learned to make with my mom's help and have tailored into more adult recipes now. Kid's cookbooks, such as "Cooking Class: 57 Fun Recipes Kids Will Love to Make (and Eat!)", have great skills and lessons in them as well as recipes written to make cooking easier and more fun for children. Learning to cook also teaches kids math, reading, hand eye coordination, and helps them learn to follow directions. 

You can buy this cook book here for under $15. 

10) Chip and Dip Serving Set

If your favorite cook loves to entertain a chip and dip serving set is a great gift idea. This chip and dip set by Le'raze also can be used as a cake stand which makes it multi-purpose and awesome. It is great for entertaining at sports parties, holiday gatherings, and family events. 

You can buy this chip and dip set here for around $30. 

Cubico Specialty Coffee

Popeye loves coffee. He drinks at least one cup every day. For years he drank plain old Maxwell House coffee or whatever K-Cups we had bought. This summer I got a coffee grinder and we started grinding his own coffee. He loved the freshly ground coffee so much more than pre-ground inexpensive coffee.

Popeye had been wanting to try something new and I stumbled upon this Cubico Specialty Coffee. We ordered their 100% Peruvian coffee. It is a medium roast coffee. This coffee is not your traditional coffee.

First off, the packaging is really nice. It comes in a nice box with the bag inside of the box. Secondly, once you open the bag you can smell the amazing scent of this Peruvian coffee. For me, all coffee smells great, but this coffee really smelled different in a great way. 

The coffee describes itself as having a nutty and citrus flavor. I wondered how that could happen... well... I still don't understand how they made it have a nutty and citrus flavor but they did. It is really almost indescribable. Popeye finished this 12 oz bag of coffee off in record time and was thoroughly disappointed when it was gone. 

If you love coffee already this coffee is great. It gives a new depth of flavor to your traditional morning cup of coffee. If you don't love coffee this coffee has a different flavor that could make you learn to love coffee. 

You can purchase Cubico Specialty Coffee here. 

I received a discount on this product. All opinions expressed are 100% my own (and Popeye's).

Cozyna Air Fryer

Popeye has been wanting an air fryer for ages and ages. I have been holding out. Now that we got one I realize that I should have gotten one long, long ago. I LOVE this Cozyna Air Fryer. 
Having gastroparesis means I have not been able to eat fried foods for years. I always look longingly at things like French fries when Little Bear and Popeye eat them. I remember the taste of a salty and crisp fry. I have tried making fries in the oven countless times but it is not the same. I have gotten to where I make really tasty roasted potatoes with crispy edges, but they are still not fries. This air fryer has given me French fries back and for that, I am eternally grateful. Fries from here are not the same as McDonald's fries but they are pretty dang good. They are crispy and seasoned well and use very little oil. 

  

Using the fryer is easy. Dump your food into the fryer basket and add any oil or seasonings you need. Push the basket into the fryer and make sure it is closed completely. Then, make sure your fryer is plugged in and turn the knob on top to the desired temperature. It can be preheated if you need to. Turn the knob on the front to the cooking time. The fryer shuts off automatically when the timer runs out.

We have made all kinds of stuff in this. My husband and son love to make pizza rolls and fried ravioli in it. We also made the fries mentioned above. I used less than a teaspoon of oil to make 2 potatoes worth of fries. When you make fries you need to pull the basket out and stir them regularly during the cooking time. Otherwise, the ones along the outside edges cook much faster than the ones in the middle. 

I also tried to make potato chips in this. I did not have success with chips. The chips were sliced thinly with the mandolin and when I put them in the air fryer basket the fan flung them all to a pile in the back of the basket. Some of the chips leaked through the vents into the bottom of the fryer. Even stirring regularly some of the chips did not cook while others were overcooked. Because they piled up the stuck together but when they stuck together they did not get crispy. 

Fries are perfect. I am planning to make some “fried” chicken in here to see how it works. It has been years since I had any fried chicken. I wish the booklet that came with it had better recipes.

Cleaning this is really simple. The fryer basket can be put in the dishwasher which makes washing it easy. The base can get washed by hand with soapy water or can be wiped out with a rag.

You can buy the Cozyna Air Fryer here. 

