About a month ago, someone pointed out 2 large bushes in my side yard as elderberries. I had thought they were a weed and was surprised to hear her tell me that elderberries make a delicious dark jelly. And by doing a little research online I found out that elderberries are very good for you--high in antioxidants and clinically proven to prevent and treat colds and the flu. I also found a website with very detailed instructions and pictures to tell me what to do--just what I needed.
The berries were ripe and weighing down the boughs when I ventured out to pick them on Saturday. Picking elderberries is easy. You simple snip the head of berries from the branch. Getting the berries off of the stems, however, is another matter.
Joe and I sat on the back porch for hours on Saturday pulling the berries off. When we finished we had a huge pot of berries, which when cooked down and strained made 28 cups of juice.
We made both elderberry jelly and elderberry syrup and were up until 11 canning. But it all turned out so well! The cans all sealed and the jelly and syrup are strong, but good. The robust flavor complements the strong flavors of the whole wheat pancakes, breads, and waffles and the natural peanut butter that we eat.
All in all, a very successful project. And as I told my mom, that is pretty rare. Usually when I try something new, it flops and I have to learn and readjust several times before it turns out.
2 comments:
How fun! I love your new furniture too. :) The fabric is very pretty!
Now that's a lot of elderberry! Good for you!
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