Juicey Elderberry Jelly!

[chuckster]

A couple months ago I put up some Elderberry (more on that later) Jelly. I had frozen the berries until I had time to get to them. Anyway, I had about 15 jars that didn't set right b/c of too much water when I boiled them down. My Mom suggested I try serving it over ice cream. What a great idea! The stuff tastes great and the vanilla ice cream with the purple/red juice over the top with a mint leaf or two it looks like I'm a professional chef - well not really

I think this year I will have to repeat the "mistake" so I won't disappoint our friends.

EDLERBERRY - Up 'til now I have just picked them along dirt roads and down by the river. But that's a bit iffy cuz of all the new developments they're building and the guy roto-beating the side of the roads mows them down just when they're ready to pick about August. Anyway, last year I bought four plants (it takes two different kinds to pollinate) and put them around the back of my oven. Already it looks like I'll have a lot more then I can use in a short while. They're no good to eat until you put in the sugar - whew are they sour.

Anyone know what else can be done with elderberries?

[Inishta]

Hi Chuckster...............in the UK we use the Elderflower as well as the Elderberry. It makes a pale coloured dry wine or can be deep-fried in a tempura-type batter. For the Elderberry, wine and cordial is popular and of course Elderberry ice-cream would be a great with a dollop or two of vanilla ice-cream.

Elderberries should never be eaten raw or unripe as they contain traces of cyanide. Cooking eliminates this.

Enjoy

[gjbingham]

Wikipedia!

Both flowers and berries can be made into elderberry wine, and in Hungary an elderberry brandy is produced (requiring 50 kg of fruit to produce 1 litre of brandy). The alcoholic drink sambuca is not made with elderberries. The berries are best not eaten raw as they are mildly poisonous, causing vomiting, particularly if eaten unripe. The mild cyanide toxicity is destroyed by cooking. The berries can also be made into jam, pies or Pontack sauce. All green parts of the plant are poisonous, containing cyanogenic glycosides (Vedel & Lange 1960).
Also, it is used in the St-Germain Liquor.[1]

The flowers may be used to make an herbal tea, which is believed as a remedy for colds and fever. In Europe, the flowers are made into a syrup or cordial (in Romanian: Socată), which is diluted with water before drinking. The popularity of this traditional drink has recently encouraged some commercial soft drink producers to introduce elderflower-flavoured drinks (Fanta Shokata). The flowers can also be used to make a mildly alcoholic, sparkling elderflower 'champagne'