Elderberry Elixir

Winter and I have never really appreciated each other.  I'm solar powered and without the sun I run dim.  Without heat, my body tries to hibernate.  I feel bad for our livestock, I feel bad for me.  The cold, the ice, the lack of green growing things just makes me cranky.   It's pathetic really, but true.

You know what else winter brings?  Colds and Flu.  I'm telling ya, nothing good comes out of winter.

I have been hesitant to write this post because I don't want a debate over vaccinations. We have kicked this dead horse enough.  Look, ladies, we have got to get out of each others space.   If you have time to start running someone else's life I promise that you are letting something very important fall apart in your own.  Tend your own backyard, sister, and let's give each other some grace.

If you decide that the flu shot is a safe precaution for your family I am happy for you.  In our home, it is not.  Not giving my family flu shots, however, does not mean that I pretend the flu doesn't exist.  Nor am I nervously wringing my hands, fearful that it is going to devour them right before my eyes.  Remember, the prudent wife?  She provides for the future.

In August the elderberries are ripe in Missouri, and in August I make my first batch of flu-fighting elixir.  I will make several more throughout the winter from dried berries but I always have the first batch in the fridge long before I need it because if you wait until you are sick to make it, you won't feel good enough to do it.

First, you need a source for elderberries.  They grow wild in a lot of states if you can beat the squirrels to them.  When we lived in Idaho I bought them here.   

Elderberry Elixir:

2 cups fresh or 1 cup dried elderberries

4 cups water

2 cups raw local honey

several pieces echinacea root  (if you don't grow your own you can find it here)

1 Tbsp organic orange powder  this is the extra credit post for this week

2 cinnamon sticks

few slices of raw ginger (optional)

few slices of organic lemon (optional)

put water, elderberries, echinacea root, orange powder, 

cinnamon sticks, ginger and lemon slices in a pot.

bring to a boil.

reduce heat and simmer until liquid is reduced by half.

strain through cheesecloth to remove bulk material. give the cheese cloth a good twist to get the last of the juice from the berries.  Careful it's hot.

Allow to cool to room temperature.

This step is important because raw honey*  provides many antibacterial properties and if you cook it, it will be of no use.

When cool add honey and transfer to a jar.  Store in fridge.

for preventative, my crew takes one tsp every day.

If they feel a tickle or have been exposed to someone ill they take a tsp every 2-3 hours.

And that is it. 

Easy.  

Prepared.

Now join me in front of the fire and let's pine for Spring......

*the USDA does not recommend feeding raw honey to children under the age of 1 or to people with compromised immune systems.  Again, you are the one qualified to make choices for your family.