Earlier this month, my entire family got hit with the flu. I was caught a bit off-guard, because we had not been sick in so long, and I realized I had never unpacked my herbal “medicine cabinet” after our move onto the land. Furthermore, when I finally did find my box of herbs, tinctures, homeopathic remedies, and essential oils, I found it rather incomplete. It was time to re-stock with natural remedies for health and wellness, and to make elderberry syrup.
One of my favorite plant medicines, reported to be an immune booster and cold and flu remedy, is Elderberry (Sambucus nigra). A subspecies of S. nigra grows as a native perennial here in Missouri; in fact, there are a few plants on our 60 acre land trust. We also purchased 25 young Elder bushes last spring and planted them throughout the property, but it will be a few years before they bear fruit.
While the primary ingredient of elderberry syrup is, of course, elderberries, I included Echinacea in this batch to boost the cold and flu-fighting properties, and added cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and honey to give it a more complex, delicious taste! If you have the supplies, it’s a good idea to double or triple the recipe and freeze extra containers for later!
Ingredients
2/3 Cup Dried Elderberry or Elderberry powder (Use 2c. fresh berries, or 1c. whole dried berries)
A note about elderberries: While I used dried elderberries in this recipe, you can use fresh or frozen berries with equal results. Fresh berries may require a bit longer cooking time to thicken the syrup. If have access to fresh berries, an easy way to remove berries from the stem is to freeze them first, and then gently tease the berries off the stem with your fingers.
2 TBSP Echinacea Root
2 TBSP Fresh Ginger Root
1 Cinnamon Stick
1/2 tsp Whole Cloves
3 1/2 C. Water
3/4 Cup – 1 1/2 Cup Raw Honey (sweetened to your personal preference)
How to Make Elderberry Syrup
1) Place all ingredients EXCEPT honey into a heavy saucepan and SIMMER for 30-45 minutes.
2) Strain the liquid using a mesh strainer or cheesecloth. Because I had used Elderberry Powder, instead of whole berries (Mountain Rose was out of whole berries), I strained the mixture a second time, through a mesh tea strainer.
3) Allow the mixture to cool until it is just warm to the touch. Add honey, and stir until well-mixed.
4) Refrigerate until use. If you have made a double or triple batch, keep some in the fridge for immediate use, and freeze the rest in small glass mason jars for later use.
For immune boosting, it is generally accepted that adults can take up to 1 TBSP of the syrup per day, while children should take 1 TSP. However, some sources recommend taking a “break” from remedies that include Echinacea. In this case, you may wish to use this elderberry syrup recipe for acute illnesses such as colds or flu, and take the syrup several times per day at the first sign of illness. As always, please do your own research and consult with your physician to determine what is right for you.
Note: Honey should not be given to children under 1 year.
Enjoy this delicious and good-for-you syrup!
How to Make Elderberry Syrup
Elderberry is said to be an immune booster and a great remedy for colds and the flu. Learn how to make elderberry syrup with this simple and delicious recipe.
Ingredients
- 2/3 Cup Elder Berry Powder (Use 2c. fresh berries, or 1c. whole berries)
- 2 TBSP Echinacea Root
- 2 TBSP Fresh Ginger Root
- 1 Cinnamon Stick
- 1/2 tsp Whole Cloves
- 3 1/2 C. Water
- 3/4 Cup – 1 1/2 Cup Raw Honey (sweetened to your personal preference)
Instructions
- Place all ingredients EXCEPT honey into a heavy saucepan and SIMMER for 30-45 minutes.
- Strain the liquid using a mesh strainer or cheesecloth. Because I had used Elderberry Powder, instead of whole berries (Mountain Rose was out of whole berries), I strained the mixture a second time, through a mesh tea strainer.
- Allow the mixture to cool until it is just warm to the touch. Add honey, and stir until well-mixed.
- Refrigerate until use.
Notes
For immune boosting, I have read that adults can take up to 1 TBSP of the syrup per day, while children should take 1 TSP. For acute illnesses such as colds or flu, take the syrup several times per day. Note: Honey should not be given to children under 1 year.
As I am not a health professional, please do your own research, and consult with your physician to determine what is right for you
Pin it for Later:
I am looking at getting elderberry powder from MRH as the whole berries are out of stock. Did you use a 1:1 substitution? I did not notice otherwise in the recipe or the description so I want t make sure. Thank you!
