Vanilla Syrup

Once you start making coffee syrups at home you genuinely cannot go back to buying them at the store and vanilla syrup is the one that started it all for me. Three ingredients, five minutes, and a smooth sweet vanilla syrup that makes every single coffee drink taste like it came from a specialty coffee shop. This is the base syrup that goes into almost every latte, cold foam, and iced coffee recipe on this blog and having a jar of it in the fridge at all times has completely changed my morning routine.

Store bought vanilla syrups are mostly just sugar water with artificial vanilla flavoring and a list of preservatives that does not need to be there. When you make it at home with real vanilla extract you get that warm, rich, floral vanilla flavor that tastes completely different from the artificial version in the best possible way. Water and sugar simmered together until the sugar dissolves and reduces by half, then pulled off the heat and finished with a generous tablespoon of real vanilla extract while it is still warm so the flavor blooms into the syrup beautifully. That is the whole process.

The reduce by fifty percent step is important and worth paying attention to. A thicker syrup dissolves into cold drinks so much better than a thin one and holds its flavor more consistently whether you are adding it to hot lattes, cold brew, iced coffee, or a sweet cream cold foam. Stir it every few minutes while it simmers so the sugar does not stick to the bottom and watch it until it looks noticeably thicker and more syrupy before you pull it off the heat. Let it cool completely before transferring to a syrup bottle and into the fridge where it keeps for up to three weeks.

This vanilla syrup is the foundation of so many drinks on this blog. The sweet cream cold foam, the sugar cookie chai latte, the teddy graham shaken espresso, any latte that calls for vanilla sweetness. Make a batch once a week and keep it stocked and your morning coffee situation will be completely transformed. Three ingredients, five minutes, and a coffee shop pantry staple you will wonder how you ever lived without.

Vanilla Syrup

A simple homemade vanilla syrup made with one cup water, one cup granulated sugar, and one tablespoon real vanilla extract simmered until reduced by fifty percent and smooth. Ready in five minutes, keeps in the fridge for three weeks, and the essential coffee syrup base for lattes, cold brew, iced coffee, and sweet cream cold foam.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Servings 40

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup water
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbs vanilla extract

Instructions

 

• Combine water and sugar in a medium sauce pot over medium heat and bring to a boil.
• Stir every few minutes to keep the sugar from sticking to the bottom.
• Once sugar is dissolved and reduced by 50% remove from heat.
• Stir in vanilla and let cool.
• Transfer to a syrup bottle and enjoy for up to 3 weeks!

Keyword coffee