I grew up in Germany, eating Elderberry-Jelly for Breakfast, drinking it as a child for the Vitamin C in it
and even my Coughsyrup was made with Elderberries, but yet I never spend a second thought about them, until I came
over here and moved to Kentucky, where I met another german Lady, that became my best friend. Chris was very much
into Herbs and things and got me hooked pretty fast.
I had moved into a very small town on the other side of Ft.Campbell and being able to drive on Post, I would take
the roads to the Ranges which would also take me to Lafayette. Driving that way, you pass many Fields and wooded Areas
and I have found many flowers out there that I transplanted into my yard. It wasn't until Chris got the conversation
started about Elderberries, that I found out that they grew out there. Of course, she had all my attention on that
one.
We went out one day and she showed me, where there was some growing and pretty soon, we were both picking Elderberries
by the bucket fulls!! Of course, I didn't want to spend my time out among the Firing Ranges, picking Elderberries,
so I decide to plant some in my Yard. It didn't take but a couple of years for me to have plenty of berries to make
Jelly, syrup and Juice with!! Most people in the town, I lived in, only knew Elderberries as a weed or at least, they
had heard of Elderberry-Wine! So, I let 'em taste the jelly and they loved it!
When I got my computer, I went on-line to see how many different Elderberry-Recipes I could find and was surprise to see
that there hardly are any!! So, that is why I decided to write some about Elderberries...............
ELDERBERRY, or ELDER, is a deciduous shrub or small tree, belonging to the honeysuckle familie......
EUROPEAN ELDER (Sambucus nigra) grows to a height of 30 ft. and produces yellow-white flowers in clusters up to 8in. across.
AMERICAN, or SWEET ELDER, S.canadensis, grows 4 to 10ft. high and the berries on this one turn from green to light red to dark red and purple-black when ripe.
The leaves are cpmposed of five to seven leaflets, oval with sharply acute tips and serrated edges. The flowers grow on flat terminal cymes.
Elders are very easy to grow and will grow in almost any soil. They make beautiful shrubs in any garden and the entire shrub or tree has marvelous medicinal properties.
If you are not much into using the flowers or berries for personal use, the berries on this shrub are also much liked by birds! So, Elders would also be great in your yard, if you like attracting birds.
Elders multiply easily by root and in only a couple of years, you can have a plentiful supply of berries!
I usually cut my Elders down to about 4ft. in the fall and remove any old and brittle branches.
You can use the ELDERFLOWERS, to make wine.
I personally have never tried it, because I just don't like wine very much, but my girlfriend says, that it is delicious. And so have other people told me.
---
Mix Elderflowers and peppermint tea in the very first stages of influenza, taken every few hours, and it will ward off a serious attack. Stay in bed and keep well covered as this is diaphoretic and perspiration will start.
It is also a very mild laxative, which will keep the system clear.
The Berries are pretty much ripe, when purple-black and the clusters begin to droop.
I usually leave a cluster on each shrub for the birds! :-)
You can use the Berries for quite a few different things besides Wine,like Jelly, Syrup or Juice.
Make sure, you wash the Berries really good and strip them off the stalks. Many people use a dining fork for that.........I do better by hand. You just have to be very careful not to crush the berries that way.
If you have quite a few shrub, I found it easier to just freeze the berries in plastic containers as I go and cook what I need later.
You know....in Germany, doctors prescribed Coughsyrup, which was made with Elderberries.
I remember as a child, my grandmother would make me drink at least one glass of Elderberry-Juice a day, because it is so high in Vitamin C. And european Doctors prescribe pure Elderberry-Juice, taken daily for 5 days or more, for trigeminal neuralgia and sciatica.
Six years ago, I injured my neck working in the Yard.
I thought, I had just pulled a muscle or something, but when the pain got excrutiating and I lost use of my arm, I went and saw a doctor.
The Neurologist, I ended up seeing, diagnosed me with having cervical Sciatica (Neck) and told me, I would probably have to stay on Medication for a long time to come and slow down on the things, I love doing or I could end up under the knife.
One day, I remembered reading this article that doctors prescribe the Elderberry-Juice for Sciatica and made up a bunch of juice and faithfully drank it.
I will not say, it cured it, but I do believe, it really helped it get better. Well enough, that I took myself off the medications. That was four years ago.
I love drinking Elderberry-Juice with a shot of lemon, ice-cold!! It is delicious!!
I fill a 6 quart Pan three-quarters full with berries.
Add just a bit of water(1/2 a cup) and bring it to
a boil. I use a Potatoe-Masher and keep mashing the
Berries while I let them boil for about 15 minutes
or so. Then strain them thru a strainer. After that,
I fill the strainer with Berries and mash them against
the strainer with a spoon to get the last of the juice
out of the ones I didn't get mashed earlier. It's
tidious work, but you get a bit more juice that way.
The pulp, I throw away.
After I'm all done, I put the juice back on the stove
and bring it back to a slow boil, adding about 3cups
of Sugar for each quart of juice, stirring constantly.
If you're not sure, how much Juice you have, just go
with the Taste-Test.
Once it tastes as sweet as syrup, I'm happy.
What I usually do here is have my Quart-size Mason Jars
ready and fill the juice into them. I can usually fill
about four of them.
Now, you can use this for Syrup, which is delicious on
Pancakes! MY Boys could live on that alone.......!! :-)
Or put some on your Ice-Cream!! DELICIOUS!!
At least one Jar gets put aside for when the "Flu"
Season comes around!!
Feel like you're getting a chest-cold? Drink Black Tea
with a spoonful of Syrup in it!! Or just take it like
any other Cough-syrup on a spoon!!
To make some Juice, I just go half and half, half
Syrup, half Water. Then add a shot of lemon-juice
and a couple Ice-cubes and.....enjoy!! :-)
When I first started, I would take the pure Juice,
before you add the sugar, and fill up a few bottles, but
found, that it doesn't last that long refrigirated!
That's why I do it this way now and I can fill me up
a bottle at a time. Actually I even like the taste better
this way.
NOW........to make Jelly:
Cook up enough Berries for at least 3 Cups of pure Juice!
Mash it and strain it.........then..........
I use SURE-JELL FRUIT PECTIN!
Inside the Pack, you will find the directions for
Elderberry-Jelly, which I follow exactly.......
One pack will make approx. 5 Cups of Jelly!
I sure hope, you will enjoy it as much as my family
and friends have! Try it on toast with just abit of butter!! :-)Hhhmmmm......Good!!!!
Have any other recipes for Elderberries?? :-)
Or any comments.......
Please,E-mail me at my address at the top of this page!
Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope, you enjoyed
your stay!?!?! :-)
