Elderberry Syrup Using Fresh and Dried Elderberries
Wondering about Recipe for Elderberry Syrup? Elderberry has been known for its health benefits for hundreds of years. They are fruits of the Sambucus tree. The most common type is Sambucus nigra. The tree has clusters of small white or cream elderflowers and bunches of small black or blue elderberries.
Elderberry Nutrition Content
- A cup of elderberries contain 106 calories and 26.28g of carbohydrate
- A cup of elderberries also contains
- 870mg of Vitamin A
- 406mg of Potassium
- 2mg of Vitamin C
- 9mg of Folate
- 55mg of calcium
- 32mg of Iron
- 2g of dietary fiber
Eating raw elderberries is not advisable as the seeds, leaves, and bark contains a toxic substance that can lead to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea
The best way to use elderberries is by making elderberry syrup.
You may ask: Why the syrup? This is because most traditional elderberry syrups are made with a good portion of new honey which has a good shelf life.
Another reason is that elderberry has a wonderful flavor and shines with a little sweetening. The syrup makes good toppings for pancakes, waffles, oatmeal, or desserts.
Recipe for Preparing Elderberry Syrup
Ingredients:
2/3 cups of dried organic elderberries (or 11/3 cups fresh or frozen)
3½ cups of water
2 tsp of ginger (grated)
1 tbs of Cinnamon
½ tsp of ground cloves
1 cup of raw honey
Procedure:
- Put water into a pot, add the elderberries, ginger, cloves, and Cinnamon
- Boil the mixture and then reduce heat allowing content to simmer for about 45 minutes to 1 hour until the liquid has reduced by almost half.
- Remove from heat and allow to steep
- Mash the berries carefully using a spoon or any flat utensil
- Strain into a glass jar or bowl
- Allow the liquid to cool to lukewarm while you discard the berries
- Add honey and stir well
- You can decide to add brandy or vodka to increase shelf life but this is optional.
- Pour the syrup into a sterilized glass bottle
- Store your elderberry syrup in the fridge and take daily for immune system boosting.
Benefits of Elderberries
- Elderberries contains vitamin A, B AND c naturally that can stimulate the immune system
- There has been some proof from research carried out that elderberry syrup and other elderberry extracts like Lozenges prevent flu and cold symptoms from getting worse when taken during the early stage of the symptoms.
- Treating acne: Elderberry fruit contains high levels of Flavonoids which are powerful anti-oxidative agents. This means it helps regulate cellular activities and fights off free radicals that cause skin problems.
- Decreases Wrinkles: Elderberries contains high levels of vitamin A that helps to lessen the appearance of wrinkles.
Points To Note About Recipe For Elderberry Syrup:
- If you decide to use fresh elderberries instead of dried, double the size you may have used for the dried elderberries. Dried elderberries are often used because of their availability. You can also choose to use powdered berries when whole berries are not available. Make use of about ½ cup for this recipe.
- To increase the shelf life of your syrup that is to prevent the growth of bacteria and mold, consider doubling the honey content in your recipe or add the optional alcohol.
- Elderberry syrups made with honey are not recommended for infants (children less than a year old) as it causes a rare condition called “Infantile botulism”. – You may want to read about this. If you are planning to share your syrup with an infant, substitute the honey with sugar or maple and then store it in the refrigerator.
- It is not advisable to reuse the fresh elderberries you have used already as most of the nutrients would be gone during the first process and also because studies have shown that consuming very large amounts of the whole berries can be problematic.