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This simple strawberry syrup uses just 3 ingredients (and water!) and can be made in just 15 minutes. Use within drinks, drizzled over desserts and pancakes, or as a thicker sauce. Plus this recipe uses all-natural ingredients and is refined sugar-free, vegan, and can be made keto!
While I can admit that this strawberry syrup first came about as a drizzle for my homemade strawberries and cream Frappuccino, the uses for this sauce are endless. Plus, this recipe actually includes three methods of making it depending on if you want a thin clear syrup, thicker syrup, or chunky sauce– so there’s something for everyone!
As convenient as buying commercial syrups can be, they’re packed with nasty ingredients, syrups, and artificial ingredients that aren’t good for our bodies. In comparison, this homemade strawberry sauce is made with just 3 all-natural ingredients– including fresh strawberries (and no preservatives!). Plus, you can adjust the amount of sweetener used to your personal taste, great for reducing sugar levels if needs be!
Having already recently posted my recipes for homemade berry jams including Strawberry Jam, Raspberry, and Blackberry. This berry season is officially taking over my life (and my kitchen!) and I’m not angry about it one bit.
Unlike commercial versions, this syrup is thinner in consistency– perfect for mixing into drinks or using as a drizzle. However, if you do want a thicker syrup, then I’ve added methods for that.
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The Ingredients
- Strawberries: You can use fresh or frozen strawberries (thaw first). This also works with overripe berries too.
- Sweetener: I used maple syrup, however, you can swap this for your favorite one. If you want to make a sugar free strawberry syrup then use any keto-friendly sweetener like erythritol.
- Vanilla Extract: Use homemade or store-bought.
- Water: I use filtered water for the best quality.
Optional: Add a little fresh lemon juice to help maintain the color and fresh flavor of the syrup whilst storing.
One Recipe Made Three Ways
As I mentioned above, I’ve included a bonus two methods preparing this strawberry syrup, depending on the consistency and thickness that you prefer.
For A Clear, Simple Syrup: Simply follow the recipe below. If you want a thicker version then you can either continue to reduce the sauce for longer (though this takes a lot of time) OR add a little cornstarch after straining the syrup and allow to boil for a further minute before removing from the heat and allowing to cool.
For an Unstrained Syrup: Blend the strawberries into a juice before adding to the pan and follow the recipe as provided. You can still strain the mixture, if wanted, to get out any larger bits of seeds, though this isn’t necessary.
For A Chunky Sauce: This is the kind of strawberry sauce for pancake – plenty of liquid but also chunks of fresh berries too. For this sauce, finely dice the strawberries and allow to simmer with the additional ingredients for 6-8 minutes until the berries have softened and released their juice. Then add in a little cornstarch. This syrup will need to be used within 5 days, as it retains big fruit pieces in it.
A Note On Using Cornstarch:
When ever adding cornstarch to a sauce it’s best to make it into a slurry (paste) first by adding it with a tiny bit of water and then adding this to the sauce. That way you avoid getting any lumps in the sauce.
When thickening the syrup you have the choice of either heating it for longer, to further reduce, or adding a little cornstarch. I prefer to add cornstarch as it massively reduces the cooking time. Thus, you have a ‘fresher’ tasting syrup too.
How To Make Strawberry Syrup
First, Remove the stems from the strawberries.
If you’re not worried about having a cloudy syrup then lightly mash the berries with a fork or potato masher. Alternatively, slice into quarters and take care not to mash the pieces while they cook.
In a medium saucepan, combine all the ingredients. Cook over medium heat and bring to a boil then reduce the heat slightly and simmer for about 15-20 minutes for the berries to soften and release their juices and the sauce to thicken slightly.
Sieve the mixture to remove the strawberry pulp.
TOP TIP: when sieving the strawberry mixture, making sure not to press the pulp/ pieces at all or else this will make your syrup cloudy.
Once you’ve sieved the syrup then you can further reduce it for a few minutes to allow it to thicken slightly more. Or remove from the heat immediately and allow to cool.
Transfer to an airtight jar and place in the fridge.
Optional Flavor Add-Ins
There are several ways you can easily add extra flavor to this _.
