Simple Elderberry Syrup recipe for flu

[Forest Beekeeper]

We grow elderberries.

I juice them and it all goes into our flu-tonic.

2 parts elderberry juice,
2 parts cranberry juice,
1 part ethanol [97%],
1 part honey.

Folks seem to love it.

:)

[jimmythebee]

i'll be looking into this elderberry syrup, my daughter just got very sick this week while traveling and a friend had a similar illness while visiting Florida---vomiting was the major symptom

[grower]

Here's a step-by-step video for making Elderberry Syrup using this recipe:

[Limner]

Bttt!

[Sherree]

Question.....If a health food store carries a good brand of Elderberry syrup, would it be just as good as homemade?

I bought a few bottles for this winter. We set out 2 elderberry bushes back in late summer, but they aren't old enough to have berries, yet.

[Summerthyme]

Sherree... probably. I know, big help! But I bought some from Todd's Honey Gardens online (in fact, it was their syrup which was my "inspiration" when I developed my syrup recipe) and it worked fine.

You can easily buy dried berries and make your own, as well. That's what I did before our bushes got huge (and it's still my "fall back" for years the birds go nuts and eat all the berries before they're ripe!). But I got 5 gallons of berries off two bushes last fall, so we'll be set for awhile. But I'll admit- using dried berries is a WHOLE LOT easier and less messy than juicing fresh ones!

Summerthyme

[Sherree]

Thanks Summerthyme. I bought 2 bottles of syrup at the health food store in town. I was hoping that it would be just as good, since I don't have my own berries yet. The lady that owns the store is very knowledgeable, and she said that it was. I wanted to check with you gals to make sure. What I bought doesn't have alcohol in it though. Should I add some, or just use it the way it is? I use alcohol in my homemade cough remedy.

[Forest Beekeeper]

... 5 gallons of berries off two bushes last fall, so we'll be set for awhile. But I'll admit- using dried berries is a WHOLE LOT easier and less messy than juicing fresh ones!

We harvested 5 buckets [5 gallon each] from our elders this year.

You can do it in a manner that is not messy.

When you pick them, immediately put the buckets in a freezer. Then after they are frozen process them to remove the berries form the umbell, and re-freeze them.

We also froze our blueberries this year. Largely because you do not get one single 'harvest'. Rather you get some every week for many weeks.

After all berries were done, then we thawed them and juiced them all together.

We have been using a Kitchen-Aid juicer, but next year we hope to shift to a 5 gallon press.