Stories of Canadian Thanksgiving pranks, ordering coffee in French, and the construction of “Terabithia” by my little ones and their compadres < <– These are the souvenirs I’m thankful to have brought home from my family’s recent meetup with friends in Quebec.
Unfortunately, we brought an additional one as well – a sore throat and cough that kept us up at night. Now, normally I’m ready for these things with some elderberry syrup, fire cider, and homemade throat spray or cough syrup. But this time I had . . . nothing.
Yep, totally unprepared. In fact, when my daughter developed crazy chapped lips due to the chilly weather, I didn’t even have any homemade chapstick on hand. Because it was Canadian Thanksgiving and most shops were closed, all I could give her was my lipstick. She’s eight. We were touring Parliament.
Fortunately, on the last leg of our trip we stopped by my mom’s house, and I was able to whip up these soothing sore throat meltaways. They dissolve more quickly than store-bought cough drops, but still last for several minutes. I think of them as a hybrid between traditional cough drops and homemade cough syrup.
Sore Throat Meltaways – About The Ingredients
This recipe is based on my friend Robyn’s constipation candy recipe, but I added in some some herbs that have been traditionally used to soothe achy, scratchy throats.
Coconut Oil
In addition to its ability to coat and soothe, coconut oil contains lauric acid, a medium chain fatty acid that is believed to support a healthy oral microbiome. Although I haven’t come across any research directly related to coconut oil and the throat, I thought it might be helpful to incorporate coconut oil as our bodies worked to restore a healthy microbial balance in the throat. Coconut oil also makes the lozenges hard, giving the herbs time to slowly distribute and do their thing.
Honey
Honey has long been used in folk medicine for sore throats, and as mentioned in this cough syrup recipe, new research has found that at least one variety helps children (and their parents!) with a sore throat and cough get more sleep at night.
If you happen to have more time to prepare than I did, this pre-made cough syrup from Genexa is a great option. Made with organic honey that has been infused with echinacea, elderberry and acerola cherry extract. It’s delicious, soothing, and great to have on hand. (I’m a partner, just FYI.)
Slippery Elm Powder
According to Penn State Medical Center, “Slippery elm contains mucilage, a substance that becomes a slick gel when mixed with water. It coats and soothes the mouth, throat, stomach, and intestines.”
Ginger
In addition to adding some flavor, warming herbs such as ginger have long been used as a sore throat remedy.
Sore Throat Meltaways
Ingredients
- 5 tbsp coconut oil (room temperature so that it is soft but not melted)
- 1 ½ tsp raw honey
- 1 – 2 tsp slippery elm powder
- ½ tsp ground ginger (or more to taste – optional)
Instructions
- Stir together coconut oil, honey, slippery elm powder and ginger if using. Pour mixture into molds – stirring a few times to make sure the honey is evenly distributed – and place in the freezer until hard. Pop cough drops out of the mold and place in a jar to use as needed. Store in the fridge or freezer.
Nutrition
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How interesting! It had never crossed my mind to make homemade cough drops, but now it seems like a great idea. I find that my body reacts much better to all-natural ingredients than anything artificial. And certainly for my children’s little bodies. I am very interested in your chapstick recipe as well – thank you!
Can I make them without slippery elm? I don’t have that.
Yes, you can 🙂
Any other ideas for flavoring them? Two of my kids really dislike ginger and they’re not crazy about slippery elm by itself. Maybe a little cinnamon?
Cinnamon would be a great choice 🙂
Is the pictured cough drops made with a mold, and if so, where did you get it? I love those round little balls!
Thanks!
Leslie
Where did you get the mold from? I like that you choice in size.
Would I be able to use ground up marshmallow root in place of slippery elm? They seem to have similar herb profiles. Thank you!
I was wondering the same thing. Were you able to get an answer to this?
I don’t see why not but was also thinking licorice root for a different flavour or even a combination?
My balls aren’t white like yours. What did I do wrong?
Is there anything else I can do to save mine?add to it? We just can’t take the taste of them. Love the idea and benefits but can’t eat em
I hate medicines so I adore it that you have prepared all natural cough drops for sore-throat. It really is a struggle to go outside with a sore throat and deep voice. I was just wondering can we store these cough drops? And if yes, for how long can we store and make use of the extra cough drops?