Homemade Herbal Candies

Posting this recipe at the request of Mama P. :)  This recipe was given to me by a friend - she got it from the book Herbal Sweets by Ruth Bass.

4 cups boiling water
2 cups herb leaves with stems and blossoms (peppermint, spearmint - or any of the mints, horehound, wintergreen, lemon verbena)
3 cups granulated sugar
3 cups brown sugar
1/2 tablespoon butter plus more for the pan

- pour boiling water over herbs and steep for 10 minutes (longer for a stronger tea) - while steeping, butter a shallow pan
- strain tea, discarding the solids - return to a large saucepan and and sugars and butter - bring to a boil over medium heat - continue boiling until syrup hards when a small amount is dropped into cold water (hard ball stage, or 250-266 degrees F)
- pour into buttered pan and score into squares before setting completely, or break into pieces after candy hardens - wrap in waxed paper and store in an airtight container

variation: add 1 tablespoon mint leaves or 1 teaspoon crushed anise seeds to horehound herbs.

My comments: I think sage and thyme would also be great in this, especially in a blend. I personally don't like horehound on it's own, but find it quite tolerable, and effective as a cough drop, in a blend with thyme, mint and sage. I would also experiment with elderberry, ginger, and echinacea root. I would also consider coating the pieces with superfine sugar before storing, I think that helps them keep a bit longer.