Hi Debbie – I used the elderberry powder, and used the following: 2/3 Cup Elder Berry Powder OR you can use 2c. fresh berries, or 1c. whole dried berries.
Have fun making it!
Can I still drink it if it ferments?
Syrup will last a long, long time, but as long as there is no funky mold, you could probably drink the fermented syrup. I don’t see why it’s any different than mead, which is made by fermenting honey. But quite honestly, I don’t have personal experience with fermented syrup because it gets used up long before it would ever ferment!
Thanks so much. I find my homemade syrup with local raw honey can ferment at times within 2 months….
How can I have it last longer?
Thanks!!
I’d keep it as cool as you can while storing, and once it’s in use, store in the refrigerator.
Great! Thank you!
Happy new year!
Ok- so what are the floaters I just saw in my syrup if it tastes normal? Everything else is normal about the syrup…
what are the floaters I just saw in my syrup if it tastes normal?
Thanks
It’s hard to say what they are without seeing the syrup. If you’re working with powdered or dried herbs, you might just be seeing some particulate from the herbs. If it is freshly made, it should be fine if it otherwise tastes, smells, and looks normal.
Darn– how can I send a pic of my elderberry syrup? It has like a gloop in it.. Made with organic Dried elderberries, kovs raw honey, cinnamon, cloves and fresh ginger…
Thanks!!
You’re welcome to send me a photo at teri@homestead-honey.com. I can take a look at it, but honestly, when I”m evaluating food for “problems” I trust my own eyes and nose much more. Do you see any signs of mold? Does it smell weird? Elderberry syrup has a nice earthy, berry smell to it. Did your honey completely dissolve? Have you tasted it? Does it taste okay? If it passes all of your tests, it should be fine, but the thing is, if YOU are concerned about it, then it won’t really be bringing you healing – it will be causing you stress. In that case, I’d advise starting over so you can feel really good about it and drink it with confidence.
the glob would be from the cinnamon. I get this problem sometimes while working with it. the blogs just need more liquid and a good mixing,
Teri, thank you for the great recipe! I have one question though, is the syrup supposed to be very thin, like water, or thicker? Mine is very thin. Just thinking that maybe I should have simmered it longer to reduce the liquid some.
Yes, if you simmer it longer, it will become thicker. It’s really a personal taste thing, but if you simmer longer it will be more syrupy.
Good luck!
Have you ever tried adding other herbs as well (like licorice root, rose hips, elecampane root, echinacea root, slippery elm, etc)?
This recipe does have Echinacea root in it, and I’d love to experiment with different combinations.
Great article. A good tip is to make sure you use a non-reactive pan when cooking elderberries, otherwise you will have a faint metallic taste in your syrup. Elderberry plants are fairly easy to grow and the new Marge variety makes a nice landscaping bush being very full because it has more lateral growth on the branches. If you have an unused area on your property not accessible by plant eating animals consider growing your own.
That’s a great tip, thank you! I will check out the Marge variety you mention, as I’d love to incorporate a few more bushes into my perennial garden. We have already planted about 25 native elders around our property, but many of them were damaged by rabbits and deer; I have another 10 on order for this spring!
Stainless steel good for making syrup?
For boiling down the sap, sure, stainless steel will work great.
Great article, I have been making tinctures with elderberries and drying the fruit and flowers for tea, I’m going to try this recipe, it sounds like it will taste better than what I have been using:)
That is great that you have a source of elderberry to dry! I do enjoy the taste of this syrup – I think the ginger, cinnamon, and clove really add to the flavor (as does the raw honey!).
Teri, this is such a great post. I have been wondering how to make elderberry syrup for a while now. It is so exciting to know that even if I do not pick the berries fresh, I can order dried ones.
One question for you: how long will this syrup keep in the refrigerator? Right now everyone in my family has a cold, but I’m sure that if I took the time to make the syrup, we would probably get healthy and stay that way until next fall.
Yes, the dried elderberries from Mountain Rose are good quality. The powder worked just fine.
I have purchased Elderberry syrup before, and it does ferment over time. I can’t recall exactly how many months that took, but the amount that my recipe will make (about 1 1/2 cups) should remain fresh if you are taking it every day, and more often if you’re battling illness. Feel better!
I have read that it lasts up to 6 mo in the fridge…although mine doesn’t usually last nearly that long with 3 kiddos!!