Mugolio

[Toddy]

I'd never heard of this until ten minutes ago; we learn something new every day

Anyway, I have a sore throat (checked, it's not covid-19) that I must have picked up in Ikea last week. Haven't been anyplace else and no one else in the family has it.
I hate cough mixtures, and this is just a sore throat and a blocked nose, so I went looking for the wee jar of pine honey.....commercially that's something else entirely, but my pine honey is homemade.
Basically I wash and dry a bunch of pine needles, put them in a jar and cover them with sugar. Set it aside and within a day or so you'll start to see syrup appear at the bottom of the jar. Leave it until the sugar is all dissolved, strain out the needles and the resultant pine honey is really good for sore throats. It's antiseptic, etc., and it soothes. I just sook a teaspoonful of it and let it dissolve at the back of my mouth, and it really helps. Not quite as full-on as the onion version, but very good none the less.

Mugolio though. I did a google for my home made pine honey, and turned up loads and loads and loads of truly extortionately priced pine honey, and lots of links to pine syrup. They seem to boil the needles in syrup to make it commercially. Nothing like our traditional stuff, but I suppose they have to do this to create volume, and they're not making something medicinal but a flavouring, like maple syrup.
However, there's a fellow in America who is making Mugolio using pine cones, and he says they ferment, and it all sounds rather interesting and I think I'm going to have a try at this stuff.

The site says that he has tried every kind of pine cone he can, and that they all work, just make sure they're green or at least soft enough to cut easily with a knife. This is the link to the article I read.

Mugolio: Pine Cone Syrup

Mugolio, or syrup extracted from pine cones, is one of the most delicious chef secrets available to foragers, and costs pennies to make.

foragerchef.com

Has anyone here had a shot at making this stuff ?

M

 

[punkrockcaveman]

I think I like the sound of your pine honey better to be honest Mary! A mate of mine had a go at Dandelion honey and he rates that highly.

When you say wash and dry, I'm assuming you just mean rinse and take off the excess water rather than dehydrate?

I've got some kinda cough at the moment too, but it's taking an age to go, I'm fairly certain it's viral.

 

[Toddy]

@punkrockcaveman
Sorry, I ought to have been clearer, but yes you're right, just wash and dry off any of that rinsing water. The honey is made from extracting the moisture contained in the needles, not any extra liquid that I've added.

You could quickly make up the onion version to help with your sore throat though.
Just peel and grate or finely chop up an onion, put it into a jar and just cover it with ordinary sugar. Put the lid on the jar and set it aside. Within a day you'll have a rich syrup. That syrup is antibacterial, etc., and soothing on a sore throat. It makes a good gargle too.
It's strong, but nothing like eating raw onion, if I make myself clear ?

 

[Broch]

@punkrockcaveman
Sorry, I ought to have been clearer, but yes you're right, just wash and dry off any of that rinsing water. The honey is made from extracting the moisture contained in the needles, not any extra liquid that I've added.

You could quickly make up the onion version to help with your sore throat though.
Just peel and grate or finely chop up an onion, put it into a jar and just cover it with ordinary sugar. Put the lid on the jar and set it aside. Within a day you'll have a rich syrup. That syrup is antibacterial, etc., and soothing on a sore throat. It makes a good gargle too.
It's strong, but nothing like eating raw onion, if I make myself clear ?

My Mum used to make the onion version every winter when we were kids - most efficacious

 

[Toddy]

It is indeed, and it keeps for ages too. I usually have a jar in the fridge, but I had a clear out, sod's law, and I remembered that I still had some of the pine honey.
Himself's going to bring me back a bit of pine from his walk this morning, so I'll have another go at making a new batch. Meanwhile, I've grated up an onion this morning, covered it in sugar, and it's already syruping out

 

[TLM]

The site says that he has tried every kind of pine cone he can

Well, you could try coulter pine, the heaviest cone measured is around 4kg, often 2kg. No need to collect all that many. (It is logical Monday morning)

 

[Toddy]

I don't think I've ever heard of that one....there's a Monkey Puzzle tree nearby, and the cones from it are enormous, but not 4kg enormous.

 

[Brizzlebush]

I'd never heard of this until ten minutes ago; we learn something new every day

Anyway, I have a sore throat (checked, it's not covid-19) that I must have picked up in Ikea last week. Haven't been anyplace else and no one else in the family has it.
I hate cough mixtures, and this is just a sore throat and a blocked nose, so I went looking for the wee jar of pine honey.....commercially that's something else entirely, but my pine honey is homemade.
Basically I wash and dry a bunch of pine needles, put them in a jar and cover them with sugar. Set it aside and within a day or so you'll start to see syrup appear at the bottom of the jar. Leave it until the sugar is all dissolved, strain out the needles and the resultant pine honey is really good for sore throats. It's antiseptic, etc., and it soothes. I just sook a teaspoonful of it and let it dissolve at the back of my mouth, and it really helps. Not quite as full-on as the onion version, but very good none the less.

Mugolio though. I did a google for my home made pine honey, and turned up loads and loads and loads of truly extortionately priced pine honey, and lots of links to pine syrup. They seem to boil the needles in syrup to make it commercially. Nothing like our traditional stuff, but I suppose they have to do this to create volume, and they're not making something medicinal but a flavouring, like maple syrup.
However, there's a fellow in America who is making Mugolio using pine cones, and he says they ferment, and it all sounds rather interesting and I think I'm going to have a try at this stuff.

The site says that he has tried every kind of pine cone he can, and that they all work, just make sure they're green or at least soft enough to cut easily with a knife. This is the link to the article I read.

