The Simplicity of a Simple Syrup

Simple syrups are truly simple - a syrup made of equal parts water and sugar. For this tip, we are going to talk about how you make simple syrups and how to flavor them. Several posts have talked about using a simple syrup for drinks and sauces, but I have never really talked about how to make one. A word of caution here: when you are making a simple syrup, the difficulty is that you cannot taste the hot syrup because it will give your mouth third degree burns, but the article shows you how to safely taste your flavored syrup.

Simple syrup ingredients

1 cup water

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cinnamon stick or any flavoring

Simple syrup preparation

Over medium heat in small/medium size sauce pot, add your water.

Adding water to sauce pot

Once the water begins to boil, add the cinnamon stick.

Adding cinnamon stick

Gently stir the water while boiling for 2 to 3 minutes.

Boiling the cinnamon stick

Once the water starts to boil, taste it to see if it has the right amount of cinnamon flavor. The key here is to get the flavor correct before adding the sugar because you will not be able to taste the mixture until it cools.

Checking the taste before adding the sugar

Let the mixture steep and cool for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the cinnamon stick.

Add the sugar and stir to dissolve it in the liquid.

Adding sugar to the sauce pot

After the mixture boils and the sugar completely dissolves, cook mixture for 5 to 7 minutes. Gently stir the mixture to check viscosity. Note: Now that the syrup is finished, handle it with caution because this hot liquid can cause third degree burns!

At this point, use a toothpick to check the flavor.

Checking the flavor of the finished syrup with a toothpick

If you need to add some flavoring, you can do so but be careful because the flavor will intensify with time.

Finished syrup

Bon Appetit!