You Will Need:
- ½ cup elderberries, dried
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 5 cloves
- 1 TBSP freshly grated ginger
- 2 cups clean water
- 1 cup RAW, unfiltered honey
Directions:
- Put all in a saucepan EXCEPT honey.
- Bring to a boil, then turn it down to simmer.
- Simmer, covered, until liquid reduces by one-half (about 20-30 minutes).
- Strain liquid into a glass bowl.
- Squish all the good juice out of berries through sieve/strainer.
- Gently whisk in your honey.
You can make this with fresh or frozen berries, but use a full cup of berries, rather than the half cup dried. Store in a closed glass jar in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. This only keeps for a couple of weeks, so make a small batch at a time from your stored ingredients.
Elderberries have been a folk remedy for centuries in North America, Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa, hence the medicinal benefits of elderberries are being investigated and rediscovered. Bioflavonoids and other proteins in the juice destroy the ability of cold and flu viruses to infect a cell.
Used for its antioxidant activity, to lower cholesterol, improve vision, boost the immune system, improve heart health and for coughs, colds, flu, bacterial and viral infections and tonsilitis. Elderberry juice was used to treat a flu epidemic in Panama in 1995.
People with the flu who took elderberry juice reported less severe symptoms and felt better much faster than those who did not.
Elderberries contain organic pigments, tannin, amino acids, carotenoids, flavonoids, sugar, rutin, viburnic acid, vitamin A and B and a large amount of vitamin C. They are also mildly laxative, a diuretic, and diaphoretic. Flavonoids, including quercetin, are believed to account for the therapeutic actions of the elderberry flowers and berries.
A very useful recipe for those who live where elderberry grows well. We used to grow elderberry on the fence line as it was one of the few shrubs that could withstand the occasional haircut by the horses next door who would lean over the fence when their grass was in short supply. In other years we would get a good crop of berries. I understand elderberry was also thought to ward off evil spirits so would be planted around the back door of houses. A double benefit to those who so believed in that they could also crop the plant for its berries and also for the flowers for elderberry wine.
Sadly elder plants do not do well in the hot desert area I live in now.
Good morning, Harriet! I have been using Black Sambucus Elderberry syrup, 5000 mg., from VitaCost.com (their own brand). It’s highly efficacious in quickly bringing under control inflamed, irritated air passages in the lungs due to asthma. It’s an effective mucilage, so, it’s clears any built-up mucous, as well. Here’s the link, if you’d like to look at perhaps ordering from VitaCost?
http://www.vitacost.com/vitacost-sambucus-ultra-concentrated-black-elderberry-extract-syrup
I’m also wondering if you could set up a solar system that would generate power for grow lights so that you could grow your own indoors, or, even in a basement, if you have one, or can dig one?
Hope all is well in your part of the world today. Blessings!
Thanks Harriet for the fascinating information!
Bev :)
OOPS. I made a boo-boo, y’all – repeated a sentence and got the date wrong in one of them – I believe the Panama treatment occurred in 1951, not 1995. My bad! I suspect I wrote this late at night, and I am definitely NOT a night person, as you can tell! :Zzzzzz:
OOPS, again; nope, it was 1995. Going to get coffee now……
You crack me up