As a medicinal berry,
you give me so much.
To stave off a cold
with your magic touch.
The flu will surrender
and give up the fight.
Because you, Elderberry,
set my immune system right.
you give me so much.
To stave off a cold
with your magic touch.
The flu will surrender
and give up the fight.
Because you, Elderberry,
set my immune system right.
Sambucus
Elderberry
Elderberry
I LOVE elderberries!
They taste good, are good for you and if you look close enough you can probably find them growing wild in your area. They grow throughout most of North America and have been valued for hundreds of years for both their culinary and medicinal uses.
Elderberry syrup is what I have the most experience with. My family uses it frequently during cold and flu season and, if we do catch a bug, use it to get rid of it quickly.
Fortunately, we all think it tastes fantastic so I have no problems getting my kids to take their medicine. Be warned though, it is an old fashioned berry. If your family is more use to "modern" processed prepackaged food, it may take a little bit to win them over. Don't get me wrong, it is nice, sweet even, but different than the over the top fake taste of kids cold medicine. That's one of the reasons we love it. It has a warm, back to the basics flavor that makes you feel everything is going to be okay.
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Those of us who follow the old ways of healing have know for a long time how well elderberry syrup works and now scientific research is finally catching up!
One double-blind study showed that taking elderberry within 48 hours of the onset of the flu effectively shortened the length of symptoms by 4 days. Since the average flu last 8-10 days that means you could cut your suffering in half!
Another study shows that elderberry is both anti-viral and immune stimulating. Elderberry is one very busy berry!
This chart is from another research project comparing Elderberry to a placebo. Depicted are the percentage of patients who recovered from influenza symptoms in the elderberry extract and placebo groups after 48 hours of treatment.
48 HOURS! Not days or weeks!!! Elderberry is so cool. |
Now on to the recipe itself.
I am going to give you two versions of my elderberry syrup. One includes honey but must be refrigerated immediately after cooling down. The second uses cane sugar and is canned like a jam or jelly. By making it this way, you create a shelf stable remedy that will only need refrigerated after opening (it is the version that I sell at my markets and on Etsy and mostly use at home).
Shelf Stable Recipe
Ingredients:
makes about three 12 ounce jars
3/4 cup dried Elderberries
3 1/2 cups filtered water
1 tablespoon dry ginger or 2 T fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
*1 1/2 teaspoons echinecea (another immune booster)
*1 tablespoon broken rosehips (source vit. C)
*Optional
makes about three 12 ounce jars
3/4 cup dried Elderberries
3 1/2 cups filtered water
1 tablespoon dry ginger or 2 T fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
*1 1/2 teaspoons echinecea (another immune booster)
*1 tablespoon broken rosehips (source vit. C)
*Optional
Simmer on low and strain
We strain it by placing a flour sack or cheese cloth in a strainer, add mixture and when cool enough to handle, gently squeeze until you feel you have gotten all the juice that the berries have to give. This process can make quite a mess so make sure and wear an old shirt or apron. You want to end up with 2 1/2 cups of juice. If you are short, just add filtered water. It simply means you simmered it on a little too high of heat. If you are over 2 1/2 cups, simmer for a bit longer to concentrate it down. |
For a shelf stable syrup...
Return to pan, add 2 1/2 cups of sugar, 1/3 cup organic lemon juice and simmer till sugar is completely dissolved; about 5 minutes.
Pour hot syrup into warm sterilized jars and process for 10 minutes. Cool, check seal and store, unopened for up to one year. Refrigerate after opening.
For more information on jar sterilization and processing please see my dandelion jelly recipe page.
Things to keep in mind when using honey
You MUST refrigerate immediately after cooling.
This will remain good up to 3 months once made and refrigerated.
You should NEVER give a child under 1 year of age honey or products that contain honey.
Regular store bought honey is NOT the same as a raw local honey.
This will remain good up to 3 months once made and refrigerated.
You should NEVER give a child under 1 year of age honey or products that contain honey.
Regular store bought honey is NOT the same as a raw local honey.
For printer friendly recipe click here.
If you're too busy to make your own we have our 12 ounce jar on Etsy. available or if you are in the Central Indiana area you can find us at our Farmers Markets.