I received a discount on this item. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Lemon Gingermint Tea

I have been a fan of herbal teas since I was a kid. Back then I only drank them because I like them. Now, as an adult, I have some stomach issues and I drink herbal teas with ginger and mint because they help with those symptoms. I typically drink a ginger peppermint tea but was looking for a change. I didn’t know what to expect with this tea since I had never had lemon balm, lemon grass, or black pepper in a tea. My first order of business when I opened the bag was to smell it. This loose leaf tea has a wonderfully fresh aroma. The citrus scents from the lemon grass, lemon balm, and lemon peel combined with the spicy of the mint, ginger, and pepper are a heavenly combination.

I have been drinking at least one cup of this tea a night. It helps with my stomach symptoms. It smells and tastes nice. It also has a huge benefit that my previous tea does not. This tea is wonderful cold as well as hot. The lemon flavors give it an amazing taste that works well at all temperatures. If you like a sweeter tea you can add a little bit of honey to this tea. The honey mixed with the herbs is wonderful when you have sinus issues or a cold. The combination really helps when I have a sore or scratchy throat.

When I make this tea, I put just over one teaspoon of the loose leaf tea into my tea ball and pour hot water from the tea kettle over it. I usually let it steep ten minutes more or less, usually more because I regularly forget about my tea while I do other stuff. The tea is a nice golden color and like I said earlier the flavor is pleasant hot or cold so even when I forget about it for an hour or more I can happily drink it when I remember.

You can buy this lemon gingermint tea here. 

I received a discount on this item. All opinions expressed are 100% my own.  

S'mores Bark

Papa Bear and Little Bear are huge fans of s'mores. I am pretty sure Papa Bear likes them as much if not more than Little Bear. It is not always good timing to make your own s'mores. You don't always have the time to make a fire, or the weather. Our problem this time was weather. It was pouring down rain and Little Bear had been begging for s'mores for days.

So, being the sweet, loving Mama Bear that I am, I gave in. Little Bear and I made S'mores Bark. This is an easy tried and true recipe I made up with a few years ago. I had been making peppermint bark a lot and my husband wanted me to try something new besides peppermint, dried fruits, and nuts on our bark. Since he loves s'mores I decided to try some s'mores type recipes. The first time I used baking chocolate, but it wasn't quite the way we wanted it.

This recipe is really easy. It only needs three ingredients. Graham crackers, Hershey's Chocolate bars, and mini marshmallows. It takes maybe fifteen minutes to make this. With Little Bear's help it did take longer, but it was fun!

It doesn't look like enough chocolate, but I promise it is.

You start by lining your pan with foil or parchment paper. I use whichever I have on hand. It saves some clean up time later if you use it. Spread your graham crackers on top of it. I break them neatly; if they are broken messily it really doesn't matter, just cover most of the pan with them. Then, open your many bars of chocolate and break them up on your graham crackers.

The shiny softened chocolate is easy to smooth and cover the entire surface.

Then, you put it in the oven until the chocolate is soft. By soft, I mean not melted. It will be glistening and shiny. When this happens, pull it out and smoosh everything around with the back of a spoon until your graham crackers are covered with ooey gooey chocolate. Sprinkle your marshmallows, as few or as many as you want. Pop 'em back under the broiler until your marshmallows are beautifully browned. Let them cool and the chocolate harden. Break it up and store in an airtight container. Little Bear loves big chunks.

I have made this for Papa Bear to take to work. It always goes quickly a
nd there are never leftovers. Papa Bear and Little Bear will eat it all pretty quickly. It will last about three to five days in an airtight container, but it rarely lasts even three days in our house.

You can find a printable version of my S'mores bark recipe here.

Spicy, Minty, and Delicious

One of my favorite drinks is a ginger peppermint tea. I had been buying it for years and then all of the sudden it was out of stock everywhere. Ginger peppermint tea settles my stomach and helps with my bloating. So, when it was out of stock and I ran out I had to do something. It probably wasn't a huge deal, but it felt like a major thing to me and my sensitive stomach.

I ended up buying dried ginger and dried peppermint from Penzey's. It was my first trip to Penzey's and I fell in love. They have so many awesome things, but that is not the point. Their herbs and spices are great prices. I ended up buying 2 - 1 oz bags of peppermint and 1 - 0.85 oz jar of minced ginger. The herbs smell wonderful when you get them open. They smell so much better than what I would typically buy at the grocery store.

