Homemade Syrup

Syrup - perhaps the easiest thing in the world to make from scratch. When I was growing up, I had no idea there was such a thing as syrup in a bottle. I don’t think my mother EVER bought any, yet pancakes were our weekly after-church on Sunday brunch. We ate them weekly, but never had anything other than hot, from the pot, homemade yummy syrup. Mostly, my mother made maple syrup using maple extract added to boiling sugar water. But she also made a variety of fruit syrups. One of the things I discovered while living in England was amazing, tropical fruit juices, like the ones I have been able to buy during my trips to Hawaii. Shortly after our arrival in England and our move into our leased house, an American friend working with my husband had to return home for a family emergency. When she came back to England, she brought with her a large bag of pancake mix. I hadn’t seen this product anywhere in England, even though the store where we mostly shopped was the English Walmart. Our way of eating in the U.S. just doesn’t translate into other countries. Since everyone else working for the same company as my husband was separated from their families and we were one of less than a handful of employees who weren’t living out of a hotel, she gifted us (I think that had been her intention all along, the reason she brought the mix back with her) this big bag. I adopted my mother’s practice from my childhood and began making pancakes (flapjacks in real English) every Sunday after church. The neighborhood kids had only heard of this delicacy and would gather outside the house in the “garden” (yard, to Americans) every Sunday afternoon, hoping for a taste and eager to hear what type of syrup I had made that week. Every week, I would send one of the kids next door to our neighbor’s house, Kim, with this week’s sample. I usually divided at least one amongst the kids gathered outside so they could have a taste. My flapjacks and syrup became legendary in our small neighborhood.

To make luscious homemade syrup, you only need two things - sugar and juice. I don’t measure anything. The amount of finished product will be very nearly what you start with, although the thickening process reduces the volume by about 1/4. To start, take any nice fruit juice, like kiwi strawberry, pineapple orange, mango coconut . . . and add 1 part juice to 1/2 part sugar. In other words, a ratio of 2:1, juice to regular granulated sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring at the beginning until the sugar is dissolved, and cook until it reaches desired thickness. Until you have a practiced hand, always stop short of the thickness you want. Syrup thickens as it cools, and you don’t want rock candy! Remove from heat, spoon over your pancakes, and you have a delicious homemade fruit syrup.

In the absence of those delicious juices, you can make any kind of syrup you desire by using extracts. For this method, add the sugar to plain water. Once it reaches the desired thickness, add a few drops of pure extract, then taste and adjust accordingly. Because I prefer my syrup a little tart, I often add lemon juice, also, to balance out the sugar. This is how you get homemade maple syrup without tapping the tree in your  or your neighbor’s backyard. Add maple extract and you’d never know this started as simply sugar water. Having hot syrup makes ALL the difference.

In my house, I always have an abundance of blueberries, thanks to my tangle of beautiful, healthy blueberry bushes. To make blueberry, or any other fresh fruit, syrup, first put your fruit in a saucepan, cover with water, and boil until most of the water has evaporated. Add more water and repeat. Be sure to keep an eye on this process. The water can all boil away and leave you with cooked-on berries and a huge mess if you’re not careful. I usually refill the water 3-4 times with fresh berries to get all the juice released and for the best finished product. If you’re using fruit, not berries, 2-3 refills of water should do the trick. Next, strain your remaining liquid, unless you want chunky syrup. I prefer smooth syrups, so I always strain. The liquid strained out is then measured, returned to the pan, and half as much sugar added. You can enhance the flavor with a touch of cinnamon, a drop or two of vanilla, or lemon juice. Bring this mixture to a boil and reduce as with the recipes above. So very simple!

I’ve also been known to make coconut syrup to pour over pancakes full of chopped macadamia nuts, my mother’s all-time favorite breakfast, specifically because it brought back memories of sun-baked beach days in Hawaii and touring the island in a rental Jeep with my father while he was on TDY from Vietnam. One year, after Christmas, I found bags of flaked coconut left over from the season marked down to pennies ($.47/ea., to be exact). I bought many of them, brought them home, and tossed them in the freezer for some future, still undetermined, purpose. One day, after a recent visit to Hawaii, I decided to attempt coconut syrup for my children. I dumped a bag into water, brought it to a boil, and added sugar. It didn’t get too thick. The taste was lovely, but the coconut globbed in the bottom of the kettle, which was good for me, because my son doesn’t like coconut. I was able to scoop off the top and give him flavorful syrup without pieces of coconut. My daughter and I LOVED the syrupy coconut at the bottom of the pan.

If you’ve never made your own, homemade syrup, try it one day. The delicious, hot topping just may make a convert of you and, just think - no more high fructose corn syrup mascarading as maple!