- Add a little vanilla extract or fresh vanilla
- Use other extracts, such as almond extract.
- Infuse with a little chili or ginger
- You could also infuse with herbs. Rosemary and mint both pair well with strawberry. Just err on the side of caution and only add a little when first experimenting with the herbs. Otherwise, the herbs can overpower the flavor.
- You could also combine the strawberries with other fruits. Some of my favorite suggestions include rhubarb, raspberries, peach, and nectarine.
Let me know in the comments if you have other favorite flavor suggestions!
How To Store
This syrup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for around 3 weeks.
You may be able to freeze and thaw this, though I haven’t tried so I don’t know for sure how it will affect the texture. If you give it a go, let me know in the comments.
How To Use
Here are just a few of my top picks:
- Drizzle over other drinks like milkshakes, hot chocolate, and this Strawberries and Cream Frappuccino.
- Mix into milk (dairy or any of these Vegan, Dairy-Free Milk options) for quick strawberry milk.
- Mix into mocktails, cocktails and soda – like this Homemade Lemonade.
- Pour over ice-cream – like this Instant Ice-Cream.
- Drizzle over desserts – like this Simple Fresh Fruit Sushi (Dessert Sushi), cheesecakes, pies, etc.
- Drizzle over pancakes, waffles, and more – like this Fluffy Japanese Style Pancake Cake, Mini Pancake Cereal, or Quick And Easy French Toast Recipe.
- Use as a dip for dishes like these Fresh Summer Rolls or for fresh fruit.
Recipe Notes & Variations
- You can adjust the amount of sweetener used according to your tastebuds. Start by adding half of my suggested amount and then increasing as needed. Make sure to do this while the sauce is still hot, so the sweetener probably dissolves into the mixture.
- Use the leftover strawberry pulp to top pancakes, ice-cream, waffles, or mix into a yogurt bowl (with dairy yogurt or coconut yogurt)
- You can use the strawberry stalks too. Just chuck these straight into a smoothie (like any of these- Guide to Healthy Smoothie Recipes, for additional nutrients.
Related Recipes
If you give this strawberry syrup recipe a go, then let me know your thoughts and any questions in the comments. Also, feel free to tag me in your recreations @AlphaFoodie.
Simple Homemade Strawberry Syrup (3 Ways)
Ingredients
- 2 cups strawberries fresh or frozen (and thawed)
- 1 cup water
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup or sweetener of choice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract optional
Instructions
- First, Remove the stems from the strawberries.
- If you’re not worried about having a cloudy syrup then lightly mash the berries with a fork or potato masher. Alternatively, slice into quarters and take care not to mash the pieces while they cook.
- In a medium saucepan, combine all the ingredients. Cook over medium heat and bring to a boil then reduce the heat slightly and simmer for about 15-20 minutes for the berries to soften and release their juices and the sauce to thicken slightly.
- Sieve the mixture to remove the strawberry pulp.TOP TIP: when sieving the strawberry mixture, making sure not to press the pulp/ pieces at all or else this will make your syrup cloudy.
- Once you’ve sieved the syrup then you can further reduce it for a few minutes to allow it to thicken slightly more. Or remove from the heat immediately and allow to cool.
- Transfer to an airtight jar and place in the fridge.
How To Store
- This syrup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for around 3 weeks. This may be freezer friendly too, though I haven't tried.
Video
Notes
- You can adjust the amount of sweetener used according to your tastebuds. Start by adding half of my suggested amount and then increasing as needed. Make sure to do this while the sauce is still hot, so the sweetener probably dissolves into the mixture.
- Use the leftover strawberry pulp to top pancakes, ice-cream, waffles, or mix into a yogurt bowl (with dairy yogurt or coconut yogurt)
- You can use the strawberry stalks too. Just chuck these straight into a smoothie (like any of these- Guide to Healthy Smoothie Recipes, for additional nutrients.Â
- Whenever adding cornstarch to a sauce it’s best to make it into a slurry (paste) first by adding it with a tiny bit of water and then adding this to the sauce. That way you avoid getting any lumps in the sauce.Â
Read the post for a list of optional flavor add-ins.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
