Use this homemade Elderberry Syrup recipe to keep your family healthy all year round!
I started using elderberry syrup when my daughter Meghan was a toddler. Elderberries are rich with health benefits, including:
Health Benefits of Elderberries
- Boost the immune system
- Fight and protect against bacterial infections
- Fight and protect against viral infections
- Reduce the symptoms and duration of a cold or the flu
- helps clear sinus infections
- has natural diuretic effects and promotes bowel movements
- anti-inflammatory properties
- anti-carcinogenic properties
- eases symptoms of allergies
- high in antioxidants
- high in vitamin A, which makes it great for healthy skin
Clearly elderberry is a powerful plant! Through the years I’ve tried to be consistent in having our whole family take elderberry syrup, especially during the cold and flu season. The problem? Elderberry syrup is expensive!
I would much rather buy a product than have to make it. I’m a busy mama and adding one more thing to my plate can cause me to drop and break the whole plate. Nobody wants to see that.
However. When I discover I can make something for significantly cheaper at home and it’s really not that difficult, I make room on my plate. I might have to take something else off the plate, but I make room.
This homemade elderberry syrup recipe is really easy and worth the effort for the money saved. One of my lovely readers actually first shared the recipe she uses for homemade elderberry syrup with me last year when I was lamenting about the cost of buying the syrup.
Can I take a minute to tell you how much I love this community of readers? You guys are awesome and I love that we can help each other!
I use the basics of that recipe, but changed it slightly. I use dried cinnamon rather than a cinnamon stick and instead of using dried ginger and whole cloves, I use ginger and clove essential oils. I note in the recipe below that you can use either.
How to Make a Homemade Elderberry Syrup Recipe
The first step will be to get yourself some dried elderberries, which I get on Amazon. (affiliate link) Oh, how I love my Amazon Prime membership. 2 days later and you’ll be ready to make some immune-boosting syrup!
The whole process is easy and can be done while doing other household chores. You start by simmering some dried elderberries with water and spices for about 45 minutes. That’s when you can be doing other things. No need to hover over the pot here.
Once the liquid is reduced by half, you drain the liquid. I use a fine mesh strainer which makes it super easy. (Mine are very similar to these and I use them for everything!)
Make sure you squeeze all the liquid out of the berries so you aren’t wasting any. The back of a wooden spoon should do the trick.
Make sure the liquid is cooled, and then you can add your raw honey. Raw honey sweetens the syrup so kids will take it easily, but also has its own medicinal benefits. Win-win!
Then you store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator and it will last for about two months. For adults, take 1 tablespoon daily and for children, 1 teaspoon daily. If you or your children are experiencing sickness or feel something coming on, that dose should be repeated four times daily.
Here’s a video to show you how easy it is to make homemade elderberry syrup at home!
Here’s to a healthy cold and flu season!
Homemade Elderberry Syrup Recipe
PrintHomemade Elderberry Syrup Recipe
This homemade elderberry syrup can be made in less than an hour and will keep your family healthy all year long. It’s the best natural immune booster you can use.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Category: natural medicine
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup dried elderberries
- 3 cups water
- 1 teaspoon dried cinnamon or 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 teaspoon dried cloves or 4 whole cloves or 1 drop clove essential oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger or 1 teaspoon dried ginger or 1 drop ginger essential oil
- 1 cup raw honey
Instructions
- In a large pot, bring the elderberries, water, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger to a boil.
- Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until the liquid has reduced by half, about 40-45 minutes.
- Allow the liquid to cool, and then drain the liquid using a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth.
- Press all liquid out of the berries using the back of a wooden spoon.
- Add the raw honey and mix well.
- Store in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator for up to two months.
Nutrition
- Calories: 1113
- Sugar: 278g
- Sodium: 21mg
- Fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 299g
- Protein: 2g
Take along with this Vitamin C Smoothie for extra immune-boosting power!
This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting my mission to help as many people as possible live a happy, healthy life!
Lisa says
January 17, 2020 at 10:04 amWhere is the best place to buy dried elderberries?
