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In the photo to the right, Hailey is taking photos with her OWN camera for the newsletter. She's my new apprentice.

A few weeks back I took my annual trip to the east side of the Cascade Mountains to pick the berries of the elder (the blue kind) that are native over there. On the west side of the mountains we have the red-berried ones, which are not as desirable. Besides, the seeds of the red ones are toxic. SO, stick to the BLUE ones.

Often, you’ll see the ripe ones with a white powdery substance on them. This is a type of yeast. No worries. Just stay away from the greenish ones. They are not ripe, BUT you COULD make capers with them!

The blue or black elder (Sambucus spp.) are the type people grow in their yards as well.

What I love about this is that it is a tradition in our house. Creating traditions or rituals around gathering becomes part of the story of your family. Now, you may have elder growing down the street, but I am sure there are other herbs that you can make an adventure out of. My son Rowan and I have been doing this every fall for five years. It’s like a 4 hour round trip, so we make a day of it. Stop for treats, get lunch out, etc.

I pick about 20 pounds, most of which go into my wine. I will post an audio slideshow of elderberry wine making as well as the berry gathering/syrup video on HerbMentor.

What you need...

For this recipe we just need a cup of fresh Elderberries. You can use a half a cup of dried berries.

You can get dried elder berries at Mountain Rose Herbs.

You will also need…

• 3 cups of water

• 1 cup of honey

1.) Place the berries in a saucepan and cover them with the 3 cups of water. Then, bring it to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for a half hour.

2.) SMASH up the berries. Then, strain the mixture through a mesh strainer.

3.) Add the honey.

4.) Bottle and store in the fridge, where it will last a few months.

Why make elderberry syrup?

Elderberry syrup is one of the most popular cold remedies in Europe. Elder has been used for centuries and is one of the most well documented herbs for colds and flus. It’s also great for lots of other stuff, but we’ll keep it simple for now.

You can give the syrup by the teaspoon (kids love it) every 2-3 hours while sick, or even use it regularly in your food, such as on pancakes! Elder is VERY high in bioflavonoids and is a great antioxidant.  For kids under 2, add the syrup to hot water to kill any microbes in the honey that might make them sick.

I even pour it on my pancakes. It tastes great.

Elder is one of those magical herbs you can do SO much with. You can use the flowers in the Spring as well. There are many, many remedies you can make. We’ll be exploring this herb in more detail on HerbMentor for sure.

Enjoy!