When I make my tea I keep it in an airtight container. I keep mine in a plastic container with a lid. I mix equal parts ginger and peppermint in the container. Usually I do about 3/4 cup each for one batch then put the lid on and shake it up.

When I make my tea I boil my water in a teapot. I use stainless steel and silicone tea balls with about 1-1.5 teaspoons of the tea mixture in them to brew my tea. I love these because they seal tight enough that leaves do not leak out. The holes are small and the leaves do not leak out any of the seams. They also come with a little cup like thing to set your tea ball in when you are done steeping your tea. I usually let my tea steep about 20 minutes.

This tea is a beautiful golden color. This tea has a spicy, minty and delicious flavor. The ginger helps with nausea and the peppermint helps with gas and bloating. This tea is also great when I have a headache. I love this tea and it is much cheaper than buying boxes of pre-made tea bags.

Parfait Party

This set of SupaCute Dessert Cups with Lids and Spoons is really great. This package comes with 24 cups, 24 lids, and 24 spoons. They come in a nice plastic box. We use them for parfaits and fun little layered desserts. Each cup is almost 3 inches tall. The lid adds another inch. The lids fit well. They do not clip on though so I would not recommend carrying them by the lid. These containers are a hard clear BPA free plastic. The spoons are the same. The containers are a really neat shape. They are square at the bottom and the sides angle out to make a wider square at the top. They would be great for parties and events that you want cute little desserts.

I have some health issues that I cannot eat some of the things my son and husband can eat so this makes it easy to make small portions of desserts that can be individualized for everyone. My son’s favorite dessert so far is a layered dessert with angel food cake cut into small cubes, strawberries sliced and arranged neatly, and whipped topping. We layer this until it is full and then put a spoonful of whipped topping on top with a strawberry on top. My favorite little dessert is shortbread with a tiny bit of lemon curd and whipped topping. These can also be used for dirt pudding. I love the lids because we can prepare them ahead of time and then put the lid on and refrigerate it. I don’t have to mess with cling wrap sticking to itself or anything.

These containers are washable and reusable. They are easy to clean. I would not recommend trying to put them in the dishwasher. These containers are great for desserts, but when you put the lid on and they are empty they remind me of a terrarium. I may try to plant a little something in one and see how it grows.

You can buy these dessert cups on amazon here or direct from Laguna Wholesale here.

I received this product a discount on this product. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Growing Ginger

I love ginger. Ginger in candy, ginger in tea, ginger in soups, but sadly our local store doesn't always have the greatest selection of ginger or the best price for ginger. Thankfully growing ginger is easy and the taste and freshness are superior to grocery store ginger. Being able to easily grow your own remedies is a wonderful thing.

Ginger about one and a half months after new shoots came up.

The part of ginger you typically cook with is the rhizome or the root. The rhizome has a substance called gingerol that is good for nausea, morning sickness, arthritis, and many more ailments. It is easy to grow and can be grown in the ground in many of the Southern states. It can also be grown in pots in the northern states. It is much easier to grow than I expected; it is a plant it and forget about it kind of plant. The first time I bought ginger to grow I bought it online from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. Since then I bought some from a local herb farm that I love, called Maggie's Herb Farm. Make sure, when you buy ginger, that you are buying culinary ginger. There are many ornamental verities of ginger that are not edible.

Ginger needs a few basic things to grow successfully. Its main needs are good soil, some light, and warm weather. It does not like freezing temperatures, soggy soil, or direct sun. Planting ginger is easy. You plant in early spring. You dig a hole and plant it with the eyes facing upwards. These eyes become the shoots of the plant. Let it grow all year and when the leaves start dying you can dig your rhizomes up. My ginger is planted in pots that sit under a tree.

One of my pots of ginger with new shoots coming up

Some people say you can grow ginger from the roots you buy at the grocery store. I have never had luck with this. Grocery store ginger is sprayed with chemicals to keep it from growing. Some things say soaking it overnight will make it grow. I have not had success with this theory and recommend buying it from a reliable nursery locally or online. Once you get it started you can keep it going forever. Most of my ginger is two years old now and doing well in pots and planter boxes. In the last month or so it has grown from nothing to about 8 inches tall. It gets new shoots all the time. Ideally, I would love to find a place in my yard where I can have a large ginger patch. I have yet to find that place that is out of the way enough to let it take over.

