Elderberry Gummies
Elderberry Gummies are my motherhood hack! My kids love them and they keep both of them from catching every virus that comes our way!
When Hugo started preschool in September, he brought the plague with him. I’m not exaggerating when I say he had one nasty cold after the other for the entire month and most of October.
Then Fiona got sick, and it was just miserable around here. I felt resigned to it, figuring that since this was his first time exposed to a group of kids every day like that, it would be germ central and eventually he’d get an immunity to it and be all good.
It was miserable though. I hate when my kids are sick. They don’t eat and sleep well, they are cranky, and it just seems to make everything more tricky.
Around mid October a friend mentioned they were making Elderberry Gummies and I knew right away they would be awesome for Hugo. He is obsessed with anything “gummy,” and when I found dinosaur molds I knew it would be perfect. He begs for these. I use them as incentive to finish his dinner and he gets really excited to choose which dinosaur he gets.
I’m not joking when I say that he has had 1-2 elderberry gummies every day since I made my first batch early November and he hasn’t been sick save last week when I ran out. They are such a great way to get all this good stuff in his little body and I’m obsessed.
I’ve known for awhile that elderberry syrup is amazing for immune system boosting, but getting him to take a spoonful without making a huge mess seemed impossible. It would always drip all over and never seemed worth it.
In addition to that the elderberry gummies each have a drop of Vitamin D, which I never remember to give, as well as manuka honey and grass-fed gelatin. Just google manuka honey to read about the many many health benefits, but when I found a jar at Trader Joes for way less than anywhere else, I picked it up and felt great about using it here. Any other raw honey would also be wonderful.
The other secret ingredient that has tons of health benefits is a high quality grass fed gelatin. I knew that bone broth is said to have many healing powers, and gelatin has the same! It’s great for your skin, bones, and so many more things. (Seriously just google it– I did!)
These cute little eldeberry gummies are packed with so many immune boosting and good for you things, and the fact that my almost 3-year-old is obsessed with them is just perfect. I make a batch every few weeks and store them in the fridge. The recipe includes one for homemade elderberry syrup which Andy & I try to take spoonfuls of every day as well. I can’t give any of this to Fiona yet because of the honey, but since we’ve all been healthy luckily she has too!
Elderberry Wellness Gummies
Ingredients
For the syrup:
- ⅔ cup dried elderberries
- 3½ cups of water
- 1-2 teaspoons ginger
- 1-2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon cloves
- 1 cup raw or manuka honey*
- ½ cup hot water (not boiling)
- ¼ cup gelatin powder (I use this one
- Vitamin D drops
- silicone molds
Instructions
First make the syrup:
- Combine the elderberries, water and spices in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes.
- Strain the mixture and stir the honey into the liquid. Measure one cup of the syrup for the gummies and let the rest cool before storing in the fridge.
For the gummies:
- Stir the warm syrup into the gelatin to activate it. Add the hot water and whisk until smooth. If the gelatin hasn't dissolved, warm the whole mixture until smooth.
- Place the silcone molds on a cookie sheet or large flat plate. Drop one dose of Vitamin D into each gummy well, and then carefully pour the syrup mixture into each mold.
- Place the cookie sheet and molds in the fridge and chill until firm. Pop the gummies out of the molds and place in an airtight container in the fridge.
Notes
*Any type of honey works, but I suggest manuka or raw organic honey for additional health benefits
Gummies will last 2-3 weeks if kept airtight in the fridge.
Recipe adapted from: Wellness Mama
This post contains Amazon affiliate links. Every item linked I purchased and used for this recipe!
I so hear you on the germ factory front. It has been the same-constant illness-in my house since my little guy started daycare last fall. I’ve thought about finding a gummy multivitamin but really love the idea of making my own thing like this. And what adorable molds! I might look for some car molds-those are my little’s current obsession. :)
These look great, Audra. I have a couple questions:
How long can the remaining syrup be stored in the fridge?
and
Could you add probiotic to these?
Thanks!
Hi!! My syrup lasts for 2-3 weeks or so. Usually I make one batch of gummies and the rest of the syrup the adults take daily!
I don’t see why not re:probiotics! Great idea!
Is it weird I want to make these for myself (even though I’m old) hehe Great recipe!!
You should! They are really good for adults too!
Would just regular Knox gelatin powder work in these? We’ve been going through the same thing with colds every other week from preschool! I def wanna give these a try.
Yes for sure, I just think grass-fed gelatin has additional nutritional benefits that make these even better for you!
Just made these last night and my son loved them!!! Question tho…I actually halved it because I realized I didn’t have enough gelatin and I’m glad I did because it filled all the molds I had (I have tiny gummy bear molds tho). How many of the dinosaur molds does one recipe make for you…i’m gonna buy them and don’t know if I should get 2 or 4?
Yay I’m glad! I would get 2 sets of 2 molds for one batch. Before I had 2 sets I would just let one batch set- then pop them out and do the next one! :
thank you!
I really need to make a batch of these! Camille and I both have frequent ear infections! But I have a question about baby Hugo…at what age can you start saying ‘if you finish your dinner, you get a treat?’ Camille is 20 months, and it sometimes works, sometimes, doesn’t. I don’t know if she doesn’t understand or just doesn’t care.
LOVE YOU MAMA.
Sorry for the late reply!
Ok- so I don’t think Hugo really took to bribes until after 2. Definitely not at 20 months. We have had so many periods of great eating and then not so great, but I don’t have too many memories of treats being used as incentive before 2.5 or so. Hang in there- bribery is just around the corner haha!
xoxoxo
Remy also continues to bring the plague home from music class, although the rest of us always get way more sick than she does (methinks because of all the breast milk…maybe I should start drinking it?). Definitely going to consider getting myself some elderberry syrup!
I have some elderberry syrup… Can I use this instead of the dried elderberries?
Sure!
Hi, Audra. I love your name! ;)
I was wondering if the gummies stick together in the storage container. If so, have you tried dusting them successfully with anything to prevent that?
Hi!!! Mine don’t stick at all :)
Hello! I want to make some of these but the molds you linked to on Amazon are out of stock – how much volume does each cavity hold? I want to make sure the dose size it right, there are other fun shapes but its so hard to tell mold sizes on amazon.
fresh ginger or ginger in the spice section? like dried ginger?
I used dried, but you could use some fresh ginger and then strain it out!
How many would you say is a serving?
Hi Audra! How many drops of the vitamin D do you put in? The article said one dose, but the bottle says one dose is 4 drops. I did that and noticed that it looked like the vitamin D was sitting in the bottom of the mold when I went to take them out? And they took a really long time to Gel…. is this normal? I’m going to try another batch today with just one drop of Vitamin D per mold.
Thanks!
Hi there! Thank you for this awesome recipe! I’d like to know, do the gummies stick together?
I just made a batch but mine seems to be more jello consistency than gummy. Any tips?
Hi, Audra. This article is really wonderful. Thanks for sharing with us.
Adding up honey can help to taste elderberry gummies better but I just want to know if gummies can achieve citrus taste as my kids loves it.