Maryea says
January 18, 2020 at 9:10 amAmazon!
sonya says
December 22, 2019 at 8:40 pmI cooked mine for almost an hour and it did not cook down that much. Is it still good? I just now have ALOT
Maryea says
December 27, 2019 at 7:25 amIt should still work fine. You must have had it on too low of a simmer.
Linda says
October 23, 2019 at 1:10 pmhoney is the preservative.
Craig says
October 7, 2019 at 9:04 pmI think I reduced it too much. Ended up with less than 2 cups after straining. Should I add water back in to dilute? If so, how much? You said to reduce to about half so should I end up with 3 cups or will there be some additional loss since there will still be some liquid that won’t fully come out of the berries?
Basically, how much should I end up with when it’s all done?
craig says
October 8, 2019 at 12:10 pmOh, and what is the purpose of waiting until its completely cool to add honey? I figured it would dissolve better if slightly warm?
Maryea says
November 5, 2019 at 8:40 amMy honey dissolves fine after the liquid is cool. I cool the liquid to avoid destroying the properties of raw honey with heat.
Craig says
October 8, 2019 at 12:24 pmI should mention that I doubled it, so 6 cups water and ended up with less than 2 cups. Is it too concentrated?
Maryea says
October 8, 2019 at 4:20 pmI am making another batch tomorrow. I will measure to give you an exact answer!
Maryea says
November 5, 2019 at 8:38 amI doubled the recipe and ended up with 3 cups liquid before adding the honey, so yes, that is too concentrated. After adding honey I had 5 1/2 cups liquid.
sonya says
December 22, 2019 at 8:42 pmmine did not cook away. I still had like 5 cups of liquid…..I hope it still works.
★★★★★
Michelle says
September 30, 2019 at 8:33 pmIs the calories for one tablespoon? Wow that’s a lot
★★★★
Amy says
September 7, 2019 at 6:18 pmIm planning on making this and storing it in mason jars, about how many ounces does this recipe make?
Kay says
August 14, 2019 at 9:06 pmIs this safe to take all year around
Lisa says
August 3, 2019 at 6:58 amCan this really last 2 months in the fridge? Most recipes I see say only 2 weeks in the fridge.
Wendy Jones says
July 28, 2019 at 8:39 pmHelp!
Need elderberry advice.
This is the first time I have tried making any elderberry juice – anything.
I started with one elderberry plant (ordered from a nursery) and four-years later, they are all over the growing area. I thought I would try making some elderberry juice in 2019.
Here is what I did – please tell me if I can use it!
I picked the big bunches of fruits, froze them to get them off the stems, then tried to remove as many small sticks as possible.
There were plenty of tiny stick left with the berries when I began.
I juiced about 3 cups of berry-small twig mixture and three quarts of added water in a blender.
Strained out the juice leaving anything solid behind.
I put ONLY the liquid in a pot to cook.
Total berry juice and water when I started cooking was about 3-quarts.
Cooked it for ONE HOUR (rolling boil first — followed by 45 min of simmering).
Put sugar in it (it is too bitter to drink alone) and stirred.
Put remaining liquid (about 2-quarts) in small mason jars and tossed them in a pressure cooker (5 lb pressure for 10 minutes).
Is this safe to use?
How much do I use daily?
Thank you.
Melissa says
June 12, 2019 at 11:16 amI’ve been making elderberry syrup for about 2 years now. I take 1 tablespoon per day, 5 days a week, for maintenance and haven’t been sick since even being around people with the flu…I swear by it. Something to note, small children and people with berry allergies should not take this. Another note… using Ceylon cinnamon is the best cinnamon for you you rather than the typical cinnamon. Elderberry seeds and stems should not be consumed because they are poisonous, just the juice should be consumed. I recommend this recipe,it has a great flavor! Thank you
★★★★★
Maryea says
June 13, 2019 at 12:46 pmThank you, Melissa! Great info.
Tyler Durden says
March 20, 2019 at 6:08 pmWhat can I do with the elderberries once pressed ?
Maryea says
March 22, 2019 at 2:21 pmI’m not aware of another use for them.
Kat Martinez says
March 22, 2019 at 9:24 pmMaryea,
With them being loaded with acidity, I place mine in a flower bed, around blue berries or give the scraps to my chickens.
Just my thoughts 😉