The seasons will be changing here soon, but is your immune system ready for it? This healthy elderberry syrup is just what you need as a preventative for you and your family during cold and flu season.
We use elderberry syrup as a preventative in our house but that does not take away from eating good healthy foods and getting daily exercise to boost your immune system. If your diet and exercise hasn’t changed and you just add in elderberry syrup, you may not see much of a change overall when it comes to sickness.
What you want to be focusing on is your deep immune system and the only way to strengthen that is with lifestyle changes. Not just a quick cure all.
Now let’s talk about this healthy elderberry syrup. The way we use this as a preventative is by taking a spoonful of it at least 3-4 times a week. I just place the jar on the table at breakfast and let the girls take a spoon and drink as much as they would like. I would say they get roughly a teaspoon to a tablespoon of elderberry syrup in their diet every day or every other day.
When I do this consistently, we rarely get sick in the winter time. That is a major WIN for this mama!
I also have a recipe for immune boosting elderberry gummies that I shared a while ago. So if your kids don’t like drinking the syrup try turning them into gummies and see if they will eat them. Before my girls acquired a taste for the syrup, I made the gummies and they loved them! One thing to note, that when you heat it up it does kill some of the good healthy properties of the honey. It’s unfortunate but at least they are getting elderberries in their diet.
Also, make sure you are storing the gummies in the fridge. They will mold quickly on the counter. They do not have any preservative in it so they don’t have a shelf life on the counter. In the fridge they with last about 3 months.
What health benefits do elderberries have?
The amazing health benefits of elderberries are incredible. Just one cup of the berries contains about 58% of your daily dose of vitamin c and they are high in dietary fiber.
Along with the good amount of vitamin c, elderberries have a good dose of antioxidants in them. Which makes it good to boost your heart health. I love a natural remedy that works for so many things.
Getting elderberries into your diet will help to strengthen your immune system, which will help in the prevention of getting a cold or flu. The immune-boosting compounds found in elderberries are incredible and I find that we hardly catch any sickness floating around when I am consistent with getting elderberry syrup into our diet.
If you do get sick, start drinking your elderberry syrup right away a few times a day. At the first sign of a sniffle or sore throat, start taking this elderberry syrup as much as you can.
It has been known to ease cold and flu symptoms when you do get sick. This healthy elderberry syrup is always a key factor in bringing us back to good health in our home!
If you are running short of time and don’t want to make this recipe, although it is incredibly easy, you can always buy already made elderberry syrup at your local health food store or on Amazon. I would always check the ingredients to make sure there are no additives in it. If you can find one that has to be refrigerated even better! That way you know there are no added preservatives in it.
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor nor do I claim to be. All information in this post are based on my own research and experimenting for my own family. Please do your own research for your family before consuming elderberries. It is important to note that consuming unripe berries or uncooked berries may cause vomiting, diarrhea, and nausea. When in question please always consult a medical professional.
Other ways to consume elderberries.
Although we typically only do the elderberry syrup now, there are other ways to consume elderberries. I feel the best way is in a healthy elderberry syrup because you add so many other things to it that have incredible health benefits.
However, making yourself a delicious cup of elderberry tea, which you can add local raw honey to, is another way to get them into your diet especially when you are sick. If you can’t seem to stomach a super sweet syrup while sick, try making a tea with your dehydrated berries.
Simply boil water in a pot, however much you need for a cup of tea. Add in a couple handfuls of dried elderberries. remove pot from the heat and cover. Steep tea for 15-20 minutes. Use a fine mesh strainer to strain the tea. Sweeter with honey and enjoy.
Do not boil the berries in the water, your tea will become bitter. You want your water to boil first and then remove it from the heat before adding the berries.
Why I make syrup more than the gummies.
As the years have gone on I knew I needed to make this task simpler. Standing over a silicone mold filling each individual gummy was daunting and a waste of time. It served it’s purpose when they wouldn’t drink the syrup but I knew I could find a syrup they would actually drink! Once I found one, it saved me lots of time while filling them with good healthy vitamins and minerals.
So, with a little tweaking of my current gummy recipe, this syrup is one they will drink as just a syrup that takes hardly any time to whip up! What’s the magic ingredient you ask? MORE HONEY!
The extra honey is a natural preservative for your syrup. This will help it to last in the fridge longer (up to 6 months) and it tastes sweeter too, so they don’t mind taking a spoonful of it a day!
We also love to throw some of the syrup in with our kombucha as a second ferment. That’s a double win! The healthy gut healing probiotics of the kombucha, paired with the minerals and vitamins of the elderberry syrup for your immune systems. What a delicious healthy drink! If you can’t get your kids to drink while they are sick, see if they will drink this.
I tend to always have plenty of elderberry syrup in the fridge to use how I need to in the winter months.
Ingredients:
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup dried elderberries OR 2 cups frozen or fresh elderberries
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 5-6 whole cloves
- sprinkle of ginger or grate in some fresh ginger
- 2 cups raw local honey
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
How to Make Healthy Elderberry Syrup:
- Add water, elderberries, cinnamon sticks, ginger, and cloves to a stockpot.
- Bring to medium heat and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes. If you are using fresh berries simmer for 30 minutes as the fresh berries need to be cooked right.
- Strain out all the berries and spices. I just use a strainer inside of a bowl.
- Let the temperature of the elderberry juice come back down to about 110° degrees. I don’t typically check the temp I just make sure I can stick my finger in it comfortably. This is just so you don’t kill any of the good properties of the raw honey.
- Add in lemon juice and honey. Mix until combined and then pour into a jar and cap it. Stick in the refrigerator for up to 6 months! I like to store my elderberry syrup in glass jars with the lid and ring so that it is in an airtight container. This helps it to stay fresh and good.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I may earn a small commission on qualified purchases at no additional cost to you.
Since this homemade elderberry syrup recipe is just a food, it is incredibly safe to consume as much as you would like! However, because of the raw honey, I do not recommend giving to children under a year.
Feel free to pour this syrup over ice cream, add it to your kombucha for flavoring, or pour it over some sourdough pancakes. You don’t have to just drink it plain, add it to some of your favorite foods!
I have wild elderberries on my property that I like to harvest every year and dehydrate in my Excalibur dehydrator. That way I am ready to whip up a batch whenever needed. But before I had them on our property I would buy dried elderberries on Amazon.
Farmhouse Teas also has a good dried elderberry as well if you are looking for a small company to support.
Getting natural remedies on my shelf and into our bodies is our best line of defense for sickness and different ailments that can be thrown our way. This healthy elderberry syrup is no exception.
Now go make yourself a good batch of healthy elderberry syrup and start taking it right away! Lets get our immune systems cranking so we are able to fight against whatever germ that tries to enter our bodies this cold/flu season!
Elderberry Syrup
Materials
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup dried elderberries OR 2 cups fresh/frozen
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 5-6 cloves
- sprinkle of ginger or grate in some fresh ginger
- 2 cups raw honey
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
Instructions
- Add water, elderberries, cinnamon sticks, ginger, and cloves to a stockpot.
- Bring to a simmer and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Strain out all the berries and spices. I just use a strainer inside of a bowl.
- Let the temperature of the elderberry juice come back down to about 110° degrees. I don't typically check the temp I just make sure I can stick my finger in it comfortably. This is just so you don't kill any of the good properties of the raw honey.
- Add in lemon juice and honey. Mix until combined and then pour into a jar and cap it. Stick in the refrigerator for up to 6 months!
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