Marshmallow Products
Many people don’t know that Marshmallow sweets originate from the pith of the plant. Here at Indigo Herbs we’re keen to bring these herbs back into the consciousness of those who might recognise their benefit for various complaints. We're proud to offer the Marshmallow herb in leaf and root form, choose from tea, tincture, powder or capsules to harness the healing power of this medicinal plant.
While concoctions of all parts of the Marshmallow plant have been used as medicine, a traditional use of Marshmallow can be found in old recipes: Stems of marshmallow were peeled to reveal the soft and spongy pith. This pith was boiled in sugar syrup and dried to produce a soft, chewy confection. The boiling of Marshmallow was also used in times famine. In the 9th century, Emperor Charlemagne ordered marshmallow cultivated in his monasteries. Those about to undergo torture by hot irons during the Inquisition would paint their skin with an ointment of mallow sap, egg white and plantain seeds. A coating of this ointment would lessen the effects of the burns and so hopefully prove their innocence. Commercial marshmallows are a late-nineteenth-century French innovation, which was a development of a well-used recipe from the old days using the Marshmallow plant itself. It is thought that the first time Marshmallow was used as a sweet was by the ancient Egyptians who mixed the pith of this plant with egg whites and honey to create a sweet not unlike the one we have today. The sweet was so prized that only pharaohs and the extremely rich could afford to eat them.
As the name suggests, this plant grows in areas where there are large bodies of water that keep the soil moist. Marshmallow is a broad and sometimes thin plant that produces pink/white flowers and has leaves that are heart shaped with crinkled, serrated edges.
