Food from an Elderberry Plant
Elderberries are a wild food source often overlooked in today's fast paced world. You can find elderberry shrubs growing in most rural environments and as the plants are hardy, they are easy to dig up and transplant into your own yard. The flowers and the berries are both used for food.
Things You'll Need
Elderberries, flowers and berries
Flour
Baking powder
Salt
Milk
Eggs
Sugar
Yeast
Oil
Jelly Bag
1 box powdered pectin
Lemon juice
2 gallon crock or jar
Elderberry Flower Fritters
One
Stir together 1 1/3 cups flour, 2 tsp. baking power, and a pinch of salt. Mix together 1 egg and 2/3 cup of milk. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry mix until batter is smooth.
Two
Remove main stems from 20 - 24 elderberry flower clusters. Dip into batter allowing any surplus batter drip back into the bowl.
Three
Fry the clusters, a few at a time, in hot oil until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle confectioners sugar over the clusters if desired. Eat while warm.
Elderberry Jelly
One
Place approximately 4 pounds of crushed elderberries into a large stainless steel saucepan. Add 1 pint of water. Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat and simmer for 15 - 20 minutes. Allow the berries to cool.
Two
Pour the elderberry berries and juice through a jelly bag, collecting the juice in a bowl beneath the bag. Squeeze the berries in the bag to remove as much juice as possible.
Three
Combine 3 3/4 cups of juice, 1/4 cup of lemon juice and pectin in a large saucepan. Stir until pectin is dissolved and then bring the mixture to a boil. Add 5 cups of sugar and boil for exactly 2 minutes.
Four
Remove from heat and skim off foam. Pour or ladle into sterile canning or jelly jars and seal. Process in a boiling water bath for ten minutes; remove from the water and let cool.
Elderberry Wine
One
Mix together 2 quarts crushed, ripe elderberries, 4 quarts water and 4 cups sugar. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Pour into a two gallon crock or jug.
Two
Add in two packets of wine yeast. If wine yeast is not available, you can use regular baking yeast. Stir to distribute the yeast.
Three
Cover the crock with cheesecloth or attach an airlock to the jug. Let the wine work for at least one month. The longer you let the wine 'make', the more potent it will become.
Four
Use rubber tubing to siphon the wine into smaller jars or bottles with tight fitting lids.
Elderberries can be combined with other berries for pies, jellies, jams and wine.
Elderberries can be preserved for winter use by washing the berries and then freezing.
Mix elderberry flowers into pancake mix for a unique breakfast treat.
Mashing the berries, adding an equal amout of sugar and cooking for ten minutes can make elderberry syrup.
