How To Make Fire Cider (all natural cold and flu remedy)

My step mom first introduced fire cider to me last fall when I was pregnant with Ronin and coming down with a horrible cold.  She brought me in her kitchen, told me to plug my nose and take a big spoonful of this beet colored "cider." I am super weird and I love the taste of pickled anything so I thought it was delicious.  My husband, who also tasted it thought I was nuts.  She gave me a whole jar and within a few days I was feeling normal again.  My cold was completely gone.  She recently brought over a brand new batch and was awesome enough to share her recipe with me.  So today I will be passing it on to you.   
Fire cider is an all natural herbal remedy that can be taken daily or at the onset of a cold or flu.  It helps to break up congestion and ward off yucky flu and cold like symptoms.  The combination of ingredients help naturally boost your immune system.  Fire cider is nothing new.  It has been used for centuries by people all over the world.  We have just become so accustomed to calling the doctor or running to the store to get cold meds the moment we feel sick, it has become less common to hear about natural remedies.  

The ingredients used in this recipe are:
Raw organic unfiltered apple cider vinegar- read all about the benefits of here.
Horseradish-contains natural antibiotic properties. 
Garlic-natural antibiotic.  Promotes sweating, which is important if you are experiencing flu like symptoms. Garlic also helps regulate blood sugar levels.
Ginger- a natural circulatory stimulant and helps ease nausea.
Onion- helps naturally detoxify your body.
Beets- super rich in antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory benefits.
Parsley- it is very high in iron and vitamin C.  It is also a blood purifier and helps kill bacteria in the body.  Read a little more about it here.

What you need:
A large mason jar
Raw organic unfiltered apple cider vinegar
3 tbs of grated horseradish root or pure horseradish 
3 tbs of grated ginger root (find this at a health food store)
A small onion
One head of garlic
3 tbs of fresh parsley
1 cup of organic beets

Directions:

1. Chop up all the ingredients into tiny pieces (the horseradish and ginger will need to be grated).
2. Place everything in the bottom of the mason jar.  
3. Pour the apple cider vinegar in over the herbs.  Fill the mason jar with it until it reaches the very top.  Make sure you see no air bubbles and secure the lid tightly.
4. Place this is the fridge. 
5. Allow the herbs to steep for 2-4 weeks (the longer the better).  Do NOT open the jar at all until you are ready to strain everything out.  
6. At the end of the 2-4 weeks strain everything out of the jar.
7. You can use the leftover herbs to saute up fresh veggies if you want so nothing goes to waste.  This is SO yummy.  

Keep this tonic in the fridge and use daily (1-2 Tbs) or whenever you feel a cold or flu coming on.  

To answer your questions ahead of time about whether or not you can substitute ingredients or leave something that, that is up to you.  This is the only recipe that I have personally used and I have not yet experimented with other ingredients or leaving ingredients out.