Ginger can be harvested slowly over time by digging up a little bit and breaking or cutting off small chunks of the rhizomes as you need them or it can be harvested all at once. Some can be kept back to replant in the spring of the following year. I harvested only a small bit of my ginger last year. I started it late in the year and just broke off a small piece and left the rest to grow this year.

A rhizome of my two year old ginger plant.

Fresh ginger can be used in many recipes. I use minced ginger in soups, rice dishes, teas, marinades, sauces and so much more. It can also be used to make ginger tea or infused with other teas. It can be candied and sweetened, made into syrup, or dried and preserved for later use. If you want to use dried ginger without growing and processing it you can buy it online. One of my preferred brands is Frontier Herbs or from Penzey's.

A Cherry on Top

My son loves ice cream, especially ice cream sundaes with toppings galore. What I don't love is giving him a huge bowl of ice cream. It makes him bounce off the walls. When I grab a bowl, a normal sized bowl to make a sundae I either overfill it and make him hyper, or I under fill it and make him sad because his bowl looks empty. Recently I came across some ice cream sundae cups that fix that problem.

I ordered the small flower cups. These cups are great for a lot of reasons. They help you practice portion control. They are BPA free. They are washable reusable plastic. They come with cool little spoons. They are cute. They come in three different colors, pink, blue, and green, and are a translucent plastic. The spoons are also multi-colored and are a shiny transparent plastic.

The cups are perfect for kid's sundaes. If you pack a scoop they fit one large packed scoop of ice cream, a little bit of chocolate sauce or other toppings and as much whipped cream as you can manage on top. I am still working on the art of spraying whipped topping neatly, not that my son really cares how it looks as long as he gets to eat it. My son's favorite ice cream sundae is vanilla ice cream, gummy bears, whipped cream, and they always have a cherry on top.

The spoons are like little gelato spoons, not your typical spoon shaped spoon. These cups could be used for sundaes, small snack cups like goldfish, bowls for mints on the table, and so much more. There are also medium and large varieties if you want to make larger sundaes.

The small ice cream cups can be found on amazon here or directly from Laguna Wholesale on their website here.

I received a discount on this product. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Relief from Nausea by Eating Ginger Candy

Living with gastroparesis and constant nausea, I have learned some natural remedies. My favorite home remedy is ginger candy. I have so much relief from nausea by eating ginger candy. My two favorite ginger candies both are by The Ginger People, one is a hard candy and the other is a chewy candy.

Ginger has been used for thousands of years for digestive ailments as well as some other health problems. It has a substance called gingerol that has medicinal properties. Ginger helps with nausea and bloating, as well as pain, headaches, muscle soreness, and is said to be helpful for brain function and lowering cholesterol. The reason I eat ginger is for nausea relief. It can be eaten during pregnancy, when you have motion sickness, and any time you have an upset stomach.

If you have never had ginger before you might be surprised by it's spicy flavor. When I first tried ginger candy I hated the flavor, but I knew I could not keep taking prescription medicine for nausea all the time since my medicine made me sleepy and had other unpleasant side effects. The ginger candy helped me so much. I love the hard candies when my nausea is extra annoying and my mouth is dry. Sucking on them helps wet my whistle and helps my nausea. The chewy candies are great when I want a snack, but don't really feel well. Eating ginger candy has drastically reduced the amount of nausea medicine I take. Some days I only eat a few after meals and other days I feel like I eat thousands.

The Ginger People have candies in different flavors like peanut and caramel, as well as the plain ginger. Another great thing about these candies is that they are gluten free. You can find The Ginger People candies at fancy grocery stores, like Whole Foods and World Market. I buy mine on amazon. You can get them in normal sized bags or you can be like me and buy 11 pound bags that last 6 months to a year.

You can buy The Ginger People Chewy Candy here.
You can buy The Ginger People Hard Candy here.
If you know you love them you can find the gigantic 11 pound bag here.