Mugolio: Pine Cone Syrup

Mugolio, or syrup extracted from pine cones, is one of the most delicious chef secrets available to foragers, and costs pennies to make.

foragerchef.com

Has anyone here had a shot at making this stuff ?

M

Very cool. I'll be trying that.
There's a juniper tree just next door that might be interesting.
A shame its the wrong time of year for cones, but that's a really interesting article.

For colds and sore throats I made some elderberry syrup this year. Great stuff, tasty too. I mix it 50/50 with ribena for the kids, a slice of lemon and ginger.
With some horse pills of vit c and some extra echinacea, colds have got no chance!

 

[Toddy]

I make elderberry rob and use it the same way with hot home made blackcurrant syrup.
(I loathe artificial sweeteners, and they're in every blooming thing these days, even the Ribena , I admit I stashed half a dozen bottles before they changed the formula, but it's impossible to find one without artificial sweeteners now )
This sore throat though, it was a pine honey/ onion honey one.

I found a really clear site showing the processes of making the rob. I usually make mine without sugar. It can be made with or without added sugar.

Elderberry Rob Syrup — Handmade Apothecary

www.handmadeapothecary.co.uk

 

[Suffolkrafter]

I might have to try this. It sounds like it works on a similar principle to salt curing?

 

[Nice65]

I’m certainly going to try it. Both myself and Lara have had the same sore throat and snotty nose thing recently, it comes on strong in the evenings and mornings, but we kept forgetting to buy anything for it because we felt fine in the day.

 

[Zingmo]

Mugolio looks like fun. I have just set a reminder for March to go and forage some green pine/fir cones.

Z

 

[Toddy]

While we're on the topic, sort of, I know that pine needle syrup, my pine honey, is fine to use, but Himself has just brought me in a branch of fir. I was painting a cupboard upstairs, and he had gone out for a walk, obviously found this, brought it back, dropped it onto the kitchen table and took himself back off out. I came down to wash out my brush and found it. It was very good of him, and I will thank him, but I didn't get a chance to say, "Pine in pairs", before he went out, and I don't know if I can use fir needles like this
Prepared to give it a shot, but if anyone does know, would you speak up ?

 

[TLM]

New growth branch tips of Norway spruce at least are used for making a syrup, never seen the old ones used. Make a small test batch.

 

[Toddy]

I hadn't thought of Spruce. It isn't native here and tbh it's pretty much not used for anything but timber. Thank you for the information about it's use in Scandinavia though. Pretty sure I can find a couple of trees down beside the loch though in what was a plantation that has been cleared.
The branch my husband brought in is from a silver leaf fir. I have no idea why he did that because there's an entire half acre woodland of Scot's Pine at the end of the street. Maybe he thought them too high up to cut from
The fir is a very pretty though, very seasonal, looks really healthy and I have it in a bucket of water outside the back door. I think I'm going to use it for decoration rather than trying it for honey.

It's most likely fine, just I know the pine works, iimmc ?

 

[plastic-ninja]

I'd never heard of this until ten minutes ago; we learn something new every day

Anyway, I have a sore throat (checked, it's not covid-19) that I must have picked up in Ikea last week. Haven't been anyplace else and no one else in the family has it.
I hate cough mixtures, and this is just a sore throat and a blocked nose, so I went looking for the wee jar of pine honey.....commercially that's something else entirely, but my pine honey is homemade.
Basically I wash and dry a bunch of pine needles, put them in a jar and cover them with sugar. Set it aside and within a day or so you'll start to see syrup appear at the bottom of the jar. Leave it until the sugar is all dissolved, strain out the needles and the resultant pine honey is really good for sore throats. It's antiseptic, etc., and it soothes. I just sook a teaspoonful of it and let it dissolve at the back of my mouth, and it really helps. Not quite as full-on as the onion version, but very good none the less.

Mugolio though. I did a google for my home made pine honey, and turned up loads and loads and loads of truly extortionately priced pine honey, and lots of links to pine syrup. They seem to boil the needles in syrup to make it commercially. Nothing like our traditional stuff, but I suppose they have to do this to create volume, and they're not making something medicinal but a flavouring, like maple syrup.
However, there's a fellow in America who is making Mugolio using pine cones, and he says they ferment, and it all sounds rather interesting and I think I'm going to have a try at this stuff.

The site says that he has tried every kind of pine cone he can, and that they all work, just make sure they're green or at least soft enough to cut easily with a knife. This is the link to the article I read.

Mugolio: Pine Cone Syrup

Mugolio, or syrup extracted from pine cones, is one of the most delicious chef secrets available to foragers, and costs pennies to make.

foragerchef.com

Has anyone here had a shot at making this stuff ?

M

Not yet, but I’m going to be ready next Spring! Thanks for sharing.

 

[TeeDee]

Hope to be making this stuff soon.

 

[Pattree]

We used to buy oil of wintergreen as an antiseptic when I was a child. Much more pleasant than Tom Cat Pee.

 

[Toddy]

We used to buy oil of wintergreen as an antiseptic when I was a child. Much more pleasant than Tom Cat Pee.

You can still get it. Buy as an essential oil and dilute it down in a carrier like sweet almond.

Wintergreen Essential Oil - Freshskin Beauty

Harvested from the wild essence of wintergreen leaves and steam distilled for its purest form, our Wintergreen Essential Oil is brought to you by our team of experts at Freshskin Beauty.

www.freshskin.co.uk

 

[Pattree]

I presume that it is something similar to ?mugolio?