It’s that time of year, flu season. I guess... I don’t trust the CDC any more than I’d trust one of the illegal Mexican gang members at Grocery Outlet.
Elderberry syrup is known for flu prevention and treatment, and here is my recipe. Probably posted someplace on the thread but since i have it in a folder on my desktop, here it is. Ask any questions if you have any. Elderberry breaks off the pokey things on the virus so it’s harder for them to get into cells, and also strengthens the cell walls. Probably does other stuff too, it’s a strong anti-oxidant. I’ve always bought my elderberries at Starwest Botanicals but I’m sure there are other places; Starwest often has stuff on Amazon.
Elderberry Syrup
I got this recipe from a very experienced herbalist who made and used it for years.
Note: I use dried berries and some berries are not cleaned very well – some batches are better than others. Go through your berries - I did it bit by bit on a plate and search through for stems or off colored berries. Then I sifted through a strainer to get smaller debris out. It didn’t take too long to go through a pound, and it makes a better product.
I make a pound at once and didn’t measure as she says above, I just put all berries into a large pot, covered with water, and let sit for 24 hours, then strained out the liquid and saved it, then poured boiling water on the berries again just to cover, let sit, and strained again. I did twist in a piece of fine cotton cloth as she describes. Keep in mind that elderberries could probably be used as a natural dye!
If you make a whole pound, you will need several bottles. I store in either alcohol bottles, either Clear Springs 180 proof grain alcohol, or glass juice bottles. Also, I did not follow her recipe precisely, I used just a bit less alcohol (I used Clear Springs grain alcohol which is twice as strong as vodka, just diluted it with an equal amount of water, either works) and a little less sweetener. I have used either raw sugar or honey depending on honey price.
Keep in mind that the honey or sugar acts as a preservative, and if you use much less it may go bad. You only take 1 Tablespoon at a time though. If you don’t want to use much or any sweetener, than you have to make a tincture, which uses a lot of alcohol. I did elderberry tincture once and much prefer making the syrup.
Elderberry Syrup Recipe
7 cups elderberry juice
8 ¾ cups honey
3 cups 80 proof vodka
Warm the elderberry juice to “hot, but not boiling” temp… between 150 and 180°F should be plenty. Stir in the honey and stir until it’s completely dissolved and blended.
Remove from the heat, and stir in the vodka. Cool down a bit so the vodka (or the high proof) doesn’t evaporate.
Pour into sterile jars or bottles (sterilize them by boiling for 5-10 minutes in boiling water, then let drip dry upside down until filling)
Cap and LABEL. Store in a cool DARK place (or bottle in dark brown glass)
Standard dose for adults would be:
Prophylaxis (prevention) 1 tablespoon 2x a day. If there is active flu in your office or family, double that, or take more often.
Treatment: 1-2 tablespoons every 3-4 hours
Children under 12: half the adult dose
Toddlers and infants: Talk to your doctor! But, lacking that, 1 tsp at similar intervals to the adult dose should be adequate.
There is NO way to overdose on this! Put it in juice, jello, pour it over ice cream- any way you can get the kids to take it is fine.
Alternatives:
If you do not want to use any alcohol in the syrup, use
7 cups elderberry juice
14 cups honey
Proceed as above, ignoring the reference to the vodka.
If you don’t want to use honey (probably best to NOT use it for babies under 1 year)
7 cups elderberry juice
11 ½ cups sugar
I have some Black Chokeberry bushes; they have some of the same benefits as Elderberry.
https://resyncproducts.com/blogs/resync-blog/most-valuable-antioxidant-showdown-during-flu-season-elderberry-vs-aronia-chokeberry
Thanks! That recipe is almost how I make homemade blueberry wine. I keep a good supply of moonshine around for most of my terrible lung issues, but the Elderberry sounds wonderful.
Thanks for the recipe, lj! Yes, Amazon sells the Starwest Botanical dried